girl's name
Cécile
say-SEEL
- Origin French
- Gender Girl
- Letters 6
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 199,094
Cécile is a girl's name meaning blind, the French form of Cecilia — and its saint became patron of music through a mistranslation of a single line in her passion. It charts nowhere in our data.
- Cécile is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in France in 1971, when 5,185 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade in France.
- Today about 1 in 23,580 babies in France is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1900.
Cécile over time
Births per decade in France, 1900s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1900s | 12,770 |
| 1910s | 10,455 |
| 1920s | 13,250 |
| 1930s | 9,620 |
| 1940s | 6,355 |
| 1950s | 7,170 |
| 1960s | 22,150 |
| 1970s | 45,090 |
| 1980s | 32,805 |
| 1990s | 13,520 |
| 2000s | 3,645 |
| 2010s | 950 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 285 |
What Cécile means
Cécile means blind. The Roman family name behind it was built on the Latin caecus, blind, recording a trait of some distant ancestor as Roman family names often did.
Where Cécile comes from
Cécile is the French form of Cecilia, from the Roman gens name Caecilius, built on caecus, blind. Roman family names frequently recorded a physical characteristic without embarrassment — the same pattern that gave Claudius its meaning of lame. Saint Cecilia is patron of music through a misreading: her passion says that as the organs played at her wedding she sang in her heart to God, and the phrase was later taken to mean she played the instrument. Every Saint Cecilia's Day ode, from Dryden to Britten, rests on that error.
Cécile in use
Cécile peaked in France in 1971, when 5,185 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It does not currently rank in the latest year of any of the six markets we track, despite holding 198,839 lifetime births — the accented spelling has stopped being registered in numbers even in France. Its Irish descendant Sheila, written up separately, charts in two markets.
How popular is Cécile?
In 2025, Cécile was given to 25 babies in France. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Cécile 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.
How Cécile is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Cecile | Cecile is a spelling of Cécile, used in the United States, where it ranks #5,705. | 21,229 |
Names that peaked alongside Cécile
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Cécile also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Cécile over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Cécile 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 Cécile
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Cécile — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Cécile
What does the name Cécile mean?
Blind, from the Roman family name Caecilius.
Why is Saint Cecilia the patron of music?
A misreading. Her passion says she sang in her heart while the organs played; it was later taken to mean she played.
Is Sheila related?
Yes — the Irish Síle descends from Cecilia, and Sheila anglicizes it.
How popular is Cécile?
It does not currently chart in any of the six markets we track.
Is Cécile a girl's or a boy's name?
Cécile is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
Is Cécile a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Cécile currently ranks #1,312 in France. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.