Irene

Greek

"peace"

Irene Origin and Meaning

The name Irene is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "peace".

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.

One of the most popular names of the Roman Empire and the name of several early saints, this originally Greek name (then spelled Eirene) represented a daughter of Zeus who was the goddess of peace. Often pronounced with three syllables, it spread throughout Europe in a range of variations and is a royal name in Greece, Denmark, and the Netherlands.

Much of Irene's popularity in England stemmed from the character Irene Forsyte in Galsworthy's The Forsyte Saga (pronounced eye-reen-ee). Americans identified it with the sparkling Irene Dunne of Hollywood's Golden Age. Irene was a Top 20 name from 1915 to 1925, remaining in the Top 100 until 1945. It still highly popular in Spain.

Some other references include the eponymous early smash hit Broadway musical, famed ballroom dancer Irene Castle (portrayed on film by Ginger Rogers), the Hollywood costume designer known simply as Irene, the Uma Thurman character in Gattaca, Irene Denholm the Harry Potter student at Hogwarts School, and the lullaby-ready song Goodnight, Irene.

Irene Rank in US Top 1000

# 638 in the US

Irene Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 238 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Irene

• 638 US 2024
• 238 Nameberry 2025
• 408 Future 2028
• 49 Italy 2019
• 59 Spain 2023
• 358 Mexico 2021

20 Names Similar to Irene

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Irene.

• Claudia
• Helena
• Antonia
• Diana
• Lucinda
• Constance
• Rosalind
• Sylvia
• Miriam
• Magdalena
• Priscilla
• Georgiana
• Francesca
• Tabitha
• Esther
• Veronica
• Theodora
• Augusta
• Cornelia
• Cynthia

Famous People Named Irene

• Irene stage name of Bae Joohyun; rapper, dancer, singer, and leader of South Korean girl group Red Velvet
• Irene Marie Dunne American actress
• Irene Bordoni Corsican French singer
• Irene Cara (Escalera) American singer
• Irene Castle American ballroom dancer
• Irene Joliot Curie, French scientist, daughter of Marie Curie
• Irene Urdangaria­n y Bourbon daughter of Infanta Cristina of Spain
• Irene (Lentz) American costume designer
• Irene Vanbrugh English actress
• Irene Vernon American actress
• Irene Frances Rich American actress
• Irene of Athens Byzantine Empress
• Irene Papas Greek actress
• Irene Handl English actress
• Irene Worth (born Harriet Elizabeth Abrams) American actress, pronounced it "eye,ree,nee"
• Irene Ryan (born Jessie Irene Noblett) American actress
• Irene Angelina Queen consort of Sicily and Germany
• Irene Mathyssen Canadian MP
• Irene Morgan American civil rights activist
• Emily Irene VanCamp Canadian actress
• (Sze) Irene Ng Malaysian,born American actress

The name Irene in Pop Culture

• Irene Adler character in Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes series
• Irene Heron (pr. Eye ree,nee), character in John Galsworthy's Forsyte Saga
• Irene Cassini character in movie "Gattaca"
• Irene Lorenzo character on TV's "All in the Family"
• Princess Irene character in "The Princess and the Goblin" by George MacDonald (pronounced eye,ree,nee in its 1991 film adaptation)
• Irene Lapham character in "The Rise of Silas Lapham" by William Dean Howells
• Irene Queen of Attolia, character in The Queen's Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner
• Irene Denholm character in the Harry Potter series
• Irene Frederick character on TV's "Warehouse 13"
• Irene the Concierge character on TV's "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody"
• Lady Irene character in Aphmau's YouTube series
• "Irene " 1940s movie
• Goodnight Irene American folk song
• Irene main character in The Invisible Library series by Genevieve Cogman
• Irene Larra Girón character on tv series "El Ministerio del Tiempo"
• Irene P. Waters character in the 2000 Jim Carrey movie "Me,Myself & Irene"

International Variations of the name Irene

• Iren Hungarian
• Yaryna Russian
• Ira Russian
• Irisha Russian
• Eirini Greek
• Irka Czech
• Ereni Greek
• Jereni Russian
• Irya Russian
• Irena Russian
• Irenke Hungarian
• Arina Russian
• Rina Russian
• Arinka Russian
• Yarina Russian
• Irina Russian
• Iryna Russian
• Rena Greek
• Eirene Greek
• Eireen Irish
• Nitsa Greek
• Irini Russian
• Irenka Czech
• Irenea Spanish