unisex name
Naoise
NEE-shuh
- Origin Irish
- Gender Unisex
- Letters 6
- Popularity Top 100 (Ireland)
- Births on record 2,016
Ireland
#88
2025 births
Naoise is a unisex name of Irish origin whose meaning is lost, belonging to the young warrior at the center of Ireland's oldest love story. It ranks 88th in Ireland and our data records it as unisex.
- Naoise is a name of Irish origin.
- Peaked in Ireland in 2025, when 104 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade in Ireland.
- Today about 1 in 431 babies in Ireland is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1970.
Naoise over time
Births per decade in Ireland, 1970s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1970s | 25 |
| 1980s | 49 |
| 1990s | 218 |
| 2000s | 473 |
| 2010s | 530 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 412 |
What Naoise means
Naoise has no recoverable meaning. It is an old Irish name that appears in the literature without explanation, and the derivations offered by modern reference sites are inventions rather than findings.
Where Naoise comes from
Naoise is the name of the central figure in Longes mac nUislenn, the Exile of the Sons of Uisneach — one of the oldest surviving Irish narratives and the source of the Deirdre story. Deirdre is promised at birth to Conchobar, king of Ulster, but falls in love with Naoise; they flee to Scotland with his two brothers, and Conchobar lures them back under a guarantee of safety and has Naoise killed. Deirdre's death follows. The tale runs directly into the Táin, because it is Fergus mac Róich's fury at the broken guarantee that sends him into Medb's service. The name itself has never been explained; it may be pre-Irish, and the confident meanings offered online do not appear in any philological source. Modern Irish use for girls is recent and has grown alongside the male use rather than replacing it.
Naoise in use
Naoise ranks 88th in Ireland with 104 births in 2025 and 161st in Northern Ireland, and our data records it as unisex. It is rising with a peak in 2025. Our records carry it from 1970. Outside the island it is essentially absent — 4,292nd in England and Wales — and the spelling gives non-Irish readers no way in: it is two syllables, NEE-shuh.
How popular is Naoise?
In 2025, Naoise was given to 104 babies in Ireland, ranking #88 that year. It is one of the most popular names in Ireland.
Where Naoise 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 Naoise
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Naoise also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Naoise over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Sibling names for Naoise
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Naoise — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Naoise
What does the name Naoise mean?
Nothing recoverable. The name is old enough that its derivation is lost, and the meanings offered online are not sourced.
How do you pronounce Naoise?
NEE-shuh, two syllables.
Who was Naoise?
The lover of Deirdre in the Exile of the Sons of Uisneach, killed by Conchobar after being lured back to Ulster under a false guarantee.
Is Naoise a boy's or a girl's name?
Both — our data records it as unisex, though the literary bearer is male.
How popular is the name Naoise?
In 2025, Naoise was given to 104 babies in Ireland, ranking #88 that year. It is one of the most popular names in Ireland.
When was Naoise most popular?
Naoise peaked in 2025, when 104 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
Is Naoise a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Naoise currently ranks #88 in Ireland. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.