Cristos is a variant of Christos, from Greek, meaning anointed and tied to Christian religious tradition.
Cristos (also spelled Christos) is the Greek word that gives us the title "Christ" — from the verb chriein, meaning "to anoint." It is the Greek translation of the Hebrew Mashiach (Messiah), referring to one who has been ritually anointed with oil as a sign of divine appointment. In the Greek-speaking early Christian world, Christos began as a title — "the Anointed One" — before becoming so fused with the person of Jesus of Nazareth that it effectively became a proper name.
The journey from sacred epithet to personal name spans the entire history of Greek Christianity. In the Greek Orthodox tradition, Cristos/Christos has been used as a given name for centuries, reflecting a piety that embraces the divine name directly rather than standing at reverential distance from it. Greece's culture of naming children after saints and holy figures extends naturally to this most sacred of names.
Notable bearers include Greek-Cypriot politicians, artists, and athletes, as well as members of the Greek diaspora communities in Australia, Canada, and the United States, where the name is often anglicized in daily life but retained in formal and religious contexts. The Spanish-inflected spelling Cristos (without the "h") reflects the name's additional journey through Latin Christian traditions, where it appears in Spanish-speaking communities with Greek or Mediterranean heritage. The conceptual weight of the name — anointing, divine purpose, sacred calling — gives it a gravitas that many parents find compelling regardless of their personal religious practice. In contemporary usage, Cristos occupies a territory between the devout and the classical, a name that sounds ancient and resonant without feeling overtly preachy.