Iona

Iona is a Scottish island name used as a personal name. The island lies off the western coast of Scotland near Mull, and its landscape gives the name an immediate geographical identity. The deeper history of the island's name is debated, so the place itself is a firmer meaning than any single proposed translation.

Iona has an important religious history. Columba arrived from Ireland with twelve companions in 563 and founded a monastery there, helping make the island a center of early Christianity in the region. The abbey visible today belongs to a later phase of that history. As a baby name, Iona can therefore connect coastal scenery with a specific place of pilgrimage, learning, and community.