Gender Feminine
Meaning & History
Latinized form of the Greek name [1] , which meant "bright, pure" from Greek phoibos) [2] . In Greek mythology Phoibe was a Titan associated with the moon. This was also an epithet of her granddaughter, the moon goddess Artemis. The name appears in Paul's epistle to the Romans in the New Testament, where it belongs to a female minister in the church at Cenchreae.In England, it began to be used as a given name after the Protestant Reformation. It was moderately common in the 19th century. It began to rise in popularity again in the late 1980s, probably helped along by characters on the American television shows Friends (1994-2004) and Charmed (1998-2006). It is currently much more common in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand than the United States.A moon of Saturn bears this name, in honour of the Titan.
Related Names
Popularity
People think this name is
classic youthful upper class natural wholesome refined strange
Name Days
Greece: September 3
Images
Phoebe the Titan as depicted on the Altar of PergamonPhoebe the Titan as depicted on the Altar of Pergamon ©
Sources & References
- Lexicon of Greek Personal Names, available from https://search.lgpn.ox.ac.uk/browse.html?facet-nymRef=Φοίβη.
- Liddell, Scott and Jones. An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, entry foi=bos, available from https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0058%3Aentry%3Dfoi%3Dbos.
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Entry updated May 26, 2026