Greek Baby Names

Greek Baby Names

Babies in Greece are usually named after one of their grandparents. Occasionally, the new baby may be called after the opposite form of one of the grandparent names, if that exists. For example, a baby girl may be named after the feminine form of a grandfather’s name. However, especially in recent years, the parents may decide to give a name to their child that is unrelated to the family.

Some popular Greek boy names that are originally Ancient Greek are Achilles (Αχιλλέας), Alexander (Αλέξανδρος), Aristides (Αριστείδης), Diogenes (Διογένης), Dionysios (Διονύσιος), Euripides (Ευριπίδης), Heracles (Ηρακλής), Leonidas (Λεωνίδας), Menelaus (Μενέλαος), Nestor (Νέστωρ), Nikolaos (Νικόλαος), Orestis (Ορέστης), Pericles (Περικλής), Philip (Φίλιππος), and Socrates (Σωκράτης). Male names from the Old and New Testament include Andreas (Ανδρέας), Daniel (Δανιήλ), Elias (Ηλίας), Emmanuel (Εμμανουήλ), Iakovos (Ιάκωβος), Ioannis (Ιωάννης), Lukas (Λουκάς), Markos (Μάρκος), Michael (Μιχαήλ), Pavlos (Παύλος), Petros (Πέτρος), Stefanos (Στέφανος) and Thomas (Θωμάς). Byzantine names given to boys in Greece today include Alexios (Αλέξιος), Anastasios (Αναστάσιος), Antonios (Αντώνιος), Vasilios (Βασίλειος), Christoforos (Χριστόφορος), Konstantinos (Κωνσταντίνος), Dimitrios (Δημήτριος), Evangelos (Ευάγγελος), Georgios (Γεώργιος), Grigorios (Γρηγόριος), Panagiotis (Παναγιώτης), Spyridon (Σπυρίδων) and Theodoros (Θεόδωρος).

Some popular Greek girl names that are originally Ancient Greek are Antigone (Αντιγόνη), Aphrodite (Αφροδίτη), Ariadne (Αριάδνη), Artemis (Άρτεμις), Aspasia (Ασπασία), Calliope (Καλλιόπη), Callirhoe (Καλλιρόη), Cleo (Κλειώ), Danae (Δανάη), Daphne (Δάφνη), Despina (Δέσποινα), Demetra (Δήμητρα), Electra (Ηλέκτρα), Hermione (Ερμιόνη), Iphigenia (Ιφιγένεια), Irene (Ειρήνη), Pandora (Πανδώρα), Phoebe (Φοίβη), Rhea (Ρέα) and Thaleia (Θάλεια). Female names from the Old and New Testament include Anna (Άννα), Eva (Εύα), Maria or Mary (Μαρία, Μαίρη), Martha (Μάρθα) and Sarah (Σάρα). Byzantine names given to girls in Greece today include Aikaterine (Αικατερίνη, Κατερίνα), Barbara (Βαρβάρα), Christina (Χριστίνα), Eleni (Ελένη), Margarita (Μαργαρίτα), Sofia (Σοφία) and Zoe (Ζωή).