Irene
Girl nameIrene has been given to 356,812 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It peaked in 1921 and currently ranks #651 for girls (2025).
Meaning & origin /aɪˈɹiːn/
Borrowed from French Irène, from Ancient Greek Εἰρήνη (Eirḗnē, “peace”), name of a goddess of peace, of early Christian saints, and of an 8th-century Byzantine empress. Doublet of Eirini.
Origin: Ancient Greek
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Popularity over time births per year, 1880–2025
Total babies
356,812
Peak year
1921 (10,657 babies)
Rank in 2025
#651 for girls
First recorded
1880
10-year trend
▼ -2%
Gender split
100% girls / 0% boys
Famous people named Irene
Irene Dunne
American actress and singer (1898–1990)
Loreena McKennitt
Canadian musician and composer
Irene Cara
American singer and actress (1959–2022)
Princess Irene of Greece and Denmark
Princess of Greece and Denmark (1942–2026)
Notability data from Wikidata (CC0).
Names with a similar vibe
Same primary gender, peaked around the same years, and roughly as common as Irene.
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