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Irish Names for Modern Babies
Filed under: Holidays, Baby Names, Relationships, Expert Advice: Babies
Lots of Americans have Irish grandmothers named Bridget and Grandpa Patricks, moms named Eileen or Kathleen, uncles or dads called Sean.
But now, in time for St. Patrick's Day, there's a new generation of Irish names. With deep Gaelic roots, these names have been revived in modern Ireland and have started to immigrate to our shores, as well, sometimes with the help of a celebrity.
To make these names easier to understand for Americans, stick to Anglicized spellings -- they're on the right side of the slash. Or, use the Irish original and help with pronunciation; there's a guide in parentheses. These names are so beautiful, they're worth the effort.
Girls
Aine/Anya
Aislinn/Ashlyn
Aoife (Ee-fa)
Juno
Maeve
Niamh/Neve
Orla
Quinn
Saoirse (Seer-sha)
Tiernan
Boys
Ciaran/Kieran
Cillian/Killian
Cormac
Declan
Eamon (Ay-mun)
Finn
Lorcan
Oisin/Osheen
Ronan
Rory (works for girls, too)
Pamela Satran and Linda Rosenkrantz are the creators of nameberry.com.
Want to get the latest ParentDish news and advice? Sign up for our newsletter!
But now, in time for St. Patrick's Day, there's a new generation of Irish names. With deep Gaelic roots, these names have been revived in modern Ireland and have started to immigrate to our shores, as well, sometimes with the help of a celebrity.
To make these names easier to understand for Americans, stick to Anglicized spellings -- they're on the right side of the slash. Or, use the Irish original and help with pronunciation; there's a guide in parentheses. These names are so beautiful, they're worth the effort.
Girls
Aine/Anya
Aislinn/Ashlyn
Aoife (Ee-fa)
Juno
Maeve
Niamh/Neve
Orla
Quinn
Saoirse (Seer-sha)
Tiernan
Boys
Ciaran/Kieran
Cillian/Killian
Cormac
Declan
Eamon (Ay-mun)
Finn
Lorcan
Oisin/Osheen
Ronan
Rory (works for girls, too)
Pamela Satran and Linda Rosenkrantz are the creators of nameberry.com.
Want to get the latest ParentDish news and advice? Sign up for our newsletter!
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 1)
3-17-2011 @ 3:55PM
Alicia said...In Ireland, Rory is more commonly spelled Ruairi (at least for guys). I rather prefer that spelling. "Rory" looks incomplete to me. (Might also help that one of my first friends in Dublin when I studied abroad was a Ruairi.)
Reply
3-21-2011 @ 1:34PM
Renne said...Love my daughter's name Meghan. There are two other Megan's in her 5th grade classroom. She is happy to be different.
Reply
3-22-2011 @ 7:03PM
Princess said...Your daughter has two other girls in her class with her name and you say she's different? Does she walk around introducing herself by spelling her name?
Like it or not she's still one of three girls in her class named Megan. Spelling it different doesn't change the fact that when said, it's the same exact name.
3-22-2011 @ 7:54PM
Alicia said...In Renne's defense, if she uses the Irish ("Gaelic") pronunciation of the "gh" it would be pronounced differently.