Kalliope
Of Greek origin meaning "beautiful voice" or "beautiful speaker".
Name Census estimates that about 1,175 living Americans carry the first name Kalliope. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Kalliope today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kalliope births was 2021 (104 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kalliope. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Kalliope is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 11 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.2K
~ 1 in 291,706 Americans
Peak year
2021
104 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,311
Tracked since 1922
Popularity
Kalliope: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kalliope from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 529 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kalliope by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Kalliope during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kalliopes live
The SSA's state-level files cover 14 states and territories. Texas, California, Ohio recorded the most babies named Kalliope, while Washington, Missouri, Michigan recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 23 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kalliope
Kalliope is a feminine given name with origins in ancient Greek mythology and language. The name derives from the Greek words "kalli" meaning "beautiful" and "ops" meaning "voice", essentially translating to "beautiful voice".
In Greek mythology, Kalliope was the chief of the nine Muses, the goddesses of music, song, and dance. She was the muse of epic poetry and was regarded as the most influential among her sisters, often depicted as the wisest and most authoritative figure.
The name Kalliope can be traced back to ancient Greek texts and literature, such as Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, where the Muses were frequently referenced and celebrated for their artistic inspiration and patronage of the arts.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kalliope being used as a personal name dates back to the 5th century BC, when it was given to a Greek woman from the city of Ephesus. Throughout ancient Greek history, Kalliope remained a popular name, particularly among families who valued the arts and literature.
Notable historical figures named Kalliope include Kalliope of Syracuse, a Greek poet from the 3rd century BC, who was renowned for her lyric poetry. Another notable bearer of the name was Kalliope Kavvadias, a 19th-century Greek poet and feminist activist who fought for women's rights and education.
In the Renaissance period, the name Kalliope gained popularity among artists and intellectuals who drew inspiration from classical Greek culture. One such individual was Kalliope Sikulidu, a 16th-century Greek painter and icon artist who created numerous works for churches and monasteries.
Another notable Kalliope was Kalliope Parren, a 17th-century Dutch poet and playwright who wrote several influential works on topics ranging from love and romance to politics and religion.
In more recent history, the name Kalliope has been borne by figures such as Kalliope Engel, a 19th-century German composer and music educator, and Kalliope Arrighi, a 20th-century Greek painter and sculptor known for her abstract and surrealist works.
People
Kalliope + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kalliope as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Kalliope: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kalliope?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,175 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kalliope going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 291,706 US residents.
Is Kalliope a common name?
We classify Kalliope as "Rare". It ranks above 91.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,210 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kalliope most popular?
The single biggest year for Kalliope was 2021, when 104 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kalliope is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Kalliope a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kalliope in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.