Irene
Irene is a female given name: 99% of people named Irene are women, and it is recorded as female in 21 of the 21 countries covered.
Irene · Irène · Iréne
- Verdict
- Female
- Male / female split
- 1% male / 99% female
- Confidence
- High (64 or more weighted country observations)
- Most common in
- United States, Denmark, Great Britain
- Also spelled
- Irène, Iréne
- US births since 1880
- 1,344 male / 351,710 female
- Data
- nam_dict (GFDL) + US SSA
- Updated
- 2026-09-11
How to address Irene
When you do not know their gender for certain, the full name with no title is the safe choice: "Dear Irene," in English, "Guten Tag Irene," in German. Irene is a female given name: about 99% of people named Irene are women. A quick look at a profile confirms it for certain.
Ready-made greetings in six languages
English
Dear Irene,
German
Guten Tag Irene,
French
Bonjour Irene,
Spanish
Estimado/a Irene:
Chinese
Irene您好：
Japanese
Irene様
English
Hi Irene,
German
Hi Irene,
French
Salut Irene,
Spanish
Hola Irene,
Chinese
Irene你好：
Japanese
Ireneさん
This is a statistical estimate, not a statement about the gender, identity or correct form of address of any particular person.
Country breakdown
| Country | How common | Usually | Male share |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | very common | woman's name | 0% |
| Denmark | common | woman's name | 2% |
| Great Britain | common | woman's name | 2% |
| Luxembourg | common | woman's name | 2% |
| Norway | common | woman's name | 2% |
| Austria | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| Belgium | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| Switzerland | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| Germany | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| Finland | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| East Frisia | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| Netherlands | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
Show all 21 countries
| Country | How common | Usually | Male share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sweden | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| Spain | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| France | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| Ireland | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| Italy | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| Malta | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| Portugal | uncommon | woman's name | 2% |
| Georgia | rare | woman's name | 2% |
| Estonia | rare | woman's name | 2% |
United States birth data
1,344 male · 351,710 female · 353,054 births recorded
Since 1980: 0% male.
Frequently asked questions
Is Irene a male or female name?
Irene is a female given name: 99% of people named Irene are women, and it is recorded as female in 21 of the 21 countries covered.
How do I address Irene in an email?
When you do not know their gender for certain, the full name with no title is the safe choice: "Dear Irene," in English, "Guten Tag Irene," in German. Irene is a female given name: about 99% of people named Irene are women. A quick look at a profile confirms it for certain.
Is Irene a unisex name?
Irene is not a unisex name: 1% of people named Irene are men. Irene leans strongly female overall.
Related names
Sources
Gender by country: nam_dict, the c't first-names dictionary by Joerg Michael, roughly 44,000 names across 55 countries, licensed GFDL. US frequencies: United States Social Security Administration baby-name data, public domain. Method: how we classify names. Full dataset: data & licences. Data built 2026-09-11.
DearWho, "Is Irene a male or female name?", https://dearwho.vercel.app/name/irene (accessed 2026-09-11). Data: nam_dict (J. Michael, GFDL) and US SSA, built 2026-09-11.
BibTeX
@misc{dearwho_irene,
title = {Is Irene a male or female name?},
author = {{DearWho}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://dearwho.vercel.app/name/irene},
note = {Data: nam_dict (GFDL), US SSA public domain}
}