Born in Vienna, Ahna was the daughter of a Bavarian first lieutenant, who later worked as a factory owner.

[1] Her niece, the singer Pauline de Ahna, married the composer Richard Strauss.

Although Ahna had no plans to go to the theatre at first, the deterioration of her parents' financial circumstances forced her to turn to this profession.

[2] She made her debut on 2 September 1859 at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin in the title role of Donizetti's opera Lucrezia Borgia and soon became popular with the public.

[3][4][5] Ahna died in Berlin at the age of 27 after an inner suffering that first forced her to interrupt her work until she finally completely withdrew from the stage.