Minerva was the Roman goddess of wisdom, crafts and strategic warfare, the counterpart of the Greek Athena. The name is Etruscan in origin and has long been linked to the Latin mens, so it is usually read as "mind" or "wisdom". For today's parents it also recalls Professor Minerva McGonagall of the Harry Potter books. In the United States Minerva ranked number 2847 in 2000, peaked at number 2086 in 2023 and stands at number 2112 among girls' names in 2025.