Rihana is an Arabic name related to fragrance and sweet basil, suggesting 'aromatic plant.'
Rihana is an Arabic feminine name meaning "sweet basil" or "fragrant herb," derived from the Arabic word rayḥāna (ريحانة), which refers specifically to the aromatic herb known in English as basil — a plant prized across the Mediterranean and Middle East for its intoxicating fragrance. In classical Arabic poetry, rayḥāna appears as a metaphor for something precious, sweetly scented, and worthy of being cherished. The name thus carries an intrinsic sensory poetry: to name a daughter Rihana is to invoke both natural beauty and the ancient perfumed gardens of the Arabic literary tradition.
The name has deep roots across the Arab world and among Muslim communities globally, where it has been used for generations as both a given name and a term of endearment. It also exists as a distinct Welsh name — Rhianna or Rianna — derived from Rhiannon, the name of the enchanted queen of Welsh mythology whose story is told in the Mabinogion, where she rides a white horse that no rider can catch and endures great suffering with silent dignity. The Welsh Rhiannon is thought to derive from a Celtic root meaning "great queen" or "divine queen," related to the Gaulish goddess Rigantona.
This dual heritage — Arabic fragrance and Celtic myth — gives Rihana an unusually rich set of possible meanings. Globally, the name achieved its greatest visibility through Robyn Rihanna Fenty, the Barbadian singer known professionally as Rihanna, whose middle name is the spelling most associated with her. The variant Rihana, with a single 'n,' preserves the name's Arabic orthographic roots more closely and continues to be used in Muslim communities from Morocco to Malaysia as a name both classical and melodic.