boy's name
Cahir
CAH-heer
- Origin Irish
- Gender Boy
- Letters 5
- Popularity Top 1000 (E&W)
- Births on record 533
Northern Ireland
#138
2024 births
Cahir is a boy's name of Irish origin meaning "battle-man," and the County Tipperary town of the same spelling takes its name from a different word entirely. It ranks 138th in Northern Ireland and is rising.
- Cahir is a name of Irish origin.
- Peaked in Northern Ireland in 2021, when 27 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade in Northern Ireland.
- Today about 1 in 36,861 babies in England and Wales is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1997.
Cahir over time
Births per decade in Northern Ireland, 1990s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1990s | 19 |
| 2000s | 127 |
| 2010s | 198 |
| 2020s (to 2024) | 103 |
What Cahir means
Cahir means battle-man, or warrior, from the Irish Cathaoir — cath, a battle, with a second element read as man. The name describes a fighter directly rather than through any metaphor.
Where Cahir comes from
Cahir anglicizes the Irish Cathaoir, from cath, battle. Its bearer is Cathaoir Mór, a second-century High King in the traditional reckoning and the ancestor claimed by the Leinster dynasties; the Book of Rights preserves a will attributed to him dividing Ireland among his sons. Cathaoir is also the ordinary modern Irish word for a chair, which is unrelated and occasionally causes confusion. The Tipperary town of Cahir takes its name from cathair, a stone fort — a third word again, with a different vowel and no connection to the personal name, though the anglicized spellings have converged completely. Cahir Castle, one of the largest in Ireland, stands on an island in the Suir and takes the town's name rather than the man's.
Cahir in use
Cahir ranks 138th in Northern Ireland with 16 births in 2024 and is rising in our data with a peak in 2021. Our records carry it from 1997. It appears in almost no other market — 12,770th in the United States — and does not chart in the Republic at all, which makes it one of the most specifically Northern Irish names in that top 200.
How popular is Cahir?
In 2024, Cahir was given to 16 babies in England and Wales, ranking #138 that year. It is well established in England and Wales.
Where Cahir is used
Figures for Northern Ireland withhold any name given to fewer than three babies in a year, so a gap means the name fell below that floor rather than went unused. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Cahir
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Cahir also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Cahir over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Cahir 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 Cahir
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Cahir — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Cahir
What does the name Cahir mean?
Cahir means "battle-man," from the Irish Cathaoir, built on cath, a battle.
Is Cahir named after the town?
No. The town comes from cathair, a stone fort — a different word that has converged on the same anglicized spelling.
How do you pronounce Cahir?
CAH-heer, two syllables.
How popular is Cahir?
138th in Northern Ireland, and it does not chart in the Republic.
Is Cahir a girl's or a boy's name?
Cahir is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
Is Cahir a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Cahir currently ranks #138 in Northern Ireland. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.