Original: In 1954 she adopted the stage name Nina Simone . '' Nina '' ( from niÃ a , meaning ` little girl ' in Spanish ) was a nickname a boyfriend had given to her , and '' Simone '' was taken from the French actress Simone Signoret , whom she had seen in the movie , Casque d'or .
Simplified: She got '' Nina '' from a nickname given to her by a boyfriend , and '' Simone '' from a French actress called Simone Signoret .