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115+ Greek Goddess Names (with Meanings)

Sophie Kihm
By Sophie Kihm
Updated Wed Jan 31 2024
115+ Greek Goddess Names (with Meanings)

Greek goddess names are trending for 21st century babies, combining ancient roots with august namesakes and distinctive style. Some names of the Greek goddesses are well-known in the contemporary Western world, such as Iris and Selene, while others are used occasionally or have been asleep for centuries.

Along with Iris and Selene, other Greek goddess names in the US Top 1000 include Calliope, Persephone, Athena, Maia, Artemis, Irene, and Phoebe.

Unique Greek goddess names worth considering for your daughter include Anthea, Gaia, Hera, and Clio — the Muse of history and heroic poetry.

Greek mythology is a rich font of names of goddesses as well as sirens, titanesses, nymphs, and muses. The complete list of Greek goddess names usable for your baby is here, ordered by their current popularity on Nameberry.

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Girl Names

Mythological Names

  1. Daphne

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "laurel tree, bay tree"

    • Description:

      In Greek mythology, Daphne was the nymph daughter of Peneus, a river god. Peneus saved Daphne from Apollo’s romantic obsessions by transforming her into a laurel tree. It is from this myth that the plant genus daphne, which contains the laurel species, gets its name.
  2. Iris

    • Origin:

      Flower name; Greek

    • Meaning:

      "rainbow"

    • Description:

      Iris has so much going for it. It's a fashionable flower name. It's a mythological name, from the Greek goddess of the rainbow. And it's a classic name, always ranking in the girls' Top 1000 but now at its highest point ever.
  3. Phoebe

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "radiant, shining one"

    • Description:

      Phoebe is the Latin variation of the Greek name Phoibe, which derived from phoibos, meaning "bright." In classical mythology, Phoebe is the by-name of Artemis, goddess of the moon and of hunting. The masculine version of Phoebe is Phoebus.
  4. Penelope

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "weaver"

    • Description:

      Penelope is an unlikely 21st century baby name success story. Off the Top 1000 for 25 years, Penelope jumped back on in 2001 and has been heading uphill ever since, propelled by the trend for mythological names, Spanish actress Penelope Cruz, and some high-profile celebrity babies.
  5. Chloe

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "young green shoot"

    • Description:

      Chloe is a pretty springtime name symbolizing new growth. Though slightly off its peak in the Top 10 in 2010, Chloe still ranks in the Top 20 and is solidly a modern classic.
  6. Calliope

    • Origin:

      Greek mythology name

    • Meaning:

      "beautiful voice"

    • Description:

      Calliope is the name of the muse of epic poetry -- and also the musical instrument on the merry-go-round. Bold and creative, it debuted in the US Top 1000 in 2016, and entered the Top 500 in 2023. Similar in rhythm and sound to Penelope with usable nicknames Callie, Clio, and Lola, it is no wonder it's on the rise.
  7. Athena

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "from Athens"

    • Description:

      Magical and distinctive but grounded and familiar too, it's no surprise that Athena has become one of the most widely used ancient goddess names in the contemporary Western world. Derived from the city name Athens, it is current a Top 100 choice in the US.
  8. Persephone

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "bringer of destruction"

    • Description:

      Persephone is the esoteric name of the Greek mythological daughter of Zeus by Demeter, the queen of the harvest. After she was kidnapped by Hades to be Queen of the Underworld, it was decreed by Zeus that she would spend six months of the year with her mother, allowing crops to grow, and six in mourning, thus accounting for the seasons.
  9. Nyx

    • Origin:

      Greek mythology name

    • Meaning:

      "night"

    • Description:

      In Greek mythology, Nyx was a powerful goddess and the embodiment of the night, but when spoken, its negative meaning can't be ignored.
  10. Rhea

    • Origin:

      Greek mythology name

    • Meaning:

      "a flowing stream"

    • Description:

      Rhea is an old-style creative name of the Greek mythological earth mother of all the gods. A lot better than the Roman equivalent: Ops.
  11. Xanthe

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "golden, yellow"

    • Description:

      X marks the spot in names these days, usually at the middles or ends of names, but here is one that puts it squarely up front.
  12. Gaia

    • Origin:

      Greek and Latin

    • Meaning:

      "earth mother; rejoicing"

    • Description:

      Floral, bright, and subtly powerful, Gaia is a name with two separate origins. In Greek mythology, it is the name of the earth goddess and the universal mother, who takes her epithet from the Ancient Greek word for land or ground. It was this ecological element that led actress Emma Thompson to choose it for her daughter back in 1999, and it could hold similar appeal to green minded parents today.
  13. Irene

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "peace"

    • Description:

      Serene Irene, the name of the Greek goddess of peace and one of the most familiar Greek goddess names, was hugely popular in ancient Rome and again in the United States a hundred years ago.
  14. Thalia

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "to flourish"

    • Description:

      Thalia was one of the Three Graces in Greek mythology, and also the Muse of comedy and pastoral poetry, making this a Hellenic choice worthy of consideration.
  15. Artemis

    • Origin:

      Greek mythology name

    • Meaning:

      "safe or butcher"

    • Description:

      Artemis, one of the key figures of the female Greek pantheon, is the ancient virgin goddess of the hunt, wilderness, animals, childbirth, and a protector of young girls, later associated with the moon. Artemis is the equivalent to the Roman Diana, but a fresher and more distinctive, if offbeat, choice.
  16. Calypso

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "she who hides"

    • Description:

      This hyper-rhythmic name has two evocative references. In Greek mythology, she was an island nymph, a daughter of Atlas, who delayed Odysseus from returning home. It is also a genre of West Indian music, originating in Trinidad and Tobago and largely popularized in the States by Harry Belafonte.
  17. Astraea

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "of the stars"

    • Description:

      Astraea —also found as Astraia — is the Greek goddess of justice and innocence who left earth to become the constellation Virgo after she grew unhappy with the state of humanity. She was prophesised to return and begin a new Golden Age, meaning she is associated with renewal — and with Queen Elizabeth I of England thanks to Renaissance writers associating her with the goddess.
  18. Selene

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "moon"

    • Description:

      Selene may be the mythological Greek original, but Latin variation Selena is used more often in the US these days. Selene is the Greek goddess of the moon, sister of Helios the sun god. Selene is also sometimes called Cynthia and Phoebe. The name may be related to the word selas, which means light, and is one of the loveliest of the Greek goddess names.
  19. Maia

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "mother"

    • Description:

      Maia was derived from the Greek word maia, meaning "mother." In Greek legend, she was the fair-haired daughter of Atlas who mothered Zeus's favorite illegitimate son, Hermes. To the Romans, Maia was the incarnation of the earth mother and goddess of spring, after whom they named the month of May. Maya is the more common spelling.
  20. Ianthe

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "purple flower"

    • Description:

      Like Violet, Lavender and Lilac, Ianthe is a purple flower name. Chosen by the poet Shelley for his daughter, Ianthe has a poetic, romantic, almost ethereal quality. In the ancient myth, she was the daughter of Oceanus, supreme ruler of the sea, and also a Cretan woman so beautiful that when she died the Gods made purple flowers grow around her grave.

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