# Saoirse (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/saoirse/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | girls |
| Origin | Irish |
| Meaning | “freedom” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈsɪɚ.ʃə/, 1 syllable |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 4,068 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 0 / 4,068 (100% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 2,122, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

Borrowed from Irish Saoirse, from saoirse (“freedom”).

## What it means

Saoirse is grouped under free.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 101 | 1,965 |
| 2012 | 110 | 1,845 |
| 2013 | 80 | 2,324 |
| 2014 | 112 | 1,828 |
| 2015 | 159 | 1,451 |
| 2016 | 278 | 970 |
| 2017 | 276 | 962 |
| 2018 | 331 | 822 |
| 2019 | 334 | 819 |
| 2020 | 373 | 735 |
| 2021 | 344 | 812 |
| 2022 | 312 | 894 |
| 2023 | 272 | 959 |
| 2024 | 245 | 1,031 |
| 2025 | 222 | 1,089 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 78 | 534 |
| 2012 | 54 | 738 |
| 2013 | 81 | 515 |
| 2014 | 75 | 563 |
| 2015 | 79 | 549 |
| 2016 | 118 | 387 |
| 2017 | 111 | 396 |
| 2018 | 122 | 370 |
| 2019 | 110 | 392 |
| 2020 | 151 | 307 |
| 2021 | 151 | 311 |
| 2022 | 143 | 310 |
| 2023 | 115 | 363 |
| 2024 | 95 | 443 |
| 2025 | 102 | 402 |

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.