Girl
Irene
peace
About Irene
Graceful and serene, this classic choice embodies quiet strength and timeless elegance. The name has graced queens, saints, and accomplished women throughout history, carrying associations with wisdom and peace. Its three syllables provide satisfying weight without complexity, rolling smoothly in speech and writing. Despite its traditional roots, the name never feels dusty or outdated, maintaining surprising freshness for modern ears. It works beautifully across multiple languages and cultures, pronounced with slight variations but remaining essentially recognizable everywhere. The name's gentle dignity suits both a giggling toddler and a distinguished professional, growing gracefully alongside its bearer. Its current relative rarity among younger generations makes it feel discovered rather than dated, offering vintage appeal without the baggage of recent overuse.
Popularity of the Name Irene
Rank among the 1,000 most popular baby names, by year.
| United States | United Kingdom | New Zealand | Ireland | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | #102 | ||||
| 1881 | #102 | ||||
| 1882 | #104 | ||||
| 1883 | #100 | ||||
| 1884 | #95 | ||||
| 1885 | #82 | ||||
| 1886 | #78 | ||||
| 1887 | #73 | ||||
| 1888 | #66 | ||||
| 1889 | #63 | ||||
| 1890 | #60 | ||||
| 1891 | #52 | ||||
| 1892 | #51 | ||||
| 1893 | #51 | ||||
| 1894 | #43 | ||||
| 1895 | #43 | ||||
| 1896 | #41 | ||||
| 1897 | #38 | ||||
| 1898 | #34 | ||||
| 1899 | #34 | ||||
| 1900 | #31 | #25 | |||
| 1901 | #30 | #22 | |||
| 1902 | #26 | #24 | |||
| 1903 | #28 | #24 | |||
| 1904 | #26 | #16 | |||
| 1905 | #24 | #22 | |||
| 1906 | #20 | #16 | |||
| 1907 | #22 | #21 | |||
| 1908 | #23 | #19 | |||
| 1909 | #20 | #20 | |||
| 1910 | #21 | #20 | |||
| 1911 | #21 | #29 | |||
| 1912 | #22 | #28 | |||
| 1913 | #21 | #33 | |||
| 1914 | #22 | #36 | |||
| 1915 | #17 | #39 | |||
| 1916 | #17 | #37 | |||
| 1917 | #17 | #37 | |||
| 1918 | #16 | #40 | |||
| 1919 | #16 | #37 | |||
| 1920 | #17 | #33 | |||
| 1921 | #18 | #23 | |||
| 1922 | #17 | #38 | |||
| 1923 | #17 | #34 | |||
| 1924 | #18 | #25 | |||
| 1925 | #19 | #33 | |||
| 1926 | #21 | #32 | |||
| 1927 | #21 | #38 | |||
| 1928 | #28 | #26 | |||
| 1929 | #29 | #35 | |||
| 1930 | #33 | #35 | |||
| 1931 | #37 | #40 | |||
| 1932 | #43 | #57 | |||
| 1933 | #46 | #53 | |||
| 1934 | #49 | #58 | |||
| 1935 | #52 | #53 | |||
| 1936 | #57 | #56 | |||
| 1937 | #62 | #51 | |||
| 1938 | #72 | #50 | |||
| 1939 | #74 | #56 | |||
| 1940 | #73 | #50 | |||
| 1941 | #74 | #49 | |||
| 1942 | #80 | #61 | |||
| 1943 | #85 | #66 | |||
| 1944 | #91 | #45 | |||
| 1945 | #97 | #53 | |||
| 1946 | #102 | #64 | |||
| 1947 | #107 | #74 | |||
| 1948 | #111 | #66 | |||
| 1949 | #111 | #71 | |||
| 1950 | #92 | #76 | |||
| 1951 | #105 | #24 | |||
| 1952 | #121 | #50 | |||
| 1953 | #127 | #60 | |||
| 1954 | #140 | #69 | |||
| 1955 | #147 | #81 | |||
| 1956 | #159 | #126 | |||
| 1957 | #169 | #101 | |||
| 1958 | #175 | #104 | |||
| 1959 | #179 | #137 | |||
| 1960 | #187 | #118 | |||
| 1961 | #193 | #147 | |||
| 1962 | #205 | #122 | |||
| 1963 | #201 | #143 | |||
| 1964 | #210 | #150 | #86 | ||
| 1965 | #211 | #166 | #99 | ||
| 1966 | #235 | #166 | #112 | ||
| 1967 | #240 | #189 | #95 | ||
| 1968 | #238 | #157 | #80 | ||
| 1969 | #262 | #189 | #87 | ||
| 1970 | #275 | #171 | #112 | ||
| 1971 | #290 | #214 | #110 | ||
| 1972 | #307 | #202 | #96 | ||
| 1973 | #287 | #353 | #107 | ||
| 1974 | #285 | #273 | #87 | ||
| 1975 | #315 | #292 | #116 | ||
| 1976 | #295 | #257 | #128 | ||
| 1977 | #313 | #310 | #99 | ||
| 1978 | #323 | #239 | #108 | ||
| 1979 | #298 | #301 | #139 | ||
| 1980 | #291 | #132 | |||
| 1981 | #304 | #316 | #122 | ||
| 1982 | #315 | #142 | |||
| 1983 | #307 | #285 | #156 | ||
| 1984 | #320 | #225 | #171 | ||
| 1985 | #352 | #278 | #138 | ||
| 1986 | #387 | #379 | #164 | ||
| 1987 | #362 | #353 | #183 | ||
| 1988 | #376 | #370 | #180 | ||
| 1989 | #390 | #241 | |||
| 1990 | #385 | #266 | #198 | ||
| 1991 | #392 | #321 | #238 | #544 | |
| 1992 | #426 | #223 | #654 | ||
| 1993 | #458 | #392 | #305 | #539 | |
| 1994 | #419 | #247 | #612 | ||
| 1995 | #426 | #276 | #522 | ||
| 1996 | #415 | #445 | #555 | ||
| 1997 | #431 | #457 | #633 | ||
| 1998 | #487 | #549 | #526 | ||
| 1999 | #474 | #578 | |||
| 2000 | #459 | #359 | #526 | ||
| 2001 | #487 | #523 | |||
| 2002 | #504 | #692 | #503 | ||
| 2003 | #581 | #597 | #707 | ||
| 2004 | #536 | #437 | #923 | ||
| 2005 | #580 | #491 | #739 | ||
| 2006 | #588 | #834 | #571 | ||
| 2007 | #636 | #764 | #730 | ||
| 2008 | #638 | #620 | #597 | ||
| 2009 | #625 | #602 | #633 | ||
| 2010 | #695 | #564 | #819 | ||
| 2011 | #692 | #722 | #743 | ||
| 2012 | #652 | #811 | #663 | ||
| 2013 | #644 | #709 | |||
| 2014 | #663 | #359 | #509 | #630 | |
| 2015 | #629 | #258 | #968 | #559 | |
| 2016 | #659 | #362 | #938 | #652 | |
| 2017 | #588 | #672 | #475 | ||
| 2018 | #639 | #598 | |||
| 2019 | #633 | #519 | #562 | ||
| 2020 | #620 | #888 | #600 | ||
| 2021 | #674 | #307 | #730 | ||
| 2022 | #661 | #470 | #672 | ||
| 2023 | #675 | #973 | #656 | #759 | |
| 2024 | #635 | #975 | #513 | #592 | |
| 2025 | #651 | #420 | #980 |
Top names by country: United States · United Kingdom · New Zealand · Ireland · Canada
Variations of Name Irene
Names Similar to Irene
Nicknames for Irene
- Iri
- Rene
- Renee
- Ri
- Reney
Famous People Named Irene
| Irene Joliot-Curie | French physicist and Nobel laureate |
| Irene Khan | Bangladeshi lawyer and human rights activist |
| Irene Cara | American singer, songwriter, and actress |
| Irene Rosenfeld | American business executive and former CEO of Kraft Foods |
| Irene Bedard | Native American actress and activist |
| Irene Dunne | American actress and singer |
| Irene Saez | Venezuelan politician and Miss Universe 1981 |
| Irene Paredes | Spanish footballer |
| Irene Sharaff | American costume designer and Oscar winner |
| Irene Ryan | American actress best known as "Granny" in "The Beverly Hillbillies" |
| Irene Hunt | American author, known for her novel "Across Five Aprils" |
| Irene Papas | Greek actress and singer |
| Irene Khanom | Queen consort of Iran during the Safavid dynasty |
| Irene of Athens | Byzantine empress and wife of Emperor Leo IV |
| Irene Greif | American computer scientist and professor at MIT |
| Irene van Dyk | South African-born New Zealand netball player |
| Irene Morgan | American civil rights activist |
Characters Named Irene
| Irene Redfield | Protagonist in the novel "Passing" by Nella Larsen |
| Irene Belserion | Character in the anime and manga series "Fairy Tail" |
| Irene Kennedy | Character in the Mitch Rapp series by Vince Flynn |
| Irene Teodora | Character in the "Arcane Ascension" series by Andrew Rowe |
| Irene Cara | Character in the movie "Fame" |
| Irene Magnusson | Character in the book "The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared" by Jonas Jonasson |
| Irene Westcott | Character in the novel "The Westing Game" by Ellen Raskin |
| Irene Adler | Character in the TV series "Sherlock" |
| Irene Merryweather | Character in the video game "Red Dead Redemption 2" |