Greek Goddess Baby Names: Penelope’s Sisters

Greek goddess baby names are enjoying a moment.

These ancient favorites burn white hot in the twenty-first century. We’ve embraced choices like Athena, undeniably Greek and mythological but still easily spelled and pronounced. Others seem less accessible, like the stunning – but complicated – Cassiopeia. And yet, some of these less accessible options are gaining in use, too.

Of course, Greek myth comes chock full of tragedy and bad behavior. A few of these names belong to villains. Others are victims, their lives not suited for bedtime stories.

But with Penelope topping popularity charts, and Athena not far behind, Greek goddess baby names seem rich with potential.

Before we go any further, let’s clear one thing up. No, Penelope is not a goddess. She’s clever and brave, but she’s also a mere mortal.

Several other choices on this list don’t quite belong, either.

But in terms of general style, sound, and appeal, they all sound like Greek goddess baby names.

Every name on this list claims Greek roots, and most of them appear in legend and myth, too.

ALCYONE

Alcyone’s story begins with tragedy. She falls in love, but her husband is killed in a shipwreck. The gods take pity, turning the lovers into kingfishers, allowing them to live together as birds. There’s a second Alcyone, of one seven daughters born to Atlas and Pleione. They’re known as the Pleiades – the seven stars in the constellation. Alcyone shines brightest.

ANDROMEDA

Perseus rescued Andromeda, a story familiar thanks to Clash of the Titans. If girls answer to four-syllable Isabella and star-gazing Stella, why not Andromeda?

ANTHEIA

Antheia comes from the Greek word for flower – anthos. Sometimes Antheia is listed as a goddess of flowers. In other cases, the goddess Hera is referred to as Anthea. The Romans spelled her name Anthea, which might be even more appealing, given the rise of sparky mini name Thea.

ANTIGONE

In myth, the idealistic, rebellious Antigone met with a tragic fate.  But her name has an appealing weight to it, somewhere between Penelope and Alexandra.

APHRODITE

The gorgeous, oft-painted goddess of love and beauty might feel like a lot to live up to. Then again, Venus Williams wears the Roman equivalent of this goddess name effortlessly.

ARIADNE

Top 100 favorites Ariana and Arianna come from the Ariadne. In Greek myth, she’s the clever girl who helps Theseus defeat the Minotaur. In 2010, Ellen Page played Ariadne in Inception. For a few short years, all of this attention pushed Ariadne into the US Top 1000. But it’s yet to rival Penelope or Athena.

ARTEMIS

The goddess of the moon and the hunt, Artemis feels instantly familiar. But it’s also quite rare in the US. Her Roman counterpart, Diana, has achieved near-classic status, but Artemis remains distinctive and different.

ASTRAEA

Astraea started out as a goddess of justice, but, dismayed by the wickedness of man, retreated to the heavens as the constellation Virgo. Legend tells that she’ll return eventually, ushering in a new Golden Age.

ATALANTA

The name means “equal in weight; balanced” and that’s exactly what Atalanta sought. She refused to marry until a suitor could best her in a foot race. Aphrodite helped Hippomenes cheat, and the pair married. But then they angered the gods, and they spent the rest of their happily-ever-after as a pair of lions.

ATHENA

Greek goddess baby names are led by Athena. That’s no surprise. Athena was born leading, a goddess of wisdom and war who sprang fully formed from her father’s head. (There’s a whole story there.)

CALANTHE

Calanthe fits with Greek goddess baby names, except it’s actually not. Sometimes elaborated as Calanthia, it’s the name of an orchid. Still, this unusual choice could be on the upswing. After all, we do we love an unusual botanical name. And there’s a character in The Witcher called Calanthe, the book series now adapted for Netflix.

CALLIDICE

It doesn’t seem fair, but Odysseus outlives Penelope. He marries again, making Callidice a queen. The name comes from the word for beauty, combined with justice. The prononciation is kah LID eh see, though this one does seem a little challenging.

CALLIOPE

One of the nine muses, the goddesses in charge of all things creative, Calliope inspired epic poetry. In the 1850s, Joshua Stoddard patented a steam-powered musical instrument, the sound of steamboats and carousels. (You can hear a snippet here.) They were loud, and maybe once Calliope seemed like a synonym for noisy. But today? It reads a little nostalgic, rather musical, and very much a goddess name and potential successor to Penelope.

CALYPSO

Odysseus washed ashore, shipwrecked, only to find himself enchanted by the nymph Calypso. Her machinations kept him on the island for seven years, until Zeus himself intervened. The name means something like “she who conceals,” which seems about right. Today, Calypso suggests the islands, but in a different way. The name also refers to a type of Afro-Caribbean music.  While the name’s origins are unclear, it’s not related to the nymph.

CIRCE

Odysseus also ran into Circe on his epic journey. She’s the sorceress who turned his ship’s crew into pigs. Maybe that’s not auspicious, but the name has an intriguing sound, and a fierce meaning: hawk.

CLIO

We tend to think of Cleo – as in Cleopatra – as the famous bearer of the name. But Clio was the muse of history, making this not just an empress, but a goddess name, too. Regardless of spelling, the name means “to proclaim.” If you’re more drawn to the ‘e’ ending of Penelope and company, there’s also Cleophee, a French spin on the New Testament name Cleophas.

CLYTIE

The original Clytie was an ocean nymph who loved the sun god. She’d followed him across the sky all day, until she turned into a heliotrope flower. Modern pronunciations rhyme Clytie with mighty, but it’s also spelled Klytië, suggesting that the ‘e’ isn’t silent.

CYBELE

Pronounced SIB eh lee, the name belongs to an older fertility goddess imported to ancient Greece. If Sybil hasn’t caught on, maybe Cybele is a long-shot, but it fits the style nicely.

DANAE

Cast off to sea in a wooden chest with her son Perseus in order to thwart a prophecy, Danae and her child lived. The name is often pronounced da NAY in American English, a sort of play on Danielle combined with Renee/Renae. But it’s spelled Danaē, suggesting that it should be more like da nah EE.

DAPHNE

Apollo fell for the nymph Daphne, and pursued her. The goods took pity, turning her into a laurel tree to avoid his advances. It’s one of the Greek goddess baby names with more history of use, and it feels sprightly and vintage, a sparky choice for a daughter.

DEMETER

The harvest goddess, her name inspired Demetria and Demetrius. But straight-up Demeter fits in quite well with Harper and company.

ECHO

Another nymph, Echo could only repeat what others said. She fell in love, but couldn’t express, and pined away until there was nothing but her lingering voice. It’s an unusual story to inspire a child’s name, but the sound of Echo feels very on-trend.

EIRENE

We know that Irene means peace, but that’s thanks to an ancient goddess. Eirene is closer to the original form of the name.

ELECTRA

Another of the Pleiades answered to this name, as well as a princess who avenges her father’s death.

ELETE

In Greek myth, time is controlled by the Hours – the goddesses of seasons and times. She represented afternoon prayer.

EVADNE

One of the most wearable on this list, Evadne might be a formal name for Evie. It belongs to at least four separate figures in myth, including a daughter of Poseidon.

GAIA

A primordial Earth goddess, Gaia was one of the Titans – the original Greek gods. Her name fits in perfectly with Maya and company. Pronounce it with a hard G, like gauge, guy, and game.

HECATE

Even by Greek goddess standards, Hecate is a little dark. Likely a foreign goddess imported to Greece, Hecate was in charge of witchcraft.

HERA

Queen of the Greek gods, jealous Hera spent much too much time pursuing her unfaithful husband – usually by taking it out on his (rarely willing) lovers. It’s easy to dismiss her as vengeful, but there’s much more to this character. She’s in charge of marriage and childbirth, and she’s probably the only person that her husband, Zeus, actually fears.

HERMIONE

The Harry Potter heroine sounds right at home in our Penelope era. And while there’s no goddess named Hermione, the name references the messenger of the gods: Hermes.

HESTIA

Hestia reigns over all things domestic – think home and hearth. As Greek goddesses go, it’s easy to overlook her role. But it’s an appealing, feminine name with lots of strength.

IANTHE

Ianthe was worn by an ocean nymph, but her name is at home on land. It comes from the Greek for violet flower – ion plus anthos.

IO

Two letters and two syllables, Io belongs to a princess beloved by Zeus – and tormented by Hera.

IRIS

We think of Iris as a straight-up flower name, but it’s much more. Iris served as a messenger goddess, her name derived from her means of delivering telegram: rainbow.

ISMENE

The daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta, Ismene means knowledge.

LEDA

Zeus donned a swan suit to seduce Leda, a princess who would eventually bear four of the god’s children. One of their children? Helen, she of the face that launched a thousand ships in the Trojan War.

MEGARA

In Greek myth, one of the Furies was named Megaera. But many modern parents know this name as Megara, or Meg, from the Disney version of Hercules.

MAIA

The eldest of the Pleiades and mother to the messenger god Hermes, Maia’s name is nicely international and widely used. Spell it Maya, and it’s the name of a Hindu goddess, too.

NIKE

The goddess of victory could be a great name for a girl, an alternative to Nicole – if not for the sneaker. Don’t do it!

NYX

Another Nicole-adjacent name, Nyx literally means night. She’s the daughter of Khaos.

PERSEPHONE

The obvious alternative to Penelope. As the wife of Hades, she reigns as goddess of the underworld. But we mostly associate Persephone with the seasons. When she returns to earth to visit her mother, Persephone brings spring. And when she goes home to her husband, autumn and winter follow.

PHOEBE

Friends and Charmed and Phoebe Cates put this name on our radar. A Titan associated with the moon, Phoebe later became a title for her moon goddess granddaughter, Artemis.

RHEA

Another Titan, Rhea was the mother of Zeus – as well as Poseidon, Hades, Hera, Demeter, and Hestia. But when it comes to mythology, we know Rhea better as the mother Romulus and Remus, the brothers who went on to found Rome.

SELENE

Another Greek moon goddess, Selene would be pronounced with three syllables, more like Selena. But today we tend to rhyme it with marine, serene, and supreme.

THALIA

The name of one of the three Graces, as well as one of the nine Muses. Pronunciations abound, perhaps explaining why this appealing possibility remains relatively uncommon.

THISBE

Before there was Romeo and Juliet, there was Pyramus and Thisbe. While the famous Thisbe is a mere mortal, another Thisbe was a nymph associated with a spring. An ancient city named in her honor was located in Greece.

XANTHE

It sounds like Zanthe, but the name is spelled with an X. In Greek myth, Xanthe is an ocean nymph. There are a few others who share the name.

Would you consider any of these Greek goddess baby names?  What would you add to the list?

First published May 10, 2013, this post was revised and re-published on August 13, 2020. Further updates took place on July 5, 2023.