Persephone
- Gender
- Girl
- Say it
- per-SEF-o-nee
- Origin
- Greek
- UK rank, 2025
- #553 for girls
- US rank, 2025
- #734 for girls
Persephone is a girls' name of Greek origin. In 2025 it ranked 553rd for girls in the UK (77 babies) and 734th for girls in the US (372 babies).
What does Persephone mean?
Greek
In Greek myth Persephone, daughter of Demeter, is queen of the underworld, and her yearly return brings spring.
More on Wiktionary.
Is Persephone a girl's or a boy's name?
Persephone is a girls' name. In 2025, it was given to 77 girls in the UK and 372 girls in the US. Too few boys were given it to be listed.
How popular is Persephone in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- #553among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 77about 1 in 3,600 girls
- Five-year trend
- Risingup 39% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 77 girls in the UK were named Persephone, making it the 553rd most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 625th.
2025 had the most girls named Persephone of any year since the records began in 1996.
Half of all the girls named Persephone in the UK since 1996 were born between 2014 and 2022, the years shaded on the chart below.
Among girls in 2025, it was 520th in England and Wales.
Persephone in the UK, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 77 | #553 |
| 2024 | 64 | #645 |
| 2023 | 72 | #578 |
| 2022 | 72 | #590 |
| 2021 | 60 | #688 |
| 2020 | 67 | #625 |
| 2019 | 42 | #926 |
| 2018 | 44 | #905 |
| 2017 | 41 | #974 |
| 2016 | 41 | #956 |
| 2015 | 48 | #854 |
| 2014 | 43 | #936 |
| 2013 | 39 | #1,007 |
| 2012 | 26 | #1,346 |
| 2011 | 38 | #997 |
| 2010 | 7 | #3,308 |
| 2009 | 10 | #2,478 |
| 2008 | 10 | #2,454 |
| 2007 | 11 | #2,198 |
| 2006 | 7 | #2,940 |
| 2005 | 10 | #2,206 |
| 2004 | 12 | #1,812 |
| 2003 | 9 | #2,109 |
| 2002 | 0 | – |
| 2001 | 0 | – |
| 2000 | 6 | #2,554 |
| 1999 | 4 | #3,374 |
| 1998 | 10 | #1,815 |
| 1997 | 6 | #2,552 |
| 1996 | 4 | #3,289 |
How popular is Persephone in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- #734among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 372about 1 in 4,300 girls
- Five-year trend
- Risingup 32% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 372 girls in the US were named Persephone, making it the 734th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 818th. Its busiest year was 2022, with 429 girls. It first appears in the records in 1962.
Half of all the girls named Persephone in the US since 1880 were born between 2013 and 2022, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 379 girls in the US were given Persephone or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #728, up from #734 for this spelling alone.
- Persephone 372
- Persephanie 7
Persephone in the US, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 372 | #734 |
| 2024 | 383 | #735 |
| 2023 | 377 | #745 |
| 2022 | 429 | #681 |
| 2021 | 367 | #775 |
| 2020 | 333 | #818 |
| 2019 | 287 | #922 |
| 2018 | 236 | #1,075 |
| 2017 | 226 | #1,114 |
| 2016 | 196 | #1,241 |
| 2015 | 178 | #1,329 |
| 2014 | 203 | #1,198 |
| 2013 | 171 | #1,362 |
| 2012 | 143 | #1,539 |
| 2011 | 136 | #1,592 |
| 2010 | 111 | #1,830 |
| 2009 | 87 | #2,244 |
| 2008 | 59 | #2,956 |
| 2007 | 64 | #2,822 |
| 2006 | 59 | #2,915 |
| 2005 | 47 | #3,253 |
| 2004 | 43 | #3,440 |
| 2003 | 45 | #3,228 |
| 2002 | 19 | #5,892 |
| 2001 | 22 | #5,169 |
| 2000 | 20 | #5,486 |
| 1999 | 22 | #4,864 |
| 1998 | 25 | #4,363 |
| 1997 | 19 | #5,224 |
| 1996 | 11 | #7,569 |
| 1995 | 16 | #5,672 |
| 1994 | 8 | #9,580 |
| 1993 | 13 | #6,615 |
| 1992 | 0 | – |
| 1991 | 14 | #6,247 |
| 1990 | 13 | #6,459 |
| 1989 | 14 | #5,830 |
| 1988 | 6 | #10,381 |
| 1987 | 9 | #7,348 |
| 1986 | 0 | – |
| 1985 | 6 | #9,304 |
| 1984 | 6 | #9,139 |
| 1983 | 5 | #10,272 |
| 1982 | 7 | #8,222 |
| 1981 | 9 | #6,802 |
| 1980 | 9 | #6,788 |
| 1979 | 7 | #8,059 |
| 1978 | 10 | #5,957 |
| 1977 | 7 | #7,565 |
| 1976 | 10 | #5,599 |
| 1975 | 8 | #6,482 |
| 1974 | 14 | #4,226 |
| 1973 | 9 | #5,578 |
| 1972 | 13 | #4,299 |
| 1971 | 10 | #5,134 |
| 1970 | 9 | #5,412 |
| 1969 | 5 | #7,469 |
| 1968 | 6 | #6,244 |
| 1967 | 7 | #5,456 |
| 1966 | 0 | – |
| 1965 | 7 | #5,288 |
| 1964 | 7 | #5,473 |
| 1963 | 0 | – |
| 1962 | 6 | #5,859 |
Names like Persephone
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Penelope Phoebe Lyra Maisie Arabella Esme Eliana Ivy-Rose Emilia Harper Calliope Amelie
Other spellings of Persephone
Names related to Persephone
More Greek names
Luca Theodore Sophia George Theo Lucas Sofia Alexander Sebastian Margot Luke Chloe Sophie Zoe Iris Lainey
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Persephone: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/persephone, updated 20 October 2026.