girl's name
Muireann
MWIR-in
- Origin Irish
- Gender Girl
- Letters 8
- Popularity Top 1000 (Ireland)
- Births on record 1,822
Ireland
#200
2025 births
Muireann is a girl's name from Irish meaning sea-fair, built from the words for sea and white. It ranks 200th in Ireland on 22 births and charts in only one other market, having peaked back in 2011 and fallen since.
- Muireann is a name of Irish origin.
- Peaked in Ireland in 2011, when 81 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade in Ireland.
- Today about 1 in 2,039 babies in Ireland is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1965.
Muireann over time
Births per decade in Ireland, 1960s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1960s | 29 |
| 1970s | 108 |
| 1980s | 194 |
| 1990s | 244 |
| 2000s | 447 |
| 2010s | 507 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 145 |
What Muireann means
Muireann means sea-white or sea-fair. It joins the Irish word for the sea to the word for white or fair, so the image is of brightness on water.
Where Muireann comes from
Muireann is muir, the sea, joined to fionn, white, fair or bright — the same fionn that gives Fionn mac Cumhaill his name and that appears in Fiona and Finn. The compound is old and appears in early Irish sources borne by several legendary and historical women, including a Muireann who was abbess of Kildare. The muir element is shared with Muriel, which reached English through a Celtic route, and with Murrough and Muirgen, the last of these the name given to the woman in the Táin who lived as a salmon. Sea compounds are unusually productive in Irish naming for an island people, which is not a coincidence.
Muireann in use
Muireann ranks 200th in Ireland on 22 births and 270th in Northern Ireland on 6, and appears in no other market. It peaked in Ireland in 2011, when 81 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. Our records carry it from 1965 across 1,822 lifetime births. It is one of a small group of Irish sea names — with Muirgen and Murrough — that never made the crossing into English-language use.
How popular is Muireann?
In 2025, Muireann was given to 22 babies in Ireland, ranking #200 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Muireann is used
Irish figures 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. The Central Statistics Office began recording the síneadh fada in 2018, so accented and unaccented spellings are counted separately from that year on. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Muireann
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Muireann also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Muireann over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Muireann
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Muireann 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 Muireann
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Muireann — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Muireann
What does the name Muireann mean?
Sea-fair — muir, the sea, joined to fionn, white or bright.
How do you pronounce Muireann?
MWIR-in, with the stress on the first syllable.
Is Muireann related to Muriel?
They share the muir element for sea, though Muriel reached English by a different route.
How popular is Muireann?
200th in Ireland and 270th in Northern Ireland. It charts nowhere else.
Is Muireann a girl's or a boy's name?
Muireann is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
What are the nicknames for Muireann?
Muireann is usually shortened to Muire.
Is Muireann a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Muireann currently ranks #200 in Ireland. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.