girl's name
Brigitte
bree-ZHEET
- Origin French
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 8
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 212,642
Brigitte is a girl's name from an Irish goddess whose name means the exalted one, and she is the clearest case in Europe of a pagan deity becoming a Christian saint largely intact. Our data marks it reviving.
- Brigitte is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in France in 1959, when 18,165 babies were given the name.
- After peaking in the 1950s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival in France.
- First appears in birth records in 1900.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Brigitte over time
Births per decade in France, 1900s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2024, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1900s | 415 |
| 1910s | 430 |
| 1920s | 945 |
| 1930s | 3,470 |
| 1940s | 18,575 |
| 1950s | 105,785 |
| 1960s | 62,740 |
| 1970s | 8,550 |
| 1980s | 1,355 |
| 1990s | 245 |
| 2000s | 115 |
| 2010s | 55 |
| 2020s (to 2024) | 35 |
What Brigitte means
Brigitte means the exalted one, or the high one. The Irish original names elevation and eminence, and it belonged to a goddess before it belonged to any person.
Where Brigitte comes from
Brigitte is the French form of Bridget, from the Irish Brigid — the exalted one, from a root meaning high. Brigid was a goddess of poetry, smithcraft and healing, daughter of the Dagda, and her attributes transferred almost wholesale to Saint Brigid of Kildare: the perpetual fire her nuns tended, the feast on 1 February that was the pagan Imbolc, the association with livestock and spring. Historians argue about how much of the saint is the goddess, but the continuity is more visible here than in almost any other case. The French form's twentieth-century fame belongs to Brigitte Bardot.
Brigitte in use
Brigitte peaked in France in 1959, when 18,165 babies were registered, and our data marks it reviving. It charts in exactly one of the six markets we track, at 2889th in the United States on 59 births, across 212,642 lifetime births. France, which holds essentially all of its history, no longer registers it in numbers — so this is another French name whose recovery, such as it is, is happening abroad.
How popular is Brigitte?
In 2024, Brigitte was given to 5 babies in France. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Brigitte is used
French counts are rounded to the nearest five and nothing below five is published, so these figures show the shape of the name's use rather than an exact tally. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Brigitte
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Brigitte also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Brigitte over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Brigitte in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Brigitte
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Brigitte — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Brigitte
What does the name Brigitte mean?
The exalted one, from the Irish Brigid — a goddess before she was a saint.
Was Saint Brigid a goddess?
Her attributes transfer almost wholesale from the goddess — the perpetual fire, the 1 February feast that was Imbolc, the livestock.
Is Brigitte the same as Bridget?
Yes, the French and English forms of the Irish name.
How popular is Brigitte?
2889th in the United States — France no longer registers it in numbers.
Is Brigitte a girl's or a boy's name?
Brigitte is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Brigitte?
Brigitte has 2 syllables.
Is Brigitte a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Brigitte currently ranks #2,889 in France. After peaking in the 1950s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.