Paquita is a given name of Spanish origin, a diminutive of the name Francisca, which is the feminine form of Francisco, which derives from the Latin given name Franciscus.
Francisca derives from the Medieval Latin Francus / Franciscus, meaning "belonging to the people of the Franks", a Germanic people of central Europe. The Franks derived their tribal name from a type of throwing axe, known as a francisca, that they used as a weapon during the early Middle Ages. The Franks were the only tribe who had rights of free citizens in the Middle Ages, so the term frank came to mean a free, sincere, or true. The word came from the Germanic word frankô (or franka), which referred to a weapon like a javelin or spear. Before this, in Proto-Germanic the word was sahsą, meaning "knife" or "dagger".
People People with the given name Paquita include: Paquita la del Barrio (1947–2025), Mexican singer Paquita Bernardo (1900–1925), Argentine tango composer and first professional female bandoneon player of Argentine tango Paquita Madriguera (1900–1965), Catalan pianist and composer based in Uruguay Paquita Mawson (1891–1974), Australian community worker, wife of geologist and Antarctic explorer Sir Douglas Mawson Paquita Sabrafen (1931–2009), Spanish painter who specialised in portraits Paquita Sauquillo (born 1943), Spanish lawyer and politician See also Paquita, a 19th-century French ballet
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