Idris (name)

Last updated October 03, 2025

Welsh pronunciation of Idris

Idris is both a Welsh and an Arabic given name (usually masculine), also given as surname; the Welsh and Arabic names are not related and have two different etymologies.

Welsh : 'Ardent lord', from udd (lord, prince) + ris (ardent, enthusiastic, impulsive).^[1] It lends its name to the mountain Cadair Idris ('Idris's Chair') by way of Idris Gawr ('Idris the Giant'). The story of Idris Gawr is believed to have come from the monkish king Idris of Meirionnydd , who was slain in a battle with Oswald of Northumbria on the River Severn. This indicates that the name may well have been used in Wales before his final stand in 632.^[2]

Arabic (إدريس, also transliterated Idrees): Idris, the Islamic prophet mentioned in the Qur'an, usually identified with Enoch in the Bible. The original meaning may be "interpreter."^[3] The name Idris means studious, smart, or to learn in Arabic. The prophet Idris in the Islamic religion was a tailor and is believed to be the first person to write.^{[ citation needed ]}

People with the name

Given name

Idriss Aberkane (born 1986), French professor, author, and entrepreneur of Algerian descent
Idris Bell (1879–1967), British museum curator, papyrologist and scholar of Welsh literature
Idris Bitlisi (1457-1520), Kurdish religious scholar and Ottoman administrator
Idris Cox (1899–1989), Welsh communist activist and newspaper editor
Idris Davies (1905–1953), Welsh poet
Idris Charles (1947–2021), Welsh language comedian, actor, TV presenter and writer
Idris Elba, OBE (born 1972), English actor, writer, producer, musician, DJ, rapper, singer and boxer
Idris Foster (1911–1984), Welsh scholar
Idris Gawr, "Idris the Giant" (560–632), a king of Meirionnydd in early medieval Wales, traditionally also an astronomer
İdris Güllüce (born 1950), Turkish civil engineer, politician and government minister
Idris Hopkins (1910–1994), Welsh footballer
Idris Jones (1900–1971), Welsh industrial chemist and rugby union player
Idris Jones (born 1943), English-born Anglican bishop of the Scottish Episcopal Church
Idris Abdul Karim (born 1976), Malaysian footballer
Idris Khattak, Pakistani human rights activist who has been missing since 2019
İdris Küçükömer (1925–1987), Turkish academic, philosopher and economist
Idris Lewis (1889–1952), Welsh conductor and composer
Idris Miles (1908–1983), Welsh footballer
Idrish Mondal, Bengali politician
Idris Muhammad (1939-2014), American jazz drummer
Idris Phillips (1958–2022), American musician
Idris Rahman (born 1976), English musician
İdris Naim Şahin (born 1956), Turkish politician
Idris Sardi (1938-2013), Indonesian violinist
Idris Seabright, pseudonym of American author Margaret St. Clair (1911–1995)
Idries Shah or Idris Shah (1926–1996), author and teacher in the Sufi tradition
Idris Sufyani (born 1995), Saudi Arabian para athlete
Idris Towill (1909–1988), Welsh dual-code rugby player
Idris Waziri (born 1952), Nigerian politician
Idris Galcia Welsh, birthname of Canadian-American explorer, author, filmmaker and aviator Aloha Wanderwell (1906–1996)
Idris Williams (1836–1894), Welsh educationalist, Congregationalist and councillor
Idris Jamma' (1922 – 1980), Sudanese poet.

Royal and political titles

Idris I of Morocco (died 791), the first ruler and founder of the Idrisid Dynasty of Morocco.
Idris II of Morocco (791-828), the son of Idris I
Idris of Libya (1889–1983), first and only king of Libya
Idris Iskandar al-Mutawakkil Alallahi Shah of Perak (1924–1984), sultan of Perak

Nickname

Joni Hendrawan or Idris, Indonesian member of Jemaah Islamiyah
Howell Idris (1842–1925) Welsh politician born Thomas Howell Williams. (Also Idris, a brand of ginger beer, originally made by Howell Idris's company)

Surname

Alimcan Idris (1887-1959), Tatar theologian
Damson Idris (born 1991), English actor
Denise Idris Jones (1950–2020), Welsh Labour politician
Fahmi Idris (1943–2022), Indonesian politician
Jamal Idris (born 1990), Australian professional rugby league footballer
Mohammad Idris (born 1961), Indonesian politician
Kamil Idris (born 1954), Sudanese international civil servant
S. M. Mohamed Idris (1926-2019), Malaysian environmental diplomat
Salim Idris (born 1957), Syrian general
Suhayl Idris (1923–2008), Lebanese novelist, short-story writer, journalist, and translator
Wafa Idris (1975-2002), Palestinian suicide bomber
Yusuf Idris (1927–1991), Egyptian writer

Fictional characters

Idris, a.k.a. Red Idris, a main character in Jennifer Maiden's third novel in the Play With Knives series, Play With Knives: Three: George and Clare and the Grey Hat Hacker
Idris, the TARDIS personified in the Doctor Who episode "The Doctor's Wife"
Idris, in Mary Shelley's novel The Last Man
Idris the Dragon, a Welsh dragon in the animated series Ivor the Engine
Idris, an assassin in the mobile MOBA game Vainglory

References

↑ "Idris". Behind the Name. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
↑ "Idris Gawr, King of Meirionydd". Early British Kingdoms. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
↑ Encyclopedia of Islam, Juan Eduardo Campo, Infobase Publishing, 2009, pg. 344: "It probably originated as a term in ancient Hebrew for "interpreter"..."

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[1] "Idris". Behind the Name. Retrieved 18 June 2021.

[EBK-2] "Idris Gawr, King of Meirionydd". Early British Kingdoms. Retrieved 3 October 2020.

[3] Encyclopedia of Islam, Juan Eduardo Campo, Infobase Publishing, 2009, pg. 344: "It probably originated as a term in ancient Hebrew for "interpreter"..."

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