Brien

maleStatistical record

What official birth registration shows about Brien: which national registrars published it, in which years, and how its recorded position changed.

No researched meaning, origin or pronunciation yet — what that means.

Brien: Recorded since 1965, its highest recorded position is #176, and it was last ranked in 1993.

1registrar recorded it
11times a registrar ranked it
29years from first to last
#176highest recorded position
5groupings it qualifies for

Republic of Ireland · Boys

Falling

among boys in Republic of Ireland · 1965–1993

View as table

Republic of Ireland · Boys rank by year
Year	Rank
1965	#194
1966	#256
1967	#176
1969	#230
1970	#251
1979	#324
1980	#264
1982	#330
1983	#282
1990	#323
1993	#339

VerifiedSource: CSO Ireland — Irish Babies' Names.Confidence: high.

See all Republic of Ireland names · Source: CSO Ireland — Irish Babies' Names

What the data shows

FallingRepublic of Ireland · Boys

Recorded in official data among boys in Republic of Ireland in 11 of the 29 years from 1965 to 1993.

Official data for Republic of Ireland, 1965–1993 · CSO Ireland. Data sources

Popularity journey

First recorded1965
First recorded at #194 among boys in Republic of Ireland in 1965 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Republic of Ireland · Boys
Highest recorded1965–1993
Highest recorded position: #176 among boys in Republic of Ireland, in 1967 (recorded 1965–1993).
Republic of Ireland · Boys
Most recent1993
Most recently recorded at #339 among boys in Republic of Ireland, in 1993.
Republic of Ireland · Boys

Brien by decade in Republic of Ireland · Boys

Births registered with the name in each decade of this one list, with the number of years the list covers in that decade. Bars are scaled on births a year, which is the figure that compares between decades — a decade the list only partly covers has a smaller total without being a quieter decade. Figures belong to this registrar alone and do not carry to another.

Births registered with Brien in Republic of Ireland · Boys, by decade, with years covered and the average per year
Decade	Births registered	Years covered	A year
1960s	24	4 of 10	6
1970s	8	2 of 10	4
1980s	12	3 of 10	4
1990s	6	2 of 10	3

See the names Republic of Irelandhas recorded the most births with →

Brien appears in

Groupings this name qualifies for under their own stated rules, from the same official statistics shown above.

Popularity data

Recorded in official data for Republic of Ireland from 1965 to 1993. Highest recorded position: #176 in Republic of Ireland in 1967.

Brien's recorded popularity observations by year, region and administrative category, including rank, registered births, source confidence and when each region's data was last reviewed.
Year	Region	Category	Rank	Births registered	Confidence	Status
1993	Republic of Ireland	male	#339	3	High	Verified
1990	Republic of Ireland	male	#323	3	High	Verified
1983	Republic of Ireland	male	#282	4	High	Verified
1982	Republic of Ireland	male	#330	3	High	Verified
1980	Republic of Ireland	male	#264	5	High	Verified
1979	Republic of Ireland	male	#324	3	High	Verified
1970	Republic of Ireland	male	#251	5	High	Verified
1969	Republic of Ireland	male	#230	6	High	Verified
1967	Republic of Ireland	male	#176	9	High	Verified
1966	Republic of Ireland	male	#256	3	High	Verified
1965	Republic of Ireland	male	#194	6	High	Verified

Republic of Ireland hub — collected by CSO Ireland

See methodology and data sources for how popularity data is collected and what "confidence" means.

What the record shows

Recorded by 1 registrar between 1965 and 1993, ranked in 11 years of that period.

Its highest recorded position is #176, first reached in 1967.

Its largest count from any one registrar is 9 births, registered in Republic of Ireland in 1967.

Its record falls into 6 separate stretches, with a longest absence of 8 years.

Every figure here is counted from the seven official registrars Namewise holds. A position is only ever a place within the list that published it, and a record that thins or stops is a fact about what registrars printed — never about how many children received the name.

4decades with a ranked yearRecorded in 4 decades →
3 yearslongest unbroken run of ranked years
6separate stretches the record falls into6 to 9 separate stretches →
8 yearslongest absence inside the recorded period4 to 9 years missing →
#339position in 1993, its most recent recorded year
9births registered in its largest year, 1967Under 25 births →

Where to go next

Records with a comparable body of evidence, so the catalogue can be read outward from this one. Each group states the rule it was selected by.

Next in the catalogue

The records either side of this one alphabetically.

Briella · #407, 12y
Brielle · #631, 22y
Bright · #596, 19y
Brigid · #26, 58y

A comparable record

Records held by the same 1 registrar, over a similar number of ranked years, whose highest position is closest to this one. A similar body of evidence — never a claim that the names themselves are alike.

Gunvald · #188, 14y
Deborrah · #195, 10y
Loretto · #196, 15y
Alvhild · #202, 15y

Also first recorded in the 1960s

Records whose earliest ranking in Namewise's registrar data also falls between 1960 and 1969.

Kyran · #176, 34y
Patrik · #176, 57y
Herbert · #175, 42y
Rhona · #175, 59y

Brien was ranked #176 in Republic of Ireland · Boys in 1967. These are the names immediately either side of it on that published list — a fact about the registrar's own output, not a similarity judgement.

Brien and the names beside it

Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale, in the same year, by the same registrar — so these are positions that genuinely passed each other, not a similarity judgement. Drawn from the 2,573 names with a recorded popularity standing (common, familiar, uncommon), so a name outside that set could have passed Brien without appearing here.

Moved ahead of Brien

Cillian Compare
In 1978 they stood at #251 and #305 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 1979 that had become #324 and #172.
Dylan Compare
In 1978 they stood at #230 and #246 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 1979 that had become #324 and #176.
Jason Compare
In 1968 they stood at #176 and #208 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 1969 that had become #230 and #88.
Frank Compare
In 1965 they stood at #194 and #207 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 1966 that had become #256 and #139.

Moved the opposite way to Brien

Aaron Compare
Between 1965 and 1993 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Brien went from #194 to #339 while Aaron went from #222 to #20.
Adam Compare
Between 1965 and 1993 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Brien went from #194 to #339 while Adam went from #157 to #21.
Andrew Compare
Between 1965 and 1993 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Brien went from #194 to #339 while Andrew went from #32 to #16.
Ciaran Compare
Between 1965 and 1993 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Brien went from #194 to #339 while Ciaran went from #51 to #26.

Moved the same way as Brien

Anthony Compare
Between 1965 and 1993 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Brien went from #194 to #339 and Anthony from #12 to #37.
Arthur Compare
Between 1965 and 1993 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Brien went from #194 to #339 and Arthur from #91 to #339.
Brendan Compare
Between 1965 and 1993 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Brien went from #194 to #339 and Brendan from #16 to #54.
Declan Compare
Between 1965 and 1993 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Brien went from #194 to #339 and Declan from #18 to #69.

What's not yet available

Meaning
Origin
Pronunciation
Nicknames and spelling variants

Absence from this list does not mean the name isn't genuinely meaningful or widely used — only that Namewise hasn't sourced and reviewed that content yet. Absence from a specific year or geography above does not prove zero use there either; official statistics only publish names above a minimum threshold.

Recorded in official data for Republic of Ireland from 1965 to 1993. Highest recorded position: #176 in Republic of Ireland in 1967. Source data last verified 2026-07-25.

Brien

Brien at a glance

What the data shows

Popularity journey

Brien by decade in Republic of Ireland · Boys

Brien appears in

Popularity data

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1960s

Names published alongside Brien

Brien and the names beside it

Moved ahead of Brien

Moved the opposite way to Brien

Moved the same way as Brien

Brien at a glance

Brien by decade in Republic of Ireland · Boys

Brien appears in

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1960s

Names published alongside Brien

Brien and the names beside it

Moved ahead of Brien

Moved the opposite way to Brien

Moved the same way as Brien