Spiros
Masculine · “Short for Spyridon”
Spiros is the everyday Greek form of Spyridon, and in Greece it belongs above all to a water carrier from a village outside Athens who won the first Olympic marathon. In America the name came with Greek families, and one of their sons became vice president.
How old is the name Spiros?
Spiros first appears in US birth records in 1918 — 107 years ago. The typical Spiros alive today was born around 1979, making them about 46 years old. About 500 people named Spiros are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Spiros most popular?
Spiros peaked in 1977, reaching #2008 nationally. See the whole 1977 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Spyridon to Spiros
The story of Spiros
Spyridon became a common Greek name through a fourth-century bishop of Cyprus, still one of the most venerated saints in the Greek world, and Spiros or Spyros is how Greeks say it day to day. At the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896, Spyridon Louis, a water carrier from Marousi, won the marathon, the one event the host country most wanted, and became a national hero overnight. Greek immigrants brought the name to the United States; one of them, born Anagnostopoulos, shortened his surname to Agnew, and his son Spiro Agnew became Richard Nixon's vice president.
Meaningscholars disagree
Short for Spyridon; from Greek spyris, 'basket', or Latin spiritus, 'spirit'
Spyridon is most often traced to spyris, a round basket, but a link to Latin spiritus is also offered, and neither is settled.
How the name formed
- Spyridon
- Spyros
- Spiros
Related forms: Spyros · Spyridon · Spiro · Spiridon
Pronouncing Spiros
SPEE-ros
Greek speakers say SPEE-ros; many Americans say SPEER-ohs or SPY-ros.
Nicknames for Spiros
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1918
- Most boys named
- 197724 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2008reached in 1977
- Change vs 2023
- 0.0%5 in 2024, from 5
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Spiros in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Spyros in Greek — transliteration
- Spyridon in Greek — related form
- Spiro in English — related form
- Spiridon in Russian — related form
Spiross among us
people named Spiros are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Spiros sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- A living Greek name with a famous Olympic bearer.
- Short, distinctive and easy to spell.
- Rooted in a strong family and church tradition.
- Americans will say it several ways, so expect to teach the pronunciation.
- For many older Americans, Spiro calls up Spiro Agnew, who resigned the vice presidency in a tax scandal.
- Outside Greek families it will read as unusual, which some parents want.
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Spiros
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Spiross are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 500 people named Spiros are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Spiros in 2025?
- Spiros is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Spiros with classmates?
- Spiros will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More S names
The most-given names starting with S, all years combined.
Steven#271 · Stephen#383 · Samuel#18 · Scott#534 · Sean#489 · Shawn#681 · Stanley#863 · Steve#1609
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Spiros? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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