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Gender: F Pronunciation: EYE-siss Meaning of Isis: "throne" Origin of Isis: Egyptian

Isis has gone from magical, feminist name on the rise to the forbidden list because of the extremist terror group called ISIS, an acronym for Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Unsurprisingly, Isis was one of the fastest-falling names in 2014, dropping 130 ranks to reach #706.

Before the rise of the political group, Isis was best known as the name of the supreme Egyptian goddess of the moon, sky, magic, motherhood and fertility, revived by feminists and others willing to cross into arcane territory. And with the mini-craze for names that start with Is- -- Isabella, Isla -- it was not so surprising that Isis was joining the I crowd.

The ancient Isis, wife of Osiris (who happened to be her brother), was worshiped beyond Egypt into the Greco-Roman world. According to myth, the Nile river floods every year because of Isis's tears of sorrow for the death of Osiris.

In popular culture, Isis has been a character on Stargate and Battleship Galactica, an opera, the title of a Bob Dylan song and the name of several rock bands.

The Isis is the name given to part of the River Thames.

Famous People Named Isis

Isis Nable Valverde, Brazilian actress
Isis King (born Darrell Walls), American trans model ("America's Next Top Model")
Isis Mussenden, costume designer
Isis Marie Casalduc, Miss Puerto Rico 2002
Isis Margarita Finlay, Miss Cuba 1954
Isis Gomes, Brazilian model and reality TV personality ("Fazenda de Verão")
Isis Taylor, American adult film actress
(Elizabeth) Isis Pogson, English astronomer
Isis the Amazon, ring name of Lindsay Kay Hayward, American pro wrestler
Isis Rea Boykin (b. 2008), daughter of reality TV personality Chris "Big Black" Boykin
Mia Isis Vishnyakova (b. 2012), daughter of model Sasha Pivovarova and Igor Vishnyakov

Pop Culture References for the name Isis

Isis, superhero in DC Comics
Isis, cat owned by DC Comics' Catwoman
Isis, character on TV's Battlestar Galactic
Isis, character in Bluewater Comics)
Isis, character on TV's "Stargate"
Isis Eaglet, a character in Magical Chronicle Lyrical Nanoha Force
Isis, dog of the Earl of Grantham in "Downton Abbey," named in honor of Highclere Castle's 5th Earl of Carnarvon's work in Egypt
Isis, character in movie "Bring It On"
ISIS (International Secret Intelligence Service), workplace in animated sitcom "Archer," later changed to CIA
ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria), terrorist group
Isis, American post-metal band