Comments
Meaning
Usage
Pronunciation
Famous
Impression
Other
A modern classic. Young at heart, though worldly and cultured. Indigo like the deepest depths of the oceans, painted with silvery-white like soft exhales. The pronunciation is mellow, with some spunk of its own. Also, I love "Song of the Sea!"
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Sounds very sexy.
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I think this name is absolutely beautiful with a good meaning.
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It's a beautiful name but people should be aware of the fact that it could be interpreted as a political name or political statement in Ireland.
"Saoirse - Irish Freedom" is the name of a magazine that belongs to the Republican political party that is campaigning for Northern Irish independence (from Britain). Not the same as the American Republican party but if you move to Ireland people might assume that this is the reasoning behind the name. The party wants Northern Ireland to cut ties with Britain and to reunite with Ireland.
This name was also originally used in Ireland with the thought of an independent Ireland in mind. Its use roughly dates to 1922 when Ireland gained independence from Great Britain. People used it to celebrate independence and Irish culture by using an Irish word name (and not anglicisation or British name).
Something to be aware of, because you might be setting a statement without being aware of it. Most people in Ireland support independence and reunification so it is a name many people would find agreeable, but it still sets a statement.
It might seem like an easy choice for an Irish name due to Saoirse Ronan and "Song of the Sea" (which I love) but there is so much more to this name and it has so much significance to some people that without Irish roots this might be more of an odd choice, even though I don't have a problem with people naming their daughters Saoirse without Irish roots at all (and I love people using more Irish names in general).
What I definitely wouldn't do is use an anglicisation such as Seersha or Siersha as given its history that might really come across as disrespectful (I don't have anything against anglicisations such as Kiera in general, though).
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"Saoirse - Irish Freedom" is the name of a magazine that belongs to the Republican political party that is campaigning for Northern Irish independence (from Britain). Not the same as the American Republican party but if you move to Ireland people might assume that this is the reasoning behind the name. The party wants Northern Ireland to cut ties with Britain and to reunite with Ireland.
This name was also originally used in Ireland with the thought of an independent Ireland in mind. Its use roughly dates to 1922 when Ireland gained independence from Great Britain. People used it to celebrate independence and Irish culture by using an Irish word name (and not anglicisation or British name).
Something to be aware of, because you might be setting a statement without being aware of it. Most people in Ireland support independence and reunification so it is a name many people would find agreeable, but it still sets a statement.
It might seem like an easy choice for an Irish name due to Saoirse Ronan and "Song of the Sea" (which I love) but there is so much more to this name and it has so much significance to some people that without Irish roots this might be more of an odd choice, even though I don't have a problem with people naming their daughters Saoirse without Irish roots at all (and I love people using more Irish names in general).
What I definitely wouldn't do is use an anglicisation such as Seersha or Siersha as given its history that might really come across as disrespectful (I don't have anything against anglicisations such as Kiera in general, though).
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My mum wishes that she named me this. Grateful she didn't, it would have been a pain with my lisp. Very pretty name though.
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Siersha could be an anglicized variant.
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I love the way it's pronounced but it is way too difficult to an English speaker. I like Sorsha. I like Seersha too but I dislike the "Seer" part. This is truly a beautiful name.
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My daughter's name is Saoirshe. She is 7. I think she loves her name but I do worry if she will always love it having to correct so many people. We live in the US. Her middle names are Brave Rose. Saoirshe Brave Rose. I felt like the adding the “h” was an act of grace lol. But otherwise didn’t want to change the spelling too much. I hope she always will love it. It’s as beautiful a name as she is.
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Gorgeous name- that like Siobhan (shuh-VAHN), Sinead (shuh-NAYD), and Naimh (neev)- would lose much in any Anglicised transliteration. Part of the charm of these names are the native spellings. If you're going to go for this name, go full tilt, understand that its phonics are correct for its native language, and don't demolish it with some illiterate, chav-looking spelling like 'Seersha.' To me, Seersha for Saoirse is the equivalent of A'Livyah for Olivia.
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Sounds nice and has a great meaning, but I think it is better spelled Seersha in non-Irish countries. Nothing says freedom like spelling a name however you want, instead of doing what’s proper!
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Too difficult to pronounce in America.
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That name should work its way outside the Anglosphere.
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Very pretty, but I'm sure it's going to get mispronounced and misspelled a lot.
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Looks very pretty! I love the spelling of Saoirse.
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Does anyone else think it looks like seahorse at first glance?
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I like the sound of the name, and don't mind the spelling even though it's quite confusing but I always hesitate when I see the name and forget how it's pronounced.
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Saoirse Kennedy Hill was a famous bearer.
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This is my name and I like it a lot but I've had it butchered terribly: yesterday, somebody called me "sawrs" (think "sauce" in an exaggerated British accent). It's SEER-shə.
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My name is Saoirse and people have asked how to spell it so you can understand it. My mother spelt it as sairsha. But it's pronounced the same.
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I have a friend with this name and we call her 'see-sha'! It should be pronounced Sir-sha' but our bogus Australian accents beg to differ.
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Fell in love with the name Saoirse after watching the animated movie Song of the Sea. Spelling would be difficult but then again many still spell and mispronounce my name which is simpler in comparison to Saoirse. Though not Irish, I would consider naming my daughter Saoirse.
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What is with this name on boys? Seoirse is a masculine name, but Saoirse is a completely feminine name? I like it for a girl.
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Pronounced sir-shur.
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Saoirse Ronan hosted Saturday Night Live recently and sang a song about how to pronounce her name. She said "It's ser-sha like inertia."
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I'm in love with the name Saoirse! (SEER-sha)
But please, how could you write it in English language so that everyone could read it properly? Searsha? Seersha?
Sirsha? How?
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But please, how could you write it in English language so that everyone could read it properly? Searsha? Seersha?
Sirsha? How?
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The name Saoirse was given to 271 girls born in the US in 2016.
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Saoirse was the only name my husband and I could agree on for a girl while I was pregnant. We watched Song of the Sea and we both fell in love with it, both the sound of it and the meaning. Living in America, I always have to explain the pronunciation and spelling, but that's okay. After her first pediatrician appointment when the nurse called us back with a, "Say-o-irs?" I decided that I have to teach my daughter that if someone says a name starting with an S and ending with a question mark, it's probably her!
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Saoirse Una Ronan is an Irish and American actress. She is a two-time Academy Award nominee; receiving a Best Supporting Actress nomination for Atonement, and a Best Actress nomination for Brooklyn. She also received three BAFTA Award nominations, two Golden Globe nominations, two Screen Actors Guild nominations and two Satellite Awards.
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On this site, it lists it as both a girls and boys name. https://www.ireland101.com/irish-baby-boys-names.
I'm hoping to name my child Saoirse regardless of the gender.
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I'm hoping to name my child Saoirse regardless of the gender.
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Being the American that I am, when I first saw this name I thought it was supposed to be pronounced say-OY-ers! But the true pronunciation is so lovely! I don't think I would name my child this, though, because no one would know how to say it, but I would definitely use this for a character.
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The name Saoirse was given to 158 girls born in the US in 2015.
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Saoirse is the name of the little selkie in the 2014 Irish animated fantasy film Song of the Sea.
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Someone above mentioned Song of the Sea. I had honestly never heard of the name before that movie but I'm in LOVE with it. I wish my husband was on board with using it :(
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Pronunciation: http://forvo.com/search/Saoirse/
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Today I legally changed my first name to Saoirse. I chose it for two reasons. 1. I wanted a Celtic name that meant "freedom" 2. It felt right paired with my surname. I am now complete!
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Last week I legally changed my name to Saoirse too, and for the same reasons you did. I wanted an Irish name for my heritage and I wanted my name to mean freedom. Also, I have an Irish last name. I just got my new driver's license today.
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Hope no 2 legged Saoirses are offended, but I have chosen this name for my new service dog in training. I chose it because of its beauty and meaning, as he will provide freedom for me to navigate, but also because of its unusual pronunciation and spelling. If a passerby hears me address my service dog with a common name, they can pick up on the name and distract him by using it. I know it is usually a girls name, but I doubt very much that the male puppy will care. Then, if I am asked his name, I give out a more usual "public" name which he never hears in training. In this day and age of predators, I would think the unusual name for a child would have the same advantage.
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My Saoirse Aurelia was born on January 1st, 2013. I'm Filipino and my husband has Irish roots. We decided on an Irish name when my father in law passed away a couple of weeks before she was born, so he never got a chance to meet her (he's met my oldest, Alethea). We pronounce it Sair-sha, and paired it with Aurelia since that was my late grandmother's name who I was very close to. We live in the U.S. and have had people ask about pronunciation, but we live in a diverse city that other people and teachers have heard of the name Saoirse before. Plus, I'm used to people not pronouncing my name correctly (I get called the herb Rosemary a lot, it's Rosemarie).
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I'm from Ireland and we named our daughter Saoirse (which we pronounce Seer-Sha) in 1996. Her middle name is Meabh. We live in the U.S. And it can take a few tries for people to spell it and pronounce it initially. I understand that well as I have the same problem with my name. The teachers, when my daughter was in school, were great and mastered it quickly. I could never imagine her called anything else.
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A very beautiful name!
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Wow. This is such a beautiful and refreshing name! I am amazed that it means "freedom". The Irish origin is awesome. All in all, Saoirse is a brill name. :)
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Ever since I saw the movie "THE LOVELY BONES" and I saw this name spelled "SAOIRSE" I had a gut feeing it wasn't pronounced as it looked but I didn't know how to pronounce it and I didn't want to try! It wasn't until I started to learn the Gaeilge "Gway-ilGuh" in most cases "OI" made a long "E" sound. I'm also a fan of Eithne Ni Bhraonain "EN-YA Nee Vree-nine" the famed New Age Gaeilge Ceol artist. The "AO" in Her last name is also a long "E" I did eventually look the name up here to get the answer and it made perfect sense that it's pronouced "SEA-R-Shuh"!
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I LOVE LOVE LOVE this name, hence why I named my one and only child this name. I'm not Irish, I have to pronounce it 7 times to everyone new I meet, and I'm pretty much the only person in her world that pronounces it properly. (I pronounce it Seer-sha). Most people just pronounce it Ser-sha. Her full name is Saoirse Amy Willow ( + surname).
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The name Saoirse was given to 107 baby girls born in the US in 2012.
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I've always loved this name so we decided if we ever had another daughter we would call her Saoirse. My little girl was born this February but she was 16 weeks early. Saoirse was perfect for a preemie. She certainly wanted her freedom:) The nurses in the NICU had a hard time at first with the pronunciation but everyone commented on how beautiful it was!
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Saoirse is a beautiful name, proud and strong yet feminine. My Father named me Cerisa pronouned SEER-E-Sa which is the anglicized version.
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I love this name. I named my daughter Saoirse when she was born in 1998. We pronounce it Sair-sha and while it has been difficult from time to time... it is worth it to me, and now to her. She loves her name. I have read some other comments where there has been a question of pairing it with a middle name, I found this to be a bit challenging too and we settled on Irene for her middle name. Of course, I have become accustomed to it... and now it suits her and seems to flow right out when the "full name" from mom moments happen. :)
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I just discovered this name, and I think it's so beautiful and graceful, yet strong and full of personality. The meaning and sound are lovely too.
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My daughter is 3 months old and I've called her Saoirse. I live in New Zealand however I'm from Ireland. We haven't ruled moving back to Ireland some day so I couldn't let the pronunciation bother us! We didn't know the gender and the name came to us after she was born which is much better as once you see your baby it's much easier to give her a name I think. My partner thought of Sorcha which is also Irish and Sasha which is English as another name so we compromised! I wanted a name that wasn't too popular and that couldn't be shortened! Everyone loves the name and I hope every other Saoirse is as happy and smiley as mine.
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Strong, gorgeous name. I think a good combination is "Saoirse Lee."
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I've heard this name pronounced; SEER-sha, SAIR-sha, SER-sha and SOR-sha.
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This is a lovely name! It's one of the finest I've ever heard. If I ever have a daughter someday, this will be my first choice, and if I could rename myself, I would use this one. Beautiful name.
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I'm from Ireland and Saoirse can be pronounced:
1. SEER-SHA
2. SAIR-SHA
3. SOR-SHA
Hope I've helped :)
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1. SEER-SHA
2. SAIR-SHA
3. SOR-SHA
Hope I've helped :)
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I love this name. Original, has a beautiful meaning and is beautiful sounding. I'm approximately 1/4 Irish and I'm very proud of the fact that I have ancestry from Ireland, and thus I adore Irish names. Saoirse is just so pretty, and would be lovely on a little girl and a grown woman.
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Saoirse has only been used as name since the 1920s, when the Republic of Ireland was created & the Irish got their "freedom" from Britain (hence Saoirse). It's a strongly patriotic name, making a bold statement, a controversial name full of recent Irish history & National pride (to some). The Irish Republican Sinn Fein monthly publication is called 'Saoirse'.
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Saoirse is pronounced in 1 syllable. You need to hear it to get it. As the a is neither long or short going by English--
"saaaarSSS"
Forget about the o and i.
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"saaaarSSS"
Forget about the o and i.
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I like this name a lot. The spelling looks so cool and classy. I'd definitely use it if I was Irish.
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In an interview on George Lopez's talk show, actress Saoirse Ronan said that it's pronounced "'SIR-sha', like 'inertia'". Probably just another regional variation on that particular vowel sound.
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Saoirse is typically pronounced SEER-sha in Northern Ireland, but SAIR-sha in Southern Ireland. It's all a matter of dialect.
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Where are people getting that this name is unisex? I live in Ireland and the only Saoirses I know and know of are female. A boy called Saoirse would get teased. And grammatically, Saoirse couldn't be a male name, since "Saoirse" is a feminine noun in Irish.
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I pronounce it sairsha as my family are from Carlow in the Midlands of Ireland. I know people pronounce it seersha further north, and that it's used as a boys name too. I don't mind that people struggle to pronounce it, I like having an unusual, meaningful name, and it's an ice-breaker.
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I love this name. I'd probably pronounce it SEER-sha. I'd probably only use it for a child if I actually lived in Ireland, though. Giving your children unpronounceable names in America is not the best idea, to me.
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Saoirse Ronan played Bryony Tallis in the film adaptation of Ian McEwan's Atonement.
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Saoirse has only been used as name since the 1920s (more specifically 6 December 1922, when the Irish actually got their freedom from Britain). It's strongly patriotic, full of Irish history and national pride. Because of the name's history and meaning, it is regarded as Republican too. Today, Saoirse a popular girls' name in Ireland, but it used for boys as well, though it's less common. Saor Éire! (http://homepage.ntlworld.ie/derek.ivory/saoirsename.html)
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A beautiful name with a beautiful feminine sound and an even more beautiful meaning: I just have to hope that if I name a daughter this that she never leaves Ireland, because the rest of the world has not a clue how it's said!
Additionally, you can see it painted on walls, murals etc in Republican areas of Belfast, where I live. As someone mentioned, it was something of a slogan for the Republican movement (as much as the word "freedom" alone can be a slogan). So it's also a name with history, I suppose you could say. :)
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Additionally, you can see it painted on walls, murals etc in Republican areas of Belfast, where I live. As someone mentioned, it was something of a slogan for the Republican movement (as much as the word "freedom" alone can be a slogan). So it's also a name with history, I suppose you could say. :)
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I used to know a little child called Saoirse. She pronounced it very nicely as, well, I can't write it in phonetic English, but phonetic Irish is easier.
Saoir-sa
Saoir as in the first syllable of Sarah, and sa as in yes in Irish (which is pronounced 'sha').
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Saoir-sa
Saoir as in the first syllable of Sarah, and sa as in yes in Irish (which is pronounced 'sha').
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This name is so cute for a girl. It's unique, pretty, and looks quite powerful in spelling, I think. Very good name.
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Surprisingly, no one's mentioned Saoirse Ronan who plays Briony in the movie adaptation of Ian McEwan's "Atonement." Wonderful actress. =]
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Saoirse is also used for males.
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Saoirse is a feminine name. Seoirse (SHOR-shah, version of George) is a masculine name that has a very similar spelling.
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I love the meaning. Saoirse America. It's pretty.
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There's a guy in my Irish book called Saoirse. Weird. I'm pretty sure it's a girl's name though.
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I love this name. If I ever chose it for a child, I think I'd have it pronounced 'SEER-sha', but I think people would probably struggle with the pronunciation.
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I love this name, and hope I can use it someday despite the difficult spelling. Though it seems a hard name to put a middle name with. I think something like "Faith" or "Joy," or especially "Grace" would go pretty with a name that means "freedom."
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I personally love this name! I love it pronounced either way and although the spelling really throws people off, I would name my daughter this someday. I think I would pronounce it Sair-sha.
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I used to correspond with an Irish friend who bore this name. She also pronounced it SAIR-sha. I love that pronunciation.
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This will be my daughter's name (due Jan. 07) if we have a girl. I pronounce it sair-sha and I have had the pronunciation confirmed correct by Gaelic and Irish citizens. Seer-sha is also a correct pronunciation. According to the Irish I have spoken to about the name it is a difference of dialect, of which there are many in Ireland. I believe the pronunciation sair-sha is more from the Munster/South Ireland dialects and seer-sha is more from the North. Beautiful name and though it may be difficult for Americans to understand and pronounce I love it too much to not use it for my daughter someday.
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This name gained popularity as part of the Republican movement in Northern Ireland. The word "saoirse" was and is a part of many mottos of Republican grops.
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Wow, this is a cool name, but if it's really pronounced SEER-sha, which is absolutely beautiful, I don't think there are going to be too many people who can pronounce that correctly.
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I love this name. It's gorgeous and its meaning is lovely.
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