Atlas is the Greek Titan condemned to hold up the sky for eternity, from a root possibly connected to the verb tlaō, to carry or endure. In Greek mythology, Atlas was not the earth's foundation but the sky's, and his name became attached to every collection of maps because the first such book bore his image on the cover. With 1,185 SSA records in the girls' column and a 2021 peak, Atlas is one of those mythological names that has crossed from solidly male to genuinely gender-neutral territory.
A Mythological Name Crossing Genders
Atlas is more commonly given to boys — the SSA boys' chart shows far higher numbers — but its girls' use has been growing as parents embrace powerful, weighty mythological names for daughters. Athena, Artemis, Juno, Atlas — the Greek and Roman mythology naming movement has been opening up increasingly to names that were never traditionally feminine. Greek mythological names for girls tend to be either goddess names (clearly feminine) or Titan/god names (traditionally masculine but increasingly used for girls). Atlas is firmly in the second category, and parents choosing it for daughters are making a deliberate statement about the weight they want their daughter to carry, in the best sense.
The Maps and the Weight
An atlas is a collection of maps. The word in this sense entered English in the 16th century when Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator published a collection with a depiction of Atlas on the cover. For parents drawn to names with both mythological and terrestrial significance, Atlas offers both: the enduring Titan and the explorer's book of the world. Compare Atlas and Artemis: both are Greek mythological names being adopted for girls, but Artemis is a goddess name (clearly feminine in origin) while Atlas is a Titan name — a different kind of choice.
The Counter-Reading: The Weight Metaphor
Atlas carries the sky. That's a beautiful metaphor for a child who will grow up to hold things together, to have broad perspective, to see the whole world. It's also, one could argue, a lot of metaphorical burden for a kindergartener. Rising mythological girl names like Atlas are growing precisely because parents want names that make a statement about their daughter's potential, and Atlas makes one of the largest statements possible.