Parys
A French feminine name derived from "Paris", the capital of France.
Name Census estimates that about 313 living Americans carry the first name Parys. It is a predominantly female name (98.4% of registrations). The average person named Parys today is around 18 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Parys births was 2004 (23 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Parys. 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.
People living today
313
~ 1 in 1,095,062 Americans
Peak year
2004
23 babies that year
Average age
18
years old
1995 SSA rank
#7,487
Tracked since 1991
Gender
Gender distribution for Parys
Parys leans heavily female at 98.4% of total registrations, but 5 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Parys as a male name
- Ranked #9,913 in 1995
- 5 male births in 1995
- Peak: 1995 (5 births)
Parys as a female name
- Ranked #7,487 in 2024
- 15 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2004 (23 births)
Popularity
Parys: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Parys from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 124 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Parys remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Parys 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 Parys during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Parys' live
Origin
Meaning and history of Parys
The name Parys has its origins in the ancient Greek language. It is derived from the Greek word 'pyr,' meaning fire or flame. The name was likely first used to describe someone with a fiery personality or a connection to fire, such as a blacksmith or metalworker.
In Greek mythology, there are a few references to characters with similar names. For example, Pyracmon was a son of the god Everes and the nymph Nymphe. However, there is no direct historical record of the name Parys being used in ancient Greek texts or scriptures.
The earliest recorded use of the name Parys dates back to the 15th century in France. It is believed to have been introduced to the region by Greek scholars or travelers during the Renaissance period. One of the first known individuals with this name was Parys de la Brosse, a French nobleman born in 1479.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals named Parys. In the 16th century, Parys Bordone was an Italian Renaissance painter known for his portraits and religious works. He lived from around 1500 to 1571.
In the 18th century, Parys Mitchell was a British architect and surveyor who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Foundling Hospital. He was active from 1719 to 1794.
During the 19th century, Parys Hayter was a British painter and illustrator. He is best known for his illustrations in books by Charles Dickens and other literary works. Hayter lived from 1792 to 1871.
In the early 20th century, Parys Emerson was an American actress and vaudeville performer. She was born in 1888 and appeared in several Broadway productions and silent films.
More recently, Parys Lapper is a British artist and sculptor known for her work exploring disability and body image. She was born in 1982 and her sculpture, Alison Lapper Pregnant, was displayed on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square in London.
People
Parys + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Parys as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with P
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Parys: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Parys?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 313 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Parys 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 1,095,062 US residents.
Is Parys a common name?
We classify Parys as "Very Rare". It ranks above 79.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 318 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Parys most popular?
The single biggest year for Parys was 2004, when 23 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Parys is about 18 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Parys a female name?
Yes, 98.4% of people registered as Parys 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.