| Calliope | Ophelia | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Beautiful voice | Help, benefit |
| Origin | greek | Greek |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | kuh-LY-uh-pee | oh-FEEL-yuh |
| Syllables | 4 | 3 |
| First appeared | 1917 | 1880 |
| Peak year | 2025 (682) | 2024 (1,223) |
| In 2025 | 682 | 1,183 |
| Trend | Near its peak | Near its peak |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Calliope | Ophelia |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 3,336 | 6,560 |
| 2010s | 2,339 | 3,981 |
| 2000s | 287 | 474 |
| 1990s | 55 | 252 |
| 1980s | 11 | 295 |
| 1970s | 5 | 397 |
| 1960s | 0 | 720 |
| 1950s | 10 | 1,388 |
| 1940s | 0 | 1,392 |
| 1930s | 5 | 1,948 |
| 1920s | 43 | 3,276 |
| 1910s | 7 | 2,372 |
| 1900s | 0 | 1,236 |
| 1890s | 0 | 899 |
| 1880s | 0 | 580 |
From Greek Kalliopē, from kallos 'beauty' + ops 'voice', literally 'beautiful-voiced'. The name of the Muse of epic poetry; the 'beauty' root (kallos) is explicit.
From the Greek ophelos, “help” or “benefit.” Ophelia appears in Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
Ophelia is more popular than Calliope today: about 1,183 US babies were given the name Ophelia in 2025, compared with 682 named Calliope.
Calliope means Beautiful voice (greek origin), while Ophelia means Help, benefit (Greek origin).
In US records, Calliope first appears in 1917 and Ophelia in 1880, so Ophelia has the longer recorded history.