Saoirse
- Gender
- Girl
- Say it
- SEER-sha
- Origin
- Irish
- UK rank, 2025
- #296 for girls
- US rank, 2025
- #1,085 for girls
- Style
- Big in Northern Ireland
Saoirse is a girls' name of Irish origin, meaning “freedom”. In 2025 it ranked 296th for girls in the UK (166 babies) and 1,085th for girls in the US (222 babies).
What does Saoirse mean?
Irish
“freedom”
Irish for freedom, taken up as a name in the 20th century, around the time of Irish independence.
More on Wiktionary.
Is Saoirse a girl's or a boy's name?
Saoirse is a girls' name. In 2025, it was given to 166 girls in the UK and 222 girls in the US. Too few boys were given it to be listed.
How popular is Saoirse in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- 296th among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 166 about 1 in 1,700 girls
- Five-year trend
- Steady down 12% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 166 girls in the UK were named Saoirse, making it the 296th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 237th. Its busiest year was 2021, with 225 girls.
Half of all the girls named Saoirse in the UK since 1996 were born between 2010 and 2021, the years shaded on the chart below.
Among girls in 2025, it was 402nd in England and Wales, 178th in Scotland and 44th in Northern Ireland.
Saoirse in the UK, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 166 | #296 |
| 2024 | 160 | #305 |
| 2023 | 191 | #262 |
| 2022 | 203 | #252 |
| 2021 | 225 | #242 |
| 2020 | 216 | #237 |
| 2019 | 177 | #300 |
| 2018 | 193 | #278 |
| 2017 | 163 | #328 |
| 2016 | 183 | #300 |
| 2015 | 126 | #404 |
| 2014 | 109 | #444 |
| 2013 | 116 | #408 |
| 2012 | 95 | #506 |
| 2011 | 132 | #386 |
| 2010 | 79 | #557 |
| 2009 | 69 | #605 |
| 2008 | 78 | #542 |
| 2007 | 83 | #506 |
| 2006 | 72 | #550 |
| 2005 | 66 | #555 |
| 2004 | 52 | #634 |
| 2003 | 60 | #563 |
| 2002 | 39 | #722 |
| 2001 | 48 | #616 |
| 2000 | 45 | #642 |
| 1999 | 50 | #598 |
| 1998 | 38 | #717 |
| 1997 | 51 | #579 |
| 1996 | 27 | #878 |
How popular is Saoirse in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 1,085th among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 222 about 1 in 7,200 girls
- Five-year trend
- Falling down 29% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 222 girls in the US were named Saoirse, making it the 1,085th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 732nd. Its busiest year was 2020, with 373 girls. It first appears in the records in 1993.
It has been given to fewer girls each year for the last 5 years. 2025 had fewer girls named Saoirse than any year since 2015.
Half of all the girls named Saoirse in the US since 1880 were born between 2015 and 2022, the years shaded on the chart below.
Saoirse in the US, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 222 | #1,085 |
| 2024 | 245 | #1,027 |
| 2023 | 272 | #957 |
| 2022 | 312 | #892 |
| 2021 | 344 | #811 |
| 2020 | 373 | #732 |
| 2019 | 334 | #818 |
| 2018 | 331 | #819 |
| 2017 | 276 | #959 |
| 2016 | 278 | #967 |
| 2015 | 159 | #1,448 |
| 2014 | 112 | #1,818 |
| 2013 | 80 | #2,305 |
| 2012 | 110 | #1,831 |
| 2011 | 101 | #1,953 |
| 2010 | 72 | #2,538 |
| 2009 | 56 | #3,046 |
| 2008 | 82 | #2,354 |
| 2007 | 38 | #4,049 |
| 2006 | 42 | #3,668 |
| 2005 | 32 | #4,263 |
| 2004 | 31 | #4,383 |
| 2003 | 24 | #5,087 |
| 2002 | 30 | #4,175 |
| 2001 | 26 | #4,559 |
| 2000 | 22 | #5,146 |
| 1999 | 14 | #6,830 |
| 1998 | 16 | #6,068 |
| 1997 | 12 | #7,278 |
| 1996 | 12 | #7,125 |
| 1995 | 0 | – |
| 1994 | 5 | #13,423 |
| 1993 | 5 | #13,435 |
Names like Saoirse
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Aoife, Esme, Maeve, Fiadh, Dua, Orla, Minha, Wren, Caoimhe, Remi, Eden, Primrose
More Irish names
Oscar, Rowan, Rory, Finn, Aiden, Ryan, Nolan, Quinn, Cody, Erin, Ronan, Connor, Declan, Casey, Kennedy, Callan
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Saoirse: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/saoirse, updated 20 October 2026.