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Definition of persona - 7 dictionary results

per⋅so⋅na

  [per-soh-nuh]
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–noun, plural -nae  [-nee] , -nas.
1. a person.
2. personae, the characters in a play, novel, etc.
3. the narrator of or a character in a literary work, sometimes identified with the author.
4. (in the psychology of C. G. Jung) the mask or façade presented to satisfy the demands of the situation or the environment and not representing the inner personality of the individual; the public personality (contrasted with anima ).
5. a person's perceived or evident personality, as that of a well-known official, actor, or celebrity; personal image; public role.
Origin:
1905–10; < L persōna mask, character. See person
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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per·so·na   (pər-sō'nə)   
n.  
  1. pl. per·so·nas or per·so·nae (-nē) A voice or character representing the speaker in a literary work.
  2. personae The characters in a dramatic or literary work.
  3. pl. personas The role that one assumes or displays in public or society; one's public image or personality, as distinguished from the inner self.

[Latin persōna; see person.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Persona

Per*so"na\, n.; pl. Person[ae]. [L.] (Biol.) Same as Person, n., 8.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : persona
Spanish: persona, *animal de ocho años de edad,
German: der, *die Achtjährige,
Japanese: ８歳の人
More Translations »

persona 
1917, "outward or social personality," a Jungian psychology term, from L. persona "person" (see person). Used earlier (1909) by Ezra Pound in the sense "literary character representing voice of the author." Persona grata (1882) is from L.L., lit. "an acceptable person," originally applied to diplomatic representatives acceptable to the governments to which they were sent; persona non grata is attested from 1904 (pl. is personæ non gratæ).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: per·so·na
Pronunciation: p&r-'sO-n&, -"nä
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural personas
: anindividual's social facade or front that especially in the analytic psychology of C. G. Jung reflects the role in life the individual is playing —compare ANIMA 1
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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persona per·so·na (pər-sō'nə)
n. pl. per·so·nas or per·so·nae (-nē)
The role that one assumes or displays in public or society; one's public image or personality, as distinguished from the inner self.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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persona

in literature, the person who is understood to be speaking (or thinking or writing) a particular work. The persona is almost invariably distinct from the author; it is the voice chosen by the author for a particular artistic purpose. The persona may be a character in the work or merely an unnamed narrator; but, insofar as the manner and style of expression in the work exhibit taste, prejudice, emotion, or other characteristics of a human personality, the work may be said to be in the voice of a persona

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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