Gender | Female |
---|---|
Origin | |
Word/name | Greek |
Meaning | "rainbow" |
Popularity | see popular names |
Iris (from Greek Ἶρις Ancient Greek: [îːris], the messenger of the gods among themselves and the personification of ἶρις, the "rainbow") is a feminine name.
The name came into use in English-speaking countries in the 1500s, first in reference to the goddess, and was later used along with other Ancient Greek names revived by 17th-century British poets, such as Doris and Phyllis. It is also used in reference to the flowering plant and likely inspired the use of other botanical names that became popular in the Anglosphere during the Victorian era.[1][2]
The name has ranked among the top 100 names given to baby girls in Belgium, Catalonia, England, France, Iceland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, the United States, and Wales during the 2010s.[2][3][4] It ranked 101st on the popularity chart in Canada in 2021, with 255 newborn Canadian girls given the name in that year.[5]
Notable people and characters with the name include:
Foreign equivalents of Iris include:[6]