Pandora

Greek

"all gifted"

Pandora Origin and Meaning

The name Pandora is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "all gifted".

Pandora has occasionally been used by the British gentry (for girls with brothers who might be called Peregrine) and is now starting to be heard in the US too: It was given to 39 baby girls last year.

Down side: Pandora was the mythological first woman on earth whose curiosity caused her to lift a forbidden box and inadvertently unleash all the evils of the world. But perhaps she's paid the price long enough--Pandora is riding the wave of mythological names used for babies after centuries of being confined to legend.

Pandora is the eponymous title character of an Anne Rice vampire novel, and appears in the Adrian Mole books. There was a Pandora character on Skins, who was adorably called Panda.

• 409 Nameberry 2021