Namewise

Sinead

femaleIrish, via Anglo-Norman French Jeannette

Irish form of Jeannette/Janet; the underlying chain traces to the Hebrew name Yochanan, commonly interpreted as 'God is gracious'.

Origin: Irish, via Anglo-Norman French Jeannette

Official popularity data is available for 4 regions, from 1964 to 2025. Highest recorded position: #2 in Republic of Ireland in 1977. See regions.

Sinead: Recorded every year since 1964, it reached #2 in 1975, and it stood at #3,333 in 2025.

shih-NAYD/ˈʃɪnʲeːdˠ/

Data Confidence

Evidence: ModerateCompleteness: SubstantialEditorial review: 2026-07-21

Confidence in the evidencebehind this name's data — never a rating of the name itself, and never affected by how well it matches your preferences. How this is assessed

Because: backed by officially or academically authoritative sources, recently verified, popularity data covers multiple regions.

Source authority

Averaged from the real per-claim source-authority assessments already computed for this name's meaning/origin/pronunciation/popularity evidence.

Independent corroboration

Averaged from the real per-claim supporting-source counts already computed for this name's evidence.

See full evidence assessment (8 dimensions, 1 not yet tracked)
Source agreement

No recorded source disagreement for this name's meanings or origins.

Recency

Calculated from how long ago this record was last verified (2026-07-21), against a 270-day staleness threshold.

Geographic relevance

Calculated from the number of geographies with official popularity data (4) — broader official coverage means the evidence base is relevant to more of where the name is actually used.

Completeness

Calculated from how many of the expected data sections (variants, similar names, popularity, notable usage, IPA pronunciation) are actually populated for this name.

Direct observation vs. inference

Averaged from the real per-claim direct-observation-vs-inference ratios already computed for this name's evidence.

Identity & variant resolution quality

Cross-source identity and variant resolution requires HEKNO Knowledge, which isn't connected yet.

Name Characteristics

How these are calculated

Descriptive attributes of the name itself — not a confidence measurement, and not an overall quality score. Namewise doesn't approve or disapprove of names.

Pronunciation clarity

Editorial judgement of how consistently this name is pronounced correctly on first read, mapped from an easy/moderate/variable rating to a number. Describes the name — not a measure of evidence confidence.

Spelling simplicity

Calculated directly from the name's spelling: shorter names with fewer irregular letter clusters score higher. A disclosed formula, not an editorial opinion — and not a confidence measurement.

Recorded regional spread

Derived from how many geographies' official statistics record this name. It measures where the name is registered, not how well-known it feels to people living there.

International spread

Derived from the same official statistical coverage, scaled to reflect how widely the name crosses national datasets. Not a measure of how easily it is understood in another language.

Trend stability

Derived from the name's traditional/modern classification and its current popularity trend direction.

Overview

Origin
Irish, via Anglo-Norman French Jeannette
Meaning
Irish form of Jeannette/Janet; the underlying chain traces to the Hebrew name Yochanan, commonly interpreted as 'God is gracious'.
Pronunciation
shih-NAYD
Syllables
2
Common nicknames
None recorded
Classification
Traditional & modern
Gender usage
female
Language family
Irish, via Anglo-Norman French Jeannette

Popularity

Falling

among girls in England and Wales · 1996–2025

England and Wales · Girls rank from 1996 to 2025, ranging from #154 to #3695.199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025#154#3695
View as table
England and Wales · Girls rank by year
YearRank
1996#207
1997#190
1998#206
1999#188
2000#249
2001#230
2002#255
2003#154
2004#240
2005#294
2006#316
2007#390
2008#408
2009#586
2010#593
2011#569
2012#522
2013#584
2014#715
2015#722
2016#1241
2017#1258
2018#1314
2019#2458
2020#1556
2021#2499
2022#3533
2023#1705
2024#3695
2025#3333

VerifiedSource: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales.Confidence: high.

See all England and Wales names · Source: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales

What the data shows

FallingEngland and Wales · Girls

Recorded in official data among girls in Republic of Ireland in 58 of the 59 years from 1964 to 2022.

In 2023: #391 among girls in Northern Ireland, #1705 among girls in England and Wales.

Official data from 4 national registrars across 4 regions, 19642025 · Office for National Statistics. Data sources

Popularity journey

  1. First recorded1964

    First recorded at #109 among girls in Republic of Ireland in 1964 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.

    Republic of Ireland · Girls

  2. Most recent2025

    Most recently recorded at #3333 among girls in England and Wales, in 2025.

    England and Wales · Girls

See full popularity history and data table

Meaning & Origin

Irish form of Jeannette/Janet; the underlying chain traces to the Hebrew name Yochanan, commonly interpreted as 'God is gracious'.

VerifiedSource: Behind the Name.Confidence: medium.

Irish, via Anglo-Norman French Jeannette

VerifiedSource: Behind the Name.Confidence: medium.

Other names with a researched meaning and origin →

Where Sinead is officially recorded

4 official registrars have recorded Sinead, between 1964 and 2025. Each registrar publishes for its own population on its own methodology, so the positions below are each one country's own ranking and are not comparable with one another.

RegistrarRecordedYearsIts own highest position
Republic of Ireland1964–202258#2 in 1975
New Zealand19901#96 in 1990
England and Wales1996–202530#154 in 2003
Northern Ireland1997–202326#54 in 1998

Its high point came 28 years earlier in Republic of Ireland (1975) than in England and Wales (2003).

Variants

No spelling variants or nicknames recorded yet.

Similar Names

No similar names recorded yet for this name.

Similarity is a demonstration score — see methodology.

Spelling

Spelling simplicity

Calculated directly from the name's spelling — see Name Characteristics above.

No commonly used alternate spellings recorded.

Pronunciation

shih-NAYD/ˈʃɪnʲeːdˠ/
Syllables
2
Ease
easy

VerifiedSource: Behind the Name.Confidence: medium.

Where Sinead Is Recorded

National statistical agencies have recorded Sinead in these places. This shows where the name is used — not where it comes from, and not that it carries particular cultural significance there.

England and WalesNorthern IrelandRepublic of IrelandNew Zealand

Notable Usage

No safely-sourced notable usage recorded for this name yet.

Sibling & Surname Compatibility

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Full sibling-set and initials-across-a-shortlist matching is a planned premium feature — see Premium.