 Her family name "Elmasry" in the Arabic language means The Egyptian.Her father Habib Elmasry was the secretary of the General Congregation Council of the Coptic Orthodox Church.She had two brothers; Amin, who was a prominent surgeon, and died in the 1960s, and Sami who was director of the Egyptian State Bureau for Tourism in London, and three sisters; Eva, who helped Iris in her work, Soraya, an avid pianist, and Dora, who was married to Dr Aziz El Masry

Habib Elmasry was the secretary of the General Congregation council for three terms, and was known for his strong support of ordination of a monk to be the Coptic pope and not a metropolitan or a bishop.