Brigit
An Irish feminine name derived from the Celtic goddess of fire, poetry, and wisdom.
Name Census estimates that about 1,151 living Americans carry the first name Brigit. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Brigit today is around 38 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Brigit births was 1976 (46 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Brigit. 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
1.2K
~ 1 in 297,788 Americans
Peak year
1976
46 babies that year
Average age
38
years old
2021 SSA rank
#15,664
Tracked since 1954
Popularity
Brigit: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Brigit from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 290 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Brigit 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 Brigit during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Brigits live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. California, New York, Illinois recorded the most babies named Brigit, while Texas, Illinois, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 26 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Brigit
The given name Brigit has its origins in the Celtic cultures of ancient Ireland and Britain. It is derived from the Old Irish Bríg or Brighid, meaning "exalted one" or "high one". The name is closely associated with the pre-Christian Celtic goddess of the same name, who was revered as the patroness of poetry, healing, and smithcraft.
Brigit was one of the most prominent deities in the pagan Celtic pantheon, and her name appears in numerous ancient Irish texts and manuscripts, including the Lebor Gabála Érenn (Book of the Taking of Ireland) and the Cath Maige Tuired (The Second Battle of Mag Tuired). The goddess was honored during the festival of Imbolc, celebrated on February 1st, marking the beginning of spring in the Celtic calendar.
In the 5th century AD, with the spread of Christianity in Ireland, the pagan goddess Brigit became associated with St. Brigid of Kildare, one of the patron saints of Ireland. St. Brigid (c. 451-525) is credited with founding several monasteries, including the famous Kildare Abbey, and is renowned for her generosity, compassion, and commitment to serving the poor and sick.
Throughout history, notable individuals bearing the name Brigit or its variants include Brigit of Sweden (c. 1303-1373), a renowned medieval mystic and religious writer; Bridget Downing (1490-1558), an English Catholic martyr executed during the reign of Queen Mary I; Brigitte de Pompadour (1734-1806), a French noblewoman and close friend of Marie Antoinette; and Brigid Brophy (1929-1995), an English novelist, critic, and feminist writer.
In modern times, the name Brigit has maintained its popularity, particularly in Ireland and other Celtic regions, as a connection to the rich cultural heritage and mythology of the ancient Celts. Its enduring appeal lies in its strong historical roots and associations with the revered goddess and saint, embodying themes of strength, creativity, and spirituality.
People
Brigit + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Brigit 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
Brigit: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Brigit?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,151 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Brigit 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 297,788 US residents.
Is Brigit a common name?
We classify Brigit as "Rare". It ranks above 91% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,238 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Brigit most popular?
The single biggest year for Brigit was 1976, when 46 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Brigit is about 38 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Brigit a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Brigit 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.