Feminine form of Justin, from Latin 'justus' meaning 'just, righteous, fair'.
Justina is the Latinate feminine form of Justin, itself descended from the Roman family name Justinus, rooted in iustus — meaning just, righteous, or lawful. The name entered Christian hagiography early and with force: Saint Justina of Padua was a fourth-century martyr venerated across northern Italy, and a second Saint Justina of Antioch became one of the early church's most celebrated virgin martyrs, her story eventually intertwining with that of the magician-turned-saint Cyprian. The Venetian Benedictine congregation that later reformed European monasticism took its name from the Paduan saint's basilica.
Through the medieval and Renaissance periods, Justina remained primarily an Italian and Spanish name, flowering in Catholic regions where the saints' feast days kept it alive. It spread into Central and Eastern Europe through ecclesiastical influence, becoming Justyna in Poland and Justína in Czech and Slovak communities, where it still appears with quiet regularity. The name's meaning — justice personified in female form — gave it a moral gravitas that fit the religious naming culture of centuries past.
In the English-speaking world, Justina has always lived in the shadow of its sibling Justin, which surged dramatically in the late twentieth century. But Justina carries something Justin lacks: historical depth, a trail of saints and scholars, and the Latinate fullness that has made names like Valentina and Seraphina fashionable again. For parents who want justice as a value encoded in a name, Justina offers both the meaning and a long, serious pedigree.