210+ Irish Girl Names (and Meanings)

Anglicized spelling of the difficult-to-decipher Gaelic Aoibheann, the name of several Irish princesses, this name rhymes with Steven. Eavan Boland is a distinguished Irish poet who teaches at Stanford University.

The Etain (or more properly Étaín) of Irish mythology was a beautiful fairy turned into a fly (or in some versions, a butterfly), by a jealous queen. The insect Étaín fell into a glass of milk and was swallowed by yet another queen, then reborn as a beautiful maiden. Its pronunciation is similar to the number eighteen.

Even though the pronunciation of Ceara and the more usual Ciara is KEER-a, most Americans would tend to mispronounce this spelling variation as Sierra.

As a boy's name, Shane is related more directly to the 50s movie cowboy and the Irish name Sean; for a girl, it might be a variation on Shannon, Shana, or Shawn. Parenthood star Erika Christensen named her daughter Shane. Another spin, used by Eddie Murphy, is Shayne.

Attached in Irish mythology to a Cliona who was, among other things, an inspirer of poets. Cliona is well-used in modern Ireland, along with Irish form Cliodhna, though it's largely unknown in the rest of the world.

Technically a pet form of Brigid and very commonly heard in Ireland, but pronunciation problems complicate Bride as a name choice in America.

This Irish surname packs a lot of attitude, projecting an image of spunk and sass. The Welsh singer Duffy, born Aimee Anne Duffy, is best known for her songs Mercy and Warwick Avenue.

With both the Dillon and Dylan spellings, usage of this gender-neutral names runs about ten to one boys to girls. But Dylan is used about 20 times as often as Dillon for both genders. Which might be a vote in favor of Dillon, though for better or worse, this spellings distances the name from singer Bob and poet Thomas.

Irish goddess and saint name that's strong, to say the least.

Meabh, the native Irish spelling of Maeve, is in the Top 100 in Ireland and becoming more popular here in its Anglicized form. Outside of Ireland, life will be easier with the Maeve spelling of this lovely queen's name.

Connelly is a rollicking and rare example of the popular surname genre that may work even better for girls. A huge update on Colleen.

Cool a few decades ago, along with Lori and Tori -- but no more.

Although the Mc or Mac prefix always means "son of", the first names McKenna and MacKenna are used in the US exclusively for girls, with the McKenna spelling outpacing this one 14 to 1. There are no boys recorded with either spelling of the name.

This name of the final service on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is sometimes given symbolically to girls born on that day.

Stronger and more contemporary twist on Carla or Carly, Carlin was used just about equally for girls and boys in the US last year.

More streamlined – and more authentic – than Shawna.

Ethne is one of the many Irish Gaelic names whose spelling and pronunciation -- it's en-ya -- will prove endlessly confusing to English speakers.

A very popular name for boys in Ireland that's well-used throughout the British Isles, Darragh is also occasionally used for girls and certainly sounds feminine or at least unisex to the American ear. Simplified form Dara pushes it further toward the girls' side.

Dacey is a delicate and lacy Irish name with real possibilities.

Another two-syllable surname zooming up the ladder for boys, and poised to be grabbed by the girls.