Saoirse
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Meaning
freedom; a name of deep political resonance in Ireland, embraced with pride and popularized by actress Saoirse Ronan
Say it: SEER-sha (also SUR-sha; Saoirse Ronan says both are fine)
How popular is Saoirse around the world?
In the United States, 1,768 babies were named Saoirse between 2020 and 2025. In Ireland, 176 girls named Saoirse were born in 2025, the 17th most common name among girls that year.
Saoirse is on the official records of the United States, Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales, Canada, South Australia and Austria.
United States
1 in 12,000
In the United States, 1,768 babies were named Saoirse between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Saoirse peaked in the 2020s.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Ireland
1 in 310
In Ireland, 176 girls named Saoirse were born in 2025, the 17th most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. This registry counts each spelling separately; the figures above are for the exact spelling Saoirse, and accented spellings are separate names. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Scotland
1 in 2,400
In Scotland, 19 girls named Saoirse were registered in 2024, the 196th most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
England and Wales
1 in 5,700
In England and Wales, 102 girls named Saoirse were born in 2025, the 402nd most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Canada
1 in 13,000
In Canada, 29 girls named Saoirse were born in 2024, the 934th most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
South Australia
1 in 18,0002017
In South Australia, 1 girl was registered as Saoirse in 2017.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
Austria
1 in 76,000
In Austria, 1 girl named Saoirse was born in 2025, ranked 1,875th among girls that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
The count never rose above 1 in a year, too few to chart.
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
New Zealand
last on record 2024
Saoirse is not on the 2025 record for New Zealand, where names under 10 in a year are excluded at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Poland
last on record 2016
Saoirse is not on the 2025 record for Poland, where names given fewer than 2 times in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Not on the record in Spain, Mexico City, Argentina and Puerto Rico: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Saoirse
Most people given the name Saoirse in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Where Saoirse travels
Irish · rose in the US with actress Saoirse Ronan
Keep exploring
The Saoirse deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Saoirse truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Saoirse fits with your family’s names and surname.
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