Sofia

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈsoʊfiə/, /ˈsoʊfijə/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈsəʊfi.ə/, /sɒˈfiːə/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊfiə

Variant spelling of Sophia and from various other languages' own adaptations of Ancient Greek Σοφία (Sophía, “wisdom, especially divine wisdom”). Sometimes borrowed into English as an anglicization of an accented or closely related form, as with Spanish Sofía, Welsh Soffia, and Hungarian Zsófia.

As the capital of Bulgaria, via nonstandard romanization of Bulgarian Со́фия (Sófiya), from църква „Света София“ (cǎrkva "Sveta Sofija"), from Byzantine Greek Ναός Ἁγίας Σοφίας (Naós Hagías Sophías, “Church of Holy Wisdom”), the city's prominent 6th-century Byzantine Greek church, first attested being used as the name for the city in the 14th century and reinforced under Ottoman rule as Ottoman Turkish صوفیه (Sofya). Compare the name of the Hagia Sophia.

Sofia

1. A female given name, variant of Sophia.
3. The capital city of Bulgaria.

• (Bulgarian capital): Sofya (historical)

• (Bulgarian capital): Serdica, Serdonpolis, Triaditza, Sredets (historical)

• Sofian

From Malagasy Sofia of uncertain origin. The region is named for the river.

Sofia

1. A river in northwestern Madagascar.
2. A region of Madagascar around the river.

• James Sibree Jr., "Malagasy Place-Names", Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, New Ser., Vol. XV, No. 3 (July 1883), p. 193.

• FOIAs, FIOAs

Sofia

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)

• Sofioot
• Sofioties

Sofia f

1. a female given name

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [suˈfi.ə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [soˈfi.a]

Sofia f

1. a female given name, equivalent to English Sophia
2. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)

Sofia

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)
2. a female given name, variant of Sofie, equivalent to English Sophia

• IPA^(key): /ˈsoː.ˌfijaː/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: So‧fia

Sofia n

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)

• IPA^(key): /ˈsofiɑ̯/, [ˈsofˑiɑ̯]

Sofia

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)

Ultimately from Ancient Greek σοφία (sophía). The sense "Sofia (Bulgaria)" is through Bulgarian Со́фия (Sófija).

• IPA^(key): /ˈsofiɑ/, [ˈs̠o̞fiɑ̝]
• Rhymes: -ofiɑ
• Syllabification^(key): So‧fi‧a
• Hyphenation^(key): So‧fia

Sofia

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)
2. a female given name, equivalent to English Sophia
   • 1959, Väinö Linna, Täällä Pohjantähden alla 1, WSOY, published 1965, page 181:

     Kehdossa makasi juuri äskettäin pappilassa kasteella ollut tyttö, jonka nimenkin rouva muisti: Elma. Se oli hänen antamansa nimi. Vanhemmat olivat tahtoneet Sofiaa, mutta rouva oli saanut kuin saanutkin tytölle suomalaisperäisen nimen. Tosin vain siksi ettei Anttoo pitänyt asiaa millään tavoin tärkeänä.

     There was a girl just christened still lying out in the cradle, and the old lady hadn't forgotten her name: Elma, the name she had picked. The parents would've liked a Sofia, but in the end a Finnish name was picked, although just because Anttoo didn't think the matter was of any importance.

   • 1990, Riitta Vartti, Sun lapsuutes, Gummerus, →ISBN, page 407:

     —Äiti, minkäs takia mummun nimi on Adalmina ja Sohvi-tätin nimi on Sofia, vaikkei ne oo mitää ruotsinkielisiä?
     —No, ohan meiän vanha sukunimiki S-t-rantperk, vaikkei sitä osaa kukaa ees lausuu oikei. Ennen vanhaa ihmisille pantii sellasia nimiä. Meiän setähä se suomens nimesä ja se on Rantakallio nytte.

     —Mom, why is grandma named Adalmina and auntie Sohvi named Sofia, even though they don't speak Swedish?
     —Well, our old surname's S-t-rantperk too, but nobody can even pronounce that right. People used to give names like that back then. Our uncle got his translated into Finnish and is now a Rantakallio.

• (given name) Sohvi, Sonja

• Sofia is the 57^th most common female given name in Finland, belonging to 11,893 female individuals (and as a middle name to 51,221 more, making it more common as a middle name), and also belongs to 6 male individuals (and as a middle name to 12 more, making it more common as a middle name), according to February 2023 data from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency of Finland.

• IPA^(key): /sɔ.fja/

• Audio:

  (file)

Sofia f

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)

• Audio:

  (file)

Sofia f (proper noun, genitive Sofias or Sofia, plural Sofias)

1. a female given name, a less common variant of Sophia

Borrowed from Bulgarian Со́фия (Sófija).

Sofia n (proper noun, genitive Sofias or (optionally with an article) Sofia)

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)

See Sophia.

• IPA^(key): /soˈfi.a/^[1]
• Homophone: sofia
• Rhymes: -ia
• Hyphenation: So‧fì‧a

Sofia f

1. a female given name, equivalent to English Sophia

Borrowed from Bulgarian София (Sofija, “Sophie, Sophia”), named after the Church of St. Sofia.

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɔ.fja/^[1]
• Rhymes: -ɔfja
• Hyphenation: Sò‧fia

Sofia f

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)

• afosi

From Bulgarian София (Sofija), renamed after the Church of St. Sofia in 1376.

Sofia

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)

Sofia

1. a female given name, variant of Sofie, equivalent to English Sophia

From Bulgarian София (Sofija), renamed after the Church of St. Sofia in 1376.

Sofia

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)

Sofia

1. a female given name, variant of Sofie, equivalent to English Sophia

Borrowed from Bulgarian Со́фия (Sófija).

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɔ.fja/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔfja
• Syllabification: So‧fia

Sofia f

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)

• Sofia in Polish dictionaries at PWN

• Hyphenation: So‧fi‧a

Sofia f (plural Sofias)

1. a female given name, equivalent to English Sophia

• IPA^(key): [ˈsɔfi̯a]

Sofia f (genitive singular Sofie, declension pattern of ulica)

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)

• “Sofia”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2003–2025

Ultimately of Ancient Greek origin. First recorded as a given name in Sweden in 1380 as Sophia.

• IPA^(key): /sʊ²fiːa/

• Audio:

  (file)

Sofia c (genitive Sofias)

1. Sofia (the capital city of Bulgaria)
2. a female given name, equivalent to English Sophia

• (given name): Sofi, Sofie, Sonja, Sophia, Sophie

• Roland Otterbjörk: Svenska förnamn, Almqvist & Wiksell 1996, →ISBN
• [1] Statistiska centralbyrån and Sture Allén, Staffan Wåhlin, Förnamnsboken, Norstedts 1995, →ISBN: 88 488 females with the given name Sofia living in Sweden on December 31st, 2010, with frequency peaks in the 19th century and in the 1990s. Accessed on 19 June 2011.