Given name
Deirdre
“a brokenhearted or raging woman”
Deirdre is a variant of Deidre. One interpretation is “a brokenhearted or raging woman.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Deirdre is a variant of Deidre. One interpretation is “a brokenhearted or raging woman.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Deirdre comes from Irish, and ultimately from Old Irish.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
How it developed
In English usage, Deirdre developed from Derdriu.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1921. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Deirdre through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 16,845
- 0 boys · 16,845 girls
- Most popular year
- 1961
- 799 babies
- 2025
- 13
- #7,989 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −15%
- Easing
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 13 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 7,989 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 14.8% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 799 in 1961. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 15,807 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Deirdre’s family of names
In English usage, Deirdre developed from the Old Irish form Derdriu. Deirdre has a related form in Deidre. In English usage, Deirdre has a related form in Diedre.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Deirdre
- Deirdre McCloskeyAmerican economist & academicborn 1942
- Pema ChödrönAmerican philosopherborn 1936
- Dede BarryAmerican speed skater and cyclistborn 1972
- Deirdre LovejoyAmerican actressborn 1962
- Deirdre O'ConnellAmerican actressborn 1951
- Dierdré A. SnijmanSouth African botanistborn 1949
- Deirdre CluneIrish politicianborn 1959
- Deirdre ShannonIrish language singerborn 1970
- Deirdre QuinnAmerican actressborn 1970
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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