Given name
Penelope
“duck”
Penelope is a feminine given name, possibly from Ancient Greek. It is used in English and Italian.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Penelope possibly goes back to a word meaning “duck.”
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Where it comes from
A possible origin is Greek, although the derivation remains uncertain.
The story
In mythological stories, Penelope is associated with the faithful wife of Odysseus.
Penelope through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 109,533
- 53 boys · 109,480 girls
- Most popular year
- 2019
- 6,734 babies
- 2025
- 6,225
- #22 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −5%
- Steady
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 6,225 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 22 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 5.0% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 6,734 in 2019. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (827). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 65,806 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Penelope’s family of names
In English usage, Penelope has a diminutive in Penny. Penelope has a related form in Pennie. Penelope has an affectionate form in Penny.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Penelope has relatives in 3 languages. Lines run from its Ancient Greek roots to each of them.
4 related names in 3 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 20
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Penelope
- Penelope FitzgeraldBritish writer and poet (1916–2000)
- Penny MordauntBritish politician (born 1973)
- Penelope Ann MillerAmerican actressborn 1964
- Penelope LivelyBritish novelist (born 1933)
- Penelope WiltonEnglish actressborn 1946
- Dora BoothbyEnglish badminton and tennis player (1881–1970)
- Penelope DeltaGreek children's writer (1874–1941)
- Penelope Heynsswimmerborn 1974
- Penelope CoelenSouth African actress, model and beauty queen, crowned Miss World 1958born 1940
Characters named Penelope: Penny Widmore (character of the American TV show Lost), Penelope Pitstop (Wacky Races), Penelope Garcia (American television series Criminal Minds).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Penelope, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Phoebe
“bright”
>99% girls
Iris
“rainbow”
>99% girls
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“laurel”
>99% girls
Lydia
“woman from Lydia” · “a beautiful woman from Lydia”
>99% girls
Athena
Athena is a feminine given name from Middle English, ultimately from Ancient Greek. It is used in English and Tagalog.
>99% girls
Selene
“light”
>99% girls
Cora
“one who makes cord” · “of the heart”
>99% girls
Rhea
Rhea is a feminine given name from Ancient Greek. It is used in English, Norwegian Bokmål, and Cebuano.
>99% girls