Latoya (given name)

Latoya is a feminine given name. Other variations of Latoya include Letoya. It is widely believed to be a variation of Toya, a Spanish nickname for Victoria. However, its origins are more ancient, being derived from "Latona", the Latin name of Leto, the Greco-Roman Mother Goddess, who by Zeus gave birth to Artemis and Apollo. It is because Leto/Latona was forced to give birth to her twins in hiding, on a floating island, that the name Latoya means "a flower that blooms and grows inspite of the darkness." Latoya is, therefore, associated with the lotus and the asiatic lilly.

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