| Phoenix | Kyrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Firebird reborn from flame | Lord |
| Origin | greek | greek |
| Gender | Unisex | Unisex |
| Pronunciation | FEE-niks | ky-REE / KEER-ee |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1968 | 1986 |
| Peak year | 2020 (1,534) | 2017 (1,780) |
| In 2025 | 1,027 | 1,416 |
| Trend | Rising | Rising |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Phoenix | Kyrie |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 7,843 | 9,420 |
| 2010s | 10,623 | 8,793 |
| 2000s | 5,086 | 219 |
| 1990s | 972 | 162 |
| 1980s | 32 | 18 |
| 1970s | 10 | 0 |
| 1960s | 5 | 0 |
From Greek 'phoinix', the mythical bird that is consumed by fire and reborn from its own ashes. The fire link is through the rebirth-by-fire myth rather than a literal word for fire.
From Greek 'kyrie', the vocative of 'kyrios' ('lord, master'), best known from the Christian liturgical prayer 'Kyrie eleison' ('Lord, have mercy'). Its modern popularity owes much to basketball player Kyrie Irving.
Kyrie is more popular than Phoenix today: about 1,416 US babies were given the name Kyrie in 2025, compared with 1,027 named Phoenix.
Phoenix means Firebird reborn from flame (greek origin), while Kyrie means Lord (greek origin).
In US records, Phoenix first appears in 1968 and Kyrie in 1986, so Phoenix has the longer recorded history.