# Selene (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/selene/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | girls |
| Origin | Greek |
| Meaning | “light” |
| Pronunciation | /səˈlini/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 9,718 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 5 / 9,713 (100% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 268, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From the Ancient Greek Σελήνη (Selḗnē, proper noun), from σέλας (sélas, “light”).

## What it means

Selene is grouped under light.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 170 | 1,360 |
| 2012 | 240 | 1,052 |
| 2013 | 215 | 1,130 |
| 2014 | 194 | 1,251 |
| 2015 | 214 | 1,180 |
| 2016 | 204 | 1,212 |
| 2017 | 292 | 918 |
| 2018 | 327 | 832 |
| 2019 | 313 | 858 |
| 2020 | 337 | 805 |
| 2021 | 397 | 720 |
| 2022 | 425 | 692 |
| 2023 | 401 | 708 |
| 2024 | 426 | 675 |
| 2025 | 469 | 623 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 5 | 9,383 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 5 | 4,012 |
| 2011 | 3 | 5,785 |
| 2012 | 12 | 2,215 |
| 2013 | 11 | 2,313 |
| 2014 | 7 | 3,160 |
| 2015 | 6 | 3,615 |
| 2017 | 8 | 2,925 |
| 2018 | 16 | 1,788 |
| 2019 | 13 | 2,040 |
| 2020 | 18 | 1,618 |
| 2021 | 19 | 1,569 |
| 2022 | 22 | 1,416 |
| 2023 | 17 | 1,705 |
| 2024 | 26 | 1,262 |
| 2025 | 37 | 951 |

## In other languages

- Bulgarian: Селена
- Catalan: Selene, Selena
- Chinese: 塞琳, 塞勒涅
- Greek: Σεληνη, Σελήνη
- Italian: Selene, Selena, Selenia
- Japanese: セレネ, セレーネー
- Latin: Selena
- Russian: Селе́на
- Spanish: Selene, Selena
- Armenian: Սելենե
- Esperanto: Seleno
- French: Séléné, Sélène
- Georgian: სელენე
- Hindi: सिलीनी
- Korean: 셀레네
- Portuguese: Selene
- Ukrainian: Селе́на

## People named Selene

- Selene Johnson, American actress (1876-1960)

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.