diva

thumb|American singer Mariah Carey is often described as an "ultimate diva" by the media for her musical ability as well as her demanding persona. Diva (, ), the Latin word for a goddess, has often been used as an honorific to refer to a celebrated woman of outstanding talent in the world of opera, theatre, cinema, fashion and popular music. If referring to an actress, the meaning of diva is closely related to that of prima donna. Diva can also refer to a person, especially one in show business, with a reputation for being temperamental or demanding. The application of the term has broadened beyond the performing arts to also include celebrated political and business leaders.

==Derivation and terminology== Diva is a name from Roman mythology, and is associated with the nouns divus, diva, which means god, goddess, and the adjective divinius, which means divine or heavenly. The word entered the English language in the late 19th century. It is derived from the Italian noun diva, a female deity. The plural of the word in English is "divas"; in Italian, dive . The basic sense of the term is goddess, the feminine of the Latin word divus (Italian divo), someone deified after death, or Latin deus, a god.