Phoenix

How to say it

/ˈfiː.nɪks/

What it means

From the Greek phoinix, the mythical bird that burns and rises reborn from its own ashes; also 'dark red.'

Phoenix comes from the Greek phoinix, the immortal bird that bursts into flame and rises again from the ashes, a universal symbol of renewal. The same word meant 'deep red' or 'purple.' It works as a bold unisex name and shares its sound with the Arizona city and the acting family River and Joaquin Phoenix. It reads dramatic, modern, and full of comeback energy. Nix is a short.

Heads-up notes

• Worth knowing

  Unisex; carries the firebird's meaning of rebirth and renewal.

Who's worn it

Historical figures, characters, and public faces who share the name. The cultural surface, for whatever weight you want to give it.

• Phoenix the mythical bird reborn from its own ashes
• Joaquin Phoenix American actor

Spelling variants

• Phenix
• Fenix
• Phoenyx

Names with the same feeling

• Atlas Bearer, enduring
• Zion Zion (the hill of Jerusalem)
• Sage Wise one, the herb
• River Flowing water
• Kai Sea, or 'keeper of the keys'

See Phoenix from another angle