Perseus — Meaning, Origin & Everything to Know

Drawn from Greek, Perseus means 'destroyer; the hero who slew Medusa' and has a character all its own. Because it rests on Greek rather than passing fashion, Perseus carries a sense of history that many parents look for. As a son's name, Perseus suggests courage, strength and protection and travels comfortably across languages.

What Does the Name Perseus Mean?

Perseus means 'destroyer; the hero who slew Medusa', a sense it draws straight from its Greek roots.

The early history of Perseus belongs to the Greek world, where 'destroyer; the hero who slew Medusa' was a quality worth naming a child for. As it travelled, Perseus kept its 'destroyer; the hero who slew Medusa' sense intact, handed down to honour relatives and express a hope for the child.

Today Perseus reads as approachable and contemporary, even though its meaning of 'destroyer; the hero who slew Medusa' is anything but new. The result is a name in Perseus that feels both usable and meaningful — its appeal in the 2020s in a nutshell.

Perseus carries connotations of courage, strength and protection; the Greek background gives that symbolism somewhere to stand.

Origin & Etymology of Perseus

Greek · Greek

Trace Perseus back and you reach Greek and the meaning 'destroyer; the hero who slew Medusa'. Perseus spread outward with migration, recognised now well beyond its Greek origin and worn across very different cultures.

Perseus holds a meaningful place in the Greek tradition, its sense of courage, strength and protection tied to long-standing cultural values.

How Greek names are chosen

Greek naming is close to an algorithm, which is why the same names recur down a family for centuries: the eldest son takes his paternal grandfather's name and the eldest daughter her paternal grandmother's, with later children drawing on the mother's side. The name is usually settled within the first week or ten days, the christening following at around forty days, and by custom the godfather has the final word. Because so many names are saints' names, most Greeks keep a name day — the saint's feast — as well as a birthday, and it is often the more sociable of the two. Regional patron saints show up plainly in the distribution: Spyridon clusters on Corfu, Gerasimos on Kefalonia, Dionysios on Zakynthos.

How to Pronounce Perseus

PER-seus — Break Perseus into PER-seus and it falls into place. From Greek roots: vowels are open and clearly sounded.