| Cora | Iris | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Maiden | Iris flower / rainbow |
| Origin | Greek | greek |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | KOR-uh | EYE-ris |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1880 |
| Peak year | 2019 (3,602) | 2025 (3,729) |
| In 2025 | 2,428 | 3,729 |
| Trend | Rising | Near its peak |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Cora | Iris |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 16,879 | 17,499 |
| 2010s | 27,816 | 15,352 |
| 2000s | 7,745 | 8,644 |
| 1990s | 3,323 | 5,542 |
| 1980s | 2,224 | 4,739 |
| 1970s | 2,093 | 4,685 |
| 1960s | 3,393 | 5,807 |
| 1950s | 5,869 | 8,871 |
| 1940s | 8,749 | 7,814 |
| 1930s | 11,253 | 8,135 |
| 1920s | 16,161 | 8,672 |
| 1910s | 15,317 | 4,360 |
| 1900s | 10,372 | 937 |
| 1890s | 12,880 | 374 |
| 1880s | 11,954 | 119 |
From the Greek kore, “maiden,” an epithet of Persephone.
From Greek 'iris' meaning 'rainbow'; Iris was the Greek goddess of the rainbow. The iris flower was named for its rainbow range of colours, so the name functions both as a bloom word and a word for 'rainbow'.
Iris is more popular than Cora today: about 3,729 US babies were given the name Iris in 2025, compared with 2,428 named Cora.
Cora means Maiden (Greek origin), while Iris means Iris flower / rainbow (greek origin).
In US records, Cora first appears in 1880 and Iris in 1880, so Cora has the longer recorded history.