Fionnula

femaleStatistical record

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

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

Fionnula: Recorded since 1964, with a gap of 15 years, its highest recorded position is #218, and it was last ranked in 1996.

2registrars recorded it
15times a registrar ranked it
33years from first to last
#218highest recorded position
3groupings it qualifies for

What stands out in Fionnula's record

Absent from every published list for 15 years inside its own recorded period, then ranked again. Names by longest absence

Region

Trend unknown

among girls in England and Wales · 1996

View as table

England and Wales · Girls rank by year
Year	Rank
1996	#3795

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

Trend unknownEngland and Wales · Girls

Recorded in official data among girls in Republic of Ireland in 14 of the 17 years from 1964 to 1980.

Official data from 2 national registrars across 2 regions, 1964–1996 · Office for National Statistics. Data sources

Popularity journey

First recorded1964
First recorded at #257 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
Highest recorded1964–1980
Highest recorded position: #218 among girls in Republic of Ireland, in 1966 (recorded 1964–1980).
Republic of Ireland · Girls
Most recent1980
Most recently recorded at #542 among girls in Republic of Ireland, in 1980.
Republic of Ireland · Girls

Fionnula by decade in Republic of Ireland · Girls

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 Fionnula in Republic of Ireland · Girls, by decade, with years covered and the average per year
Decade	Births registered	Years covered	A year
1960sbusiest	38	5 of 10	8
1970s	31	8 of 10	4
1980s	3	1 of 10	3

Across Republic of Ireland · Girls, the 1960s were its busiest decade — the 5 years of it this list covers, averaging 8 births a year.

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

Fionnula appears in

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

Popularity data

Official popularity data is available for 2 regions, from 1964 to 1996. Highest recorded position: #218 in Republic of Ireland in 1966.

Fionnula'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
1996	England and Wales	female	#3795	3	High	Verified
1980	Republic of Ireland	female	#542	3	High	Verified
1979	Republic of Ireland	female	#523	3	High	Verified
1978	Republic of Ireland	female	#428	5	High	Verified
1975	Republic of Ireland	female	#455	4	High	Verified
1974	Republic of Ireland	female	#490	3	High	Verified
1973	Republic of Ireland	female	#349	7	High	Verified
1972	Republic of Ireland	female	#471	3	High	Verified
1971	Republic of Ireland	female	#466	3	High	Verified
1970	Republic of Ireland	female	#447	3	High	Verified
1969	Republic of Ireland	female	#351	5	High	Verified
1967	Republic of Ireland	female	#288	6	High	Verified
1966	Republic of Ireland	female	#218	11	High	Verified
1965	Republic of Ireland	female	#238	9	High	Verified
1964	Republic of Ireland	female	#257	7	High	Verified

England and Wales hub — collected by Office for National Statistics
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 2 registrars between 1964 and 1996, ranked in 15 years of that period.

Its highest recorded position is #218, first reached in 1966.

Its largest count from any one registrar is 11 births, registered in Republic of Ireland in 1966.

Its record falls into 4 separate stretches, with a longest absence of 15 years.

A second registrar first ranked it in 1996, and 32 years separate the first registrar to record it from the last.

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 →
7 yearslongest unbroken run of ranked years
4separate stretches the record falls into4 separate stretches →
15 yearslongest absence inside the recorded period10 to 19 years missing →
#3,795position in 1996, its most recent recorded year
32 yearsyears between the first and last registrar to record itAcross 21 to 40 years →
11births registered in its largest year, 1966Under 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.

Fionntan · #167, 28y
Fionnuala · #116, 60y
Fiontan · #207, 10y
Fiorella · #834, 19y

A comparable record

Records held by the same 2 registrars, 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.

Mervin · #218, 12y
Caidan · #217, 18y
Canice · #216, 20y
Shaunagh · #220, 13y

Also first recorded in the 1960s

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

Attracta · #218, 16y
Catrine · #218, 35y
Freda · #218, 50y
Mervin · #218, 12y

Fionnula was ranked #218 in Republic of Ireland · Girls in 1966. 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.

Fionnula 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 Fionnula without appearing here.

Fionnula moved ahead of

Hanna Compare
In 1974 they stood at #490 and #340 in Republic of Ireland · Girls; by 1975 that had become #455 and #503.

Moved ahead of Fionnula

Lena Compare
In 1973 they stood at #349 and #449 in Republic of Ireland · Girls; by 1974 that had become #490 and #300.
Marilyn Compare
In 1973 they stood at #349 and #402 in Republic of Ireland · Girls; by 1974 that had become #490 and #340.
Melissa Compare
In 1968 they stood at #218 and #276 in Republic of Ireland · Girls; by 1969 that had become #351 and #211.
Jessica Compare
In 1969 they stood at #351 and #393 in Republic of Ireland · Girls; by 1970 that had become #447 and #326.

Moved the opposite way to Fionnula

Aisling Compare
Between 1964 and 1980 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Fionnula went from #257 to #542 while Aisling went from #154 to #40.
Alison Compare
Between 1964 and 1980 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Fionnula went from #257 to #542 while Alison went from #146 to #67.
Amanda Compare
Between 1964 and 1980 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Fionnula went from #257 to #542 while Amanda went from #118 to #37.
Aoife Compare
Between 1964 and 1980 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Fionnula went from #257 to #542 while Aoife went from #206 to #28.

Moved the same way as Fionnula

Alexandra Compare
Between 1964 and 1980 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Fionnula went from #257 to #542 and Alexandra from #222 to #370.
Alice Compare
Between 1964 and 1980 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Fionnula went from #257 to #542 and Alice from #57 to #144.
Angela Compare
Between 1964 and 1980 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Fionnula went from #257 to #542 and Angela from #24 to #72.
Ann Compare
Between 1964 and 1980 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Fionnula went from #257 to #542 and Ann from #4 to #24.

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.

Official popularity data is available for 2 regions, from 1964 to 1996. Highest recorded position: #218 in Republic of Ireland in 1966. Source data last verified 2026-07-25.

Fionnula

Fionnula at a glance

What stands out in Fionnula's record

What the data shows

Popularity journey

Fionnula by decade in Republic of Ireland · Girls

Fionnula 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 Fionnula

Fionnula and the names beside it

Fionnula moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Fionnula

Moved the opposite way to Fionnula

Moved the same way as Fionnula

Fionnula at a glance

What stands out in Fionnula's record

Fionnula by decade in Republic of Ireland · Girls

Fionnula 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 Fionnula

Fionnula and the names beside it

Fionnula moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Fionnula

Moved the opposite way to Fionnula

Moved the same way as Fionnula