Bridie
A feminine diminutive of Bridget, from the Irish name Bríd meaning "exalted one".
Name Census estimates that about 216 living Americans carry the first name Bridie. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Bridie today is around 32 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Bridie births was 1918 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Bridie. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
216
~ 1 in 1,586,826 Americans
Peak year
1918
12 babies that year
Average age
32
years old
2024 SSA rank
#11,252
Tracked since 1909
Popularity
Bridie: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Bridie from the 1900s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 61 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1970s peak, Bridie remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Bridie by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Bridie during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Bridies live
Origin
Meaning and history of Bridie
The name Bridie is derived from the Irish Gaelic name Brighid, which has its origins in the ancient Celtic culture. Brighid was the name of a revered Irish goddess associated with spring, fertility, and poetry. The name likely has roots in the Proto-Celtic word "brig", meaning "exalted" or "high".
The name Brighid was later adopted as a Christian name, as the pagan goddess was reinterpreted as St. Brigid of Kildare, one of the patron saints of Ireland. St. Brigid lived in the 5th century and is renowned for founding several monasteries, including the famous Kildare Abbey.
The earliest recorded use of the name Bridie dates back to the 12th century, when it appeared as a diminutive form of Brighid. It was particularly popular in Ireland, Scotland, and parts of England during the Middle Ages.
One notable figure with the name Bridie was Bridie Lonie (1898-1971), a Scottish singer and actress who performed on stage and in films. Another was Bridie Gallagher (1924-2012), an Irish singer and actress known as "The Girl from Donegal".
In the literary world, Bridie Murphy (1950-) is an Irish novelist and short story writer who has won several awards for her work. Bridie Nicholson (1967-) is an Australian author and illustrator of children's books.
Historically, the name Bridie has also been associated with religion. Bridie Doherty (1920-2002) was an Irish nun who served as a missionary in India for over 50 years and was known for her work with the poor.
These are just a few examples of the notable individuals who have borne the name Bridie throughout history, reflecting its enduring popularity and cultural significance, particularly in Celtic and Irish traditions.
People
Bridie + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Bridie as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Bridie: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Bridie?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 216 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Bridie going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,586,826 US residents.
Is Bridie a common name?
We classify Bridie as "Very Rare". It ranks above 75.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 374 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Bridie most popular?
The single biggest year for Bridie was 1918, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Bridie is about 32 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Bridie a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Bridie in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.