Shannon
Meaning
traditionally old, wise river
The story
Shannon is Ireland's great river worn as a name, traditionally read as old, wise water, from the goddess Sionna of the legends, and it is the longest river in Ireland, which gives the name a geography to match its mythology. American use starts in the 1900s, and the peak arrives in the 1970s at the height of the Irish-heritage wave, when Shannon served sons and daughters almost equally before settling decisively toward girls. The decline since has been long and steady, the classic arc of a name that owned its moment completely. Shannon's story mirrors Kelly's almost beat for beat, a surname-and-place sound that defined a mid-century American generation, and underneath the era's nostalgia the actual river keeps moving, still old, still wise.
Popularity, 1890–2024
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Shannon peaked in the 1970s.
See popularity in Brazil
Popularity in Brazil
49 people · the #67,613 first name in Brazil · median age 28
Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
When you meet Shannon
Most people given the name Shannon in the United States were born between 1970 and 1989. The Shannon you meet today is most often in her 40s or 50s.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
The Shannon deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Shannon 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 Shannon fits with your family’s names and surname.
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