Spiro as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Spiro

What is the meaning of the name Spiro ?

The baby name Spiro is a boy name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced SPEE-roh.

Spiro is Greek in Origin.

Spiro is an English and Balkan short form of Greek Spyrídōn (Σπυρίδων), a masculine name attested in late antiquity. Its root is Greek spyrís (σπυρίς), a small basket or hamper; the ending -ίδων forms a personal name rather than a direct noun. The Latin verb spīrō, I breathe, is identical in spelling in some contexts but is not the usual source of the given name.

The name’s main historical anchor is Saint Spyridon of Trimythous, a fourth-century Cypriot bishop honored in Eastern Orthodoxy, especially in Greece, Cyprus, and Corfu. Greek usage favors Spyridon formally and Spyros or Spiros familiarly; South Slavic and Romanian forms include Spiridon, while Italian has Spiridione. In the United States, Spiro has remained rare and is most recognizable from Spiro T. Agnew, vice president under Richard Nixon, with a small birth-registration peak around 1970.