Given name & surname · also Irish Gaelic
Maureen
Maureen is used as a given name and a surname. Maureen is connected with Mary.
Original IrishMáirín
Meaning & origin
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Irish Gaelic.
How it developed
Maureen is used as a form of Mary.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1896. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Maureen through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 144,604
- 328 boys · 144,276 girls
- Most popular year
- 1957
- 4,606 babies
- 2025
- 32
- #4,424 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −20%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 32 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 4,424 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 20.4% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 4,596 in 1957. In 2025, New York had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (5). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 125,608 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.
Maureen’s family of names
Maureen has a short form in Mo. Maureen is a form of Mary. Maureen has a related form in Maura.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 14
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 3
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Maureen
- Maureen O'HaraIrish–American actress and singer (1920–2015)
- Maureen O'SullivanIrish-American actress (1911-1998)
- Maureen ConnollyAmerican tennis player (1934-1969)
- Maurren MaggiBrazilian athletics competitor (born 1976)
- Moe TuckerAmerican musicianborn 1944
- Maureen CairdAustralian hurdlerborn 1951
- Maureen Georgefield hockey playerborn 1955
- Maureen ForresterCanadian operatic contralto (1930-2010)
- Maureen Starkey Tigrettwife of Ringo Starr (1946–1994)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Maureen, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Doreen
“the golden one” · “a brooding woman”
>99% girls
Cathleen
“one who is pure; virginal”
>99% girls
Mona
“one who is born into the nobility” · “a jealous man”
>99% girls
Noreen
“light”
>99% girls
Mimi
Mimi is used as a given name and a surname. Mimi is connected with Maria.
>99% girls
Colleen
“a young peasant girl”
>99% girls
Kathleen
“one who is pure; virginal”
>99% girls
Moira
“share”
>99% girls