Persis
/ˈpɜːr.sɪs/noun
A feminine personal name of Greek origin, traditionally understood to mean a Persian woman.
Did you know?Persis is mentioned in Romans 16:12, where Paul calls her “beloved” and praises her hard work, making her one of the earliest named Christian women in the New Testament.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Iranian, before 500 BCE
Proto-Iranian
*Pārsa
“The ancestral name of the Persian people and their homeland”
6th–4th Century BCE
Old Persian
Pārsa
“Persia; the land and people associated with the Achaemenid Persian kingdom”
5th–1st Century BCE
Ancient Greek
Πέρσης (Persēs)
“A Persian man, or a member of the Persian people”
Classical Greek
Ancient Greek
Περσίς (Persis)
“A Persian woman; the feminine form associated with Persēs”
1st Century CE
Koine Greek
Περσίς (Persis)
“A woman's personal name, recorded in Romans 16:12”
Modern English
English
Persis
“A feminine given name derived from the Greek biblical name”