Penelope
Top 1000
About Penelope
As elegant and refined as it is sweet and energized., Penelope has been well and truly revived in the 21st-century. 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.
In Greek mythology, Penelope was the wife of Odysseus in Homer's Epic, the Odyssey. It has two possible origin stories—Penelope was either derived from the Greek pēnē, meaning "thread of a bobbin", or from penelops, a type of duck. Mythological Penelope was cared for by a duck as an infant, and later was known for fending off would-be suitors by pretending to weave a garment, so both meanings fit.
Penelope's status as a Kardashian baby name -- Kourtney's daughter Penelope was born in 2012 -- brought the ancient name to widespread attention. Given to 1871 American babies in 2011,this figure had increased to 2536 in 2012, and to 4292 in 2013, revealing the power pop culture can exert.
Also chosen by celebs such as Tina Fey, by Anna Chlumsky, and by Natalie and Taylor Hanson, fictional Penelopes have appeared in Thunderbirds, Desperate Housewives, Lost, and Harry Potter.
A perennial Nameberry favorite, Penelope can be shortened to the traditional Penny, or perhaps to Nell, Pepper, Poppy, Lola, Pip, Lolo, Polly, or Poe.
In a recent year, Penelope was a Top 30 choice in the US, a Top 50 name in England and Wales, Australia, New Zealand,, and Canada, and a Top 150 option in Scotland and Italy.
Pronounced puh-NEL-uh-pee.
As of October 2026, Penelope ranked #22 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #21 in 2022, Nameberry popularity #65.
Editor: Pamela Redmond
Sources: US popularity data is from the Social Security Administration. Meanings and origins are from Nameberry's name references.
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #43 | 5,089 | 2,848.8 |
| 2015 | #34 | 5,952 | 3,334.3 |
| 2016 | #27 | 6,397 | 3,610 |
| 2017 | #24 | 6,667 | 3,861.7 |
| 2018 | #26 | 6,523 | 3,834.6 |
| 2019 | #22 | 6,733 | 4,011.6 |
| 2020 | #25 | 6,149 | 3,803.8 |
| 2021 | #23 | 6,364 | 3,878.5 |
| 2022 | #21 | 6,424 | 3,916.8 |
| 2023 | #23 | 6,065 | 3,779.8 |
| 2024 | #28 | 5,741 | 3,543.4 |
| 2025 | #22 | 6,225 | 3,873 |
World rankings
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Penelope.
- Alice
- Clara
- Cora
- Josephine
- Phoebe
- Juliet
- Matilda
- Eliza
- Ruby
- Violet
- Eleanor
- Lucy
- Mae
- Rose
- Nora
- Adelaide
- Ada
- Daisy
- Genevieve
- Audrey
Penelope on lists
Famous Penelopes
- Penelope Cruz (Sánchez)
Spanish actress
- Penelope Ann Miller (born Penelope Andrea Miller)
American actress
- Penelope Spheeris
American director and producer
- Penelope Fitzgerald
English novelist
- Penelope Margaret Lively
Egyptian,British novelist
- Penelope Alice Wilton
English actress
- Penelope Anne Constance Keith
English actress
- Penelope Houston
American singer,songwriter
- Penelope "Penny" Heyns
South African Olympic swimmer
- Penelope Jane Leach
English child psychologist
- Penelope Mitchell
Australian actress
- Penelope "Penny" Oleksiak
Canadian swimmer
- Penelope Savalas
daughter of actor Telly Savalas
- Penelope Carolyn "Penny" Jacob
late daughter of novelist Piers Anthony
- Penelope Anne "Penny" Hanson (b. 2005)
daughter of musician Taylor Hanson
- Penelope Jane Charlotte Nannini (b. 2010)
daughter of singer Gianna Nannini
- Penelope Athena Richmond (b. 2011)
daughter of actress Tina Fey and Jeff Richmond
- Penelope Mogol (b. 2012)
daughter of fitness trainer Tracy Anderson and Matt Mogol
- Penelope Scotland Disick (b. 2012)
daughter of TV personalities Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick
- Penelope Salomon
daughter of Canadian actress Jessalyn Gilsig
- Penelope Joan So (b. 2013)
daughter of actress Anna Chlumsky and Shaun So
- Penelope Charlevoix Gnoffo (b. 2015)
daughter of TV personalities Terra Jole and Joe Gnoffo ("Little Women: LA")
- Penelope Froch (b. 2015)
daughter of boxer Carl Froch
- Penelope "Penny" Parker
YouTuber with the best laugh, voice actress on "Real,Time Fandub"
Penelope in pop culture
- Penelope
known in Greek Mythology as the wife of Odysseus.
- Penelope Lou "Penny" Pingleton
a character in the film/musical "Hairspray"
- Penelope Clearwater
a character in the "Harry Potter" novels by J. K. Rowling.
- Penelope Blossom
character in Archie Comics and TV's "Riverdale"
- Penelope "Penny" Widmore Hume
character on Lost
- Penelope "Penny" Halliwell
character on the TV show 'Charmed'
- Penelope Garcia
a character on TV's "Criminal Minds"
- Penelope Wilhern
protagonist of 2006 movie "Penelope"
- Penelope Guerrero
character in "The Purge"
- Penelope "Penny" Proud
a character on Disney TV Show "The Proud Family"
- Penelope Alvarez
character from Netflix's original series "One Day at a Time"
- Penelope "Peppi" Torres
character from Svetlana Chmakova's series "Awkward"
- Penelope Trotwood
character in "The Lizzie Borden Chronicles"
- Penelope Twite
character in Joan Aiken's Wolves Chronicles books
- Penelope Pussycat
female cat, love interest of Garfield the cat in cartoon show "Garfield and Friends"
- Penelope Taint
character on the "Amanda Show"
- Penelope Priss
character in the Rooster Teeth animated series "Camp Camp"
Variations & nicknames
More nicknames
- Lolli
- Lope
- Lopey
- Lopi
- Lopy
- Neppy
- Pep
- Pez