Irina Konstantinovna Arkhipova[a] (née Vetoshkina,[b] 2 January 1925 – 11 February 2010) was a Soviet and Russian mezzo-soprano, and later contralto, opera singer.

She sang leading roles first in Russia at the Sverdlovsk Opera and the Bolshoi Theatre, and then throughout Europe and in the United States.

She became a member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1963 and was named a People's Artist of the USSR in 1966.

[1] Arkhipova was at the height of her career in the 1960s and 1970s, during which time she was an international star, interpreting both Russian and Italian repertoire.

At the age of 72, Arkhipova finally made a belated Metropolitan Opera debut in March 1997 as Filipyevna in Eugene Onegin.