Irish Baby Names: What’s Hot Now

Dec 18, 2024 12:51 PM

　　Irish baby names are in the news this week, with the release of the official statistics on the top names of 2010. Leading the list: Sophie and Jack, holding onto their Number 1 crowns from last year. But there are lots of other changes and surprises in the statistics.

　　The first surprise, especially if you don’t live in Ireland, is how few of the top Irish baby names are actually Irish. Four of the top ten boys’ names — Sean, Conor, Ryan, and Dylan (Welsh, actually, with Dillon the Irish cognate) — are Irish; only one of the girls’ names — Aoife at Number 10 — is a native choice.

　　The top ten Irish baby names are:

　　girls

　　1. Sophie2. Emily3. Emma4. Sarah5. Lucy6. Ava7. Grace8. Chloe9. Katie10.Aoife

　　boys

　　1. Jack2. Sean3. Daniel4. James5. Conor6. Ryan7. Adam8. Alex9. Luke10.Dylan

　　In the Top 100, however, the balance shifts and a bit over half of the names overall are authentically Irish. With their actual standing in the Top 100 in parenthesis, the Irish names most popular for girls, beyond Aoife, are:

　　Ciara (15)Saoirse (18)Caoimhe (24)Niamh (25)Roisin (32)Erin (36)Clodagh (39)Aisling (42)Eabha (55)Aine (58)Tara (62)Sadhbh (65)Aoibhinn (67)Caitlin (75)Aoibheann (76)Eimear (78)Aoibhe (79)Orla (85)Orlaith (94)Sinead (97)

　　Irish boys’ names in the Top 100, beyond the Top 10, are:

　　Cian (14)Liam (15)Darragh (16)Oisin (17)Patrick (18)Cillian (21)Eoin (29)Callum (32)Shane (33)Fionn (35)Tadhg (40)Cathal (42)Finn (46)Ronan (50)Ciaran (53)Rian (54)Eoghan (55)Rory (57)Cormac (59)Killian (62)Dara (71)Senan (74)Oran (75)Shay (76)Odhran (77)Ruairi (88)Niall (91)Calum (93)Daithi (94)Lorcan (97)Daire (100)

　　There are a couple of other surprises within the list of Top 100 Irish baby names. Number 71 for girls, for instance, is the remarkable Zuzanna. Other girls’ names more popular in Ireland than in the US include Brooke, Natalia, Lena, Shauna, Zara, Millie, Hollie, and Ruth.

　　For boys, the outliers include Jamie, at number 11, Harry, Leon, Jakub (far more popular than the US number 1 Jacob), Martin, and Patryk — Ireland‘s national name dragged into the 21st century.

　　Irish Name Generator

Previous Article：British Baby Names: Tops of the pops Next Article：Name Stories for Kids: For name-nerds-in-training!

Comments

Welcome to zdname comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.

Show More Comments

Name Popularity

How Gen Z Is Your Name?

Dec 18, 2024

　　Gen Z names, the most popular names for babies born from 1997 to 2012, are led by Emily and Jacob, according to a new study by Nameberry. 　　The watchword for Generation Z names is diversity, according to Nameberry’s study, with 70% more names in general use for Zoomers than for...

100 Names That Deserve To Be Used More

Dec 18, 2024

　　We often cover rare and unique names — from creative modern inventions to unusual place and nature names. The names below are rare too, but with a difference. 　　You've almost certainly heard of them. (And so have your parents.) 　　Even if you don't know someone with them in real life,...

30 Great Names You’re Not Using!

Dec 18, 2024

　　Looking for a cool name that's rare but not too out-there? You've come to the right place. 　　There are lots of reasons to choose an uncommon baby name. Maybe you hated being one of five Jessicas or Joshuas in your class, and don't want the same fate for your child......

Top Baby Name Influencers 2023

Dec 18, 2024

　　Baby name influencers don't set out to start name trends, but ultimately, their names go viral. 　　When it comes to influential names, there’s a formula for success. Whether the name is that of a celebrity or their child, it needs to be connected to someone who’s highly visible in the...