Irish baby names
Irish names come from Irish Gaelic, many through anglicized surnames that hide the original (Ryan from Ó Riain, Kennedy from Ó Cinnéide, Nolan, Quinn). Others are old first names: Declan and Kevin were saints, Maeve a legendary queen of Connacht. Of the names we have researched, 93 are Irish, given to 82,560 US babies in 2025.
Rising Irish names
Biggest climbers in rank since 2020: Murphy (#979 to #397), Rowyn (#1,193 to #699), Tara (#1,164 to #847), Rory (#458 to #230), Ayleen (#972 to #863), Eiden (#1,733 to #537), Kyren (#1,206 to #584), Callahan (#806 to #227), Cillian (#957 to #507), Callan (#434 to #190).
Irish girl names (41)
| Name | Meaning | Rank 2025 | Babies 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quinn | descendant of Conn (surname) | #97 | 2,634 |
| Kennedy | #85 | 2,933 | |
| Maeve | #76 | 3,153 | |
| Sloane | descendant of Sluaghadhán (surname) | #141 | 2,077 |
| Reagan | #248 | 1,244 | |
| Lennon | #214 | 1,421 | |
| Brianna | #222 | 1,372 | |
| Delaney | #242 | 1,283 | |
| Kiara | #229 | 1,335 | |
| Teagan | #341 | 894 | |
| Mckenna | son of Cionaodh (Kenneth) | #410 | 758 |
| Murphy | descendant of Murchadh, 'sea warrior' (Irish surname) | #397 | 783 |
| Raegan | #506 | 589 | |
| Cassidy | curly-haired (Irish Ó Caiside) | #541 | 558 |
| Makenna | son of Cionaodh (from McKenna) | #593 | 495 |
| Keira | modern feminine of Kieran, from ciar 'dark' | #622 | 469 |
| Eileen | #654 | 437 | |
| Kaitlyn | spelling of Caitlin (Irish Catherine) | #802 | 340 |
| Erin | Ireland (poetic name) | #833 | 327 |
| Kelly | descendant of Ceallach (Irish surname) | #852 | 319 |
| Fallon | descendant of Fallamhan (Irish surname) | #779 | 349 |
| Nola | fair shoulder (via Finola); also an Italian town | #822 | 331 |
| Kenna | from McKenna or Irish Ó Cionaodha | #759 | 357 |
| Aileen | #799 | 340 | |
| Bridget | high, exalted (Irish) | #724 | 385 |
| Rowyn | variant of Rowan | #699 | 407 |
| Ashlyn | dream, vision (as a form of Aisling) | #972 | 262 |
| Ayleen | #863 | 313 | |
| Katelyn | variant of Caitlin (Catherine) | #1,077 | 225 |
| Bria | short form of Briana | #1,163 | 199 |
| Saoirse | freedom (Irish) | #1,089 | 222 |
| Tara | Tara, Ireland ('high place'); also Sanskrit | #847 | 322 |
| Kathleen | Irish form of Catherine | #1,156 | 201 |
| Ciara | "dark-haired" | #1,408 | 155 |
| Shannon | River Shannon (Irish) | #2,405 | 75 |
| Breanna | variant of Brianna, feminine of Brian | #2,548 | 69 |
| Mona | Irish "noble"; other origins too | #2,806 | 61 |
| Colleen | girl (Irish word) | #2,829 | 60 |
| Maureen | little Mary (Irish) | #4,424 | 32 |
| Muriel | "bright sea" | #4,430 | 32 |
More: Keri.
Irish boy names (52)
| Name | Meaning | Rank 2025 | Babies 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aiden | little fire (variant of Aidan) | #62 | 5,046 |
| Rowan | little red one (Irish) | #59 | 5,212 |
| Nolan | descendant of Nuallán (surname) | #65 | 4,846 |
| Ryan | #99 | 3,532 | |
| Declan | #139 | 2,570 | |
| Connor | lover of hounds | #166 | 2,211 |
| Rory | red king | #199 | 1,768 |
| Brayden | salmon (via Braden) | #229 | 1,545 |
| Finn | #206 | 1,702 | |
| Kevin | dear birth; gentle and noble | #221 | 1,628 |
| Oscar | #223 | 1,620 | |
| Ronan | little seal | #247 | 1,406 |
| Callan | #190 | 1,917 | |
| Casey | watchful (Irish Ó Cathasaigh) | #320 | 1,072 |
| Brady | broad island or broad eye; Irish Mac Brádaigh | #321 | 1,071 |
| Cody | Irish surname: 'helpful' or 'son of Odo' | #318 | 1,076 |
| Bryan | #336 | 1,005 | |
| Sullivan | #314 | 1,083 | |
| Callahan | descendant of Ceallachán | #227 | 1,566 |
| Killian | #418 | 770 | |
| Desmond | man from South Munster | #376 | 839 |
| Kane | #451 | 695 | |
| Grady | #373 | 851 | |
| Devin | #548 | 548 | |
| Kian | #401 | 797 | |
| Kieran | little dark one (Irish Ciarán) | #389 | 817 |
| Finnegan | descendant of Fionnagán ('fair') | #526 | 569 |
| Donovan | descendant of the dark-brown one (Irish) | #496 | 609 |
| Leland | #494 | 612 | |
| Keegan | son of Aodhagán (Irish surname) | #621 | 449 |
| Madden | descendant of Madadhán, 'little dog' (Irish) | #676 | 402 |
| Cillian | Irish saint's name (meaning uncertain) | #507 | 595 |
| Cannon | several surname sources | #722 | 374 |
| Flynn | descendant of Flann, 'red' (Irish) | #828 | 299 |
| Neil | from Irish Niall (meaning uncertain) | #851 | 288 |
| Brayan | Spanish phonetic spelling of Brian | #768 | 334 |
| Kasey | variant of Casey; "watchful" | #1,162 | 180 |
| Mccoy | son of Aodh (Irish/Scottish) | #806 | 309 |
| Kyren | variant of Kieran (probable) | #584 | 504 |
| Eiden | variant of Aidan, 'little fire' | #537 | 558 |
More: Brendan, Brennan, Bryant, Braden, Macklin, Dwayne, Tyrone, Barry, Kerry, Dewayne, Doyle, Carroll.
How origins are assigned
Each name gets one origin: the language its meaning comes from, which is not always the language it reached English through. Mateo is Spanish in form but Hebrew in origin, so it is listed as Hebrew. The lists cover the roughly 2,000 most used names we have researched so far. Common meanings among Irish names: a color, names from places, an animal.