Calypso is a unique and captivating female name of Greek origin. It is derived from the Greek word "kalypsō," which means "to conceal" or "to cover." In Greek mythology, Calypso was a nymph who lived on the island of Ogygia and held Odysseus captive for seven years in Homer's epic poem "The Odyssey." According to the myth, Calypso offered Odysseus immortality if he stayed with her, but he ultimately chose to return home to his wife Penelope. Despite its association with a tragic love story, the name Calypso has gained popularity in recent years due to its exotic sound and distinctiveness.
Statistics show that the name Calypso has been steadily gaining popularity as a girl's name in the United States over the past three decades. In the early 1990s, there were only five births each year with the name Calypso. However, by the late 1990s and early 2000s, this number had increased to six births per year.
The turning point came in the mid-2000s when the popularity of the name Calypso began to rise more significantly. In 2003, there were nine births with the name, followed by seven births each in 2005 and 2006. This upward trend continued into the 2010s, with fifteen births in 2009, nineteen births in both 2011 and 2012, and seventeen births in 2014.
More recently, Calypso has become even more popular. There were twenty-five births in 2017, thirty-two births in 2019, forty births in 2020, eighteen births in 2021, and thirty-five births in 2023. In total, there have been 398 births with the name Calypso in the United States since 1991.
These statistics demonstrate that while Calypso was once a relatively uncommon name, it has now become quite popular among parents choosing names for their daughters.