| Ariadne | Charisse | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Most holy | grace |
| Origin | Greek | greek |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | ar-ee-AD-nee | shuh-REESS |
| Syllables | 4 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1960 | 0 |
| Peak year | 2016 (389) | 1971 (209) |
| In 2025 | 115 | 0 |
| Trend | Rising | Vintage |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Ariadne | Charisse |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 1,126 | 14 |
| 2010s | 2,589 | 65 |
| 2000s | 621 | 209 |
| 1990s | 255 | 521 |
| 1980s | 100 | 1,099 |
| 1970s | 63 | 1,441 |
| 1960s | 70 | 1,264 |
| 1950s | 0 | 635 |
| 1940s | 0 | 48 |
Ariadne means “most holy” in Greek; she guides Theseus from the labyrinth.
Generally a French-styled elaboration of Greek 'charis' (grace, kindness). Some sources propose an unrelated derivation (a cherry/Latin 'ceresia' link, or a feminine of Charles), so the grace meaning is the most-cited but not undisputed.
Ariadne is more popular than Charisse today: about 115 US babies were given the name Ariadne in 2025, compared with 0 named Charisse.
Ariadne means Most holy (Greek origin), while Charisse means grace (greek origin).
In US records, Ariadne first appears in 1960 and Charisse in 0, so Charisse has the longer recorded history.