Maeve

femaleStatistical record

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

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

Maeve: Recorded every year since 1964, its highest recorded position is #25, and it was still inside the top 100 in 2025.

6registrars recorded it
130times a registrar ranked it
62years from first to last
#25highest recorded position
29groupings it qualifies for
20names it appears alongside

What stands out in Maeve's record

Ranked every year since 1964, without a single year missing. Names by continuity of record
England and Wales registered 1,265 births with the name in 2024, its largest count from any one registrar. Names by yearly birth count
Appears alongside 20 other names across 6 kinds of recorded relationship. All recorded relationships
Shares a published list with another name across 62 years. Longest shared records

Region

Rising

among girls in England and Wales · 1996–2024

View as table

England and Wales · Girls rank by year
Year	Rank
1996	#891
1997	#736
1998	#649
1999	#900
2000	#728
2001	#696
2002	#842
2003	#933
2004	#722
2005	#824
2006	#717
2007	#755
2008	#878
2009	#647
2010	#695
2011	#744
2012	#690
2013	#699
2014	#652
2015	#620
2016	#638
2017	#560
2018	#507
2019	#218
2020	#94
2021	#77
2022	#48
2023	#36
2024	#26

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

RisingEngland and Wales · Girls

Recorded in official data among girls in Republic of Ireland in every year from 1964 to 2025.

In 2025: #38 among girls in New South Wales, Australia, #60 among girls in Republic of Ireland.

Official data from 6 national registrars across 6 regions, 1964–2025 · Office for National Statistics. Data sources

Popularity journey

First recorded1964
First recorded at #80 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 recorded2020–2023
Highest recorded position: #25 among girls in New Zealand, in 2023 (recorded 2020–2023).
New Zealand · Girls
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #38 among girls in New South Wales, Australia, in 2025.
New South Wales, Australia · Girls

Maeve appears in 5 of the published lists Namewise holds. The longest record is Republic of Ireland · Girls, which has ranked it in 62 years beginning in 1964, and has registered 4,395 births with the name.

Maeve across 5 official records

Each registrar publishes its own list, so these figures are read down a row, never across one. A position in one country is not comparable with a position in another, and Namewise never combines them into a single ranking. The birth counts do not compare across rows either, for a different reason: England and Wales registers roughly thirty times as many births a year as Northern Ireland, so a larger total says which registrar recorded it as much as how widely the name was given.

Maeve's first, highest and most recent recorded position in each official list, with the number of births each registrar registered with the name and its largest single year
Published list	First recorded	Highest	Most recent	Years recorded	Births registered	Most in one year
Republic of Ireland · Girls	#80 (1964)	#59 (2000)	#60 (2025)	62 of 62	4,395 (1964–2025)	106 (1981)
England and Wales · Girls	#891 (1996)	#26 (2024)	#26 (2024)	29 of 29	5,865 (1996–2024)	1,265 (2024)
Northern Ireland · Girls	#83 (1997)	#57 (2024)	#57 (2024)	28 of 28	558 (1997–2024)	35 (1999)
New South Wales, Australia · Girls	#97 (2020)	#38 (2025)	#38 (2025)	6 of 6	767 (2020–2025)	158 (2025)
New Zealand · Girls	#64 (2020)	#25 (2023)	#25 (2023)	4 of 4	311 (2020–2023)	98 (2023)

Where the highest position is not the biggest year

Inside a single year a registrar's ranking is its birth counts put in order, so the top of a list is always the name given to the most babies that year. Across years the two separate, because the number of births and the number of names sharing them both change.

In Republic of Ireland · Girls the name reached its highest position, #59, in 2000, when 81 births were registered with it. More were registered in 1981 — 106 — in a year it ranked #82.

Maeve 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 Maeve in Republic of Ireland · Girls, by decade, with years covered and the average per year
Decade	Births registered	Years covered	A year
1960s	429	6 of 10	72
1970s	816	10 of 10	82
1980sbusiest	835	10 of 10	84
1990s	660	10 of 10	66
2000s	729	10 of 10	73
2010s	535	10 of 10	54
2020s	391	6 of 10	65

Across Republic of Ireland · Girls, the 1980s were its busiest decade, averaging 84 births a year.

Its sharpest single-year move came between 1976 and 1977, when recorded births rose by 45, from 59 to 104.

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

Maeve 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 6 regions, from 1964 to 2025. Highest recorded position: #25 in Scotland in 2024.

Maeve'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
2024	England and Wales	female	#26	1,265	High	Verified
2023	England and Wales	female	#36	1,114	High	Verified
2022	England and Wales	female	#48	990	High	Verified
2021	England and Wales	female	#77	654	High	Verified
2020	England and Wales	female	#94	547	High	Verified
2019	England and Wales	female	#218	225	High	Verified
2018	England and Wales	female	#507	84	High	Verified
2017	England and Wales	female	#560	77	High	Verified
2016	England and Wales	female	#638	66	High	Verified
2015	England and Wales	female	#620	67	High	Verified
2014	England and Wales	female	#652	61	High	Verified
2013	England and Wales	female	#699	57	High	Verified
2012	England and Wales	female	#690	60	High	Verified
2011	England and Wales	female	#744	51	High	Verified
2010	England and Wales	female	#695	53	High	Verified
2009	England and Wales	female	#647	57	High	Verified
2008	England and Wales	female	#878	37	High	Verified
2007	England and Wales	female	#755	44	High	Verified
2006	England and Wales	female	#717	43	High	Verified
2005	England and Wales	female	#824	34	High	Verified
2004	England and Wales	female	#722	39	High	Verified
2003	England and Wales	female	#933	26	High	Verified
2002	England and Wales	female	#842	28	High	Verified
2001	England and Wales	female	#696	36	High	Verified
2000	England and Wales	female	#728	32	High	Verified
1999	England and Wales	female	#900	24	High	Verified
1998	England and Wales	female	#649	38	High	Verified
1997	England and Wales	female	#736	32	High	Verified
1996	England and Wales	female	#891	24	High	Verified
2025	New South Wales, Australia	female	#38	158	Insufficient	Not yet available
2024	New South Wales, Australia	female	#43	144	Insufficient	Not yet available
2023	New South Wales, Australia	female	#42	145	Insufficient	Not yet available
2022	New South Wales, Australia	female	#49	152	Insufficient	Not yet available
2021	New South Wales, Australia	female	#78	92	Insufficient	Not yet available
2020	New South Wales, Australia	female	#97	76	Insufficient	Not yet available
2023	New Zealand	female	#25	98	High	Verified
2022	New Zealand	female	#43	84	High	Verified
2021	New Zealand	female	#52	70	High	Verified
2020	New Zealand	female	#64	59	High	Verified
2024	Northern Ireland	female	#57	34	High	Verified
2023	Northern Ireland	female	#72	28	High	Verified
2022	Northern Ireland	female	#79	27	High	Verified
2021	Northern Ireland	female	#131	18	High	Verified
2020	Northern Ireland	female	#158	12	High	Verified
2019	Northern Ireland	female	#113	19	High	Verified
2018	Northern Ireland	female	#208	9	High	Verified
2017	Northern Ireland	female	#154	14	High	Verified
2016	Northern Ireland	female	#137	16	High	Verified
2015	Northern Ireland	female	#136	17	High	Verified
2014	Northern Ireland	female	#123	20	High	Verified
2013	Northern Ireland	female	#135	15	High	Verified
2012	Northern Ireland	female	#172	11	High	Verified
2011	Northern Ireland	female	#147	15	High	Verified
2010	Northern Ireland	female	#137	16	High	Verified
2009	Northern Ireland	female	#144	14	High	Verified
2008	Northern Ireland	female	#171	12	High	Verified
2007	Northern Ireland	female	#103	21	High	Verified
2006	Northern Ireland	female	#137	15	High	Verified
2005	Northern Ireland	female	#109	18	High	Verified
2004	Northern Ireland	female	#90	21	High	Verified
2003	Northern Ireland	female	#89	23	High	Verified
2002	Northern Ireland	female	#78	26	High	Verified
2001	Northern Ireland	female	#95	21	High	Verified
2000	Northern Ireland	female	#71	29	High	Verified
1999	Northern Ireland	female	#58	35	High	Verified
1998	Northern Ireland	female	#98	23	High	Verified
1997	Northern Ireland	female	#83	29	High	Verified
2025	Republic of Ireland	female	#60	83	High	Verified
2024	Republic of Ireland	female	#71	76	High	Verified
2023	Republic of Ireland	female	#80	69	High	Verified
2022	Republic of Ireland	female	#98	56	High	Verified
2021	Republic of Ireland	female	#106	52	High	Verified
2020	Republic of Ireland	female	#99	55	High	Verified
2019	Republic of Ireland	female	#105	51	High	Verified
2018	Republic of Ireland	female	#114	50	High	Verified
2017	Republic of Ireland	female	#133	43	High	Verified
2016	Republic of Ireland	female	#137	43	High	Verified
2015	Republic of Ireland	female	#127	50	High	Verified
2014	Republic of Ireland	female	#101	62	High	Verified
2013	Republic of Ireland	female	#106	59	High	Verified
2012	Republic of Ireland	female	#100	64	High	Verified
2011	Republic of Ireland	female	#127	51	High	Verified
2010	Republic of Ireland	female	#107	62	High	Verified
2009	Republic of Ireland	female	#87	81	High	Verified
2008	Republic of Ireland	female	#96	71	High	Verified
2007	Republic of Ireland	female	#78	82	High	Verified
2006	Republic of Ireland	female	#88	67	High	Verified
2005	Republic of Ireland	female	#85	65	High	Verified
2004	Republic of Ireland	female	#74	75	High	Verified
2003	Republic of Ireland	female	#77	64	High	Verified
2002	Republic of Ireland	female	#75	69	High	Verified
2001	Republic of Ireland	female	#70	74	High	Verified
2000	Republic of Ireland	female	#59	81	High	Verified
1999	Republic of Ireland	female	#65	70	High	Verified
1998	Republic of Ireland	female	#69	53	High	Verified
1997	Republic of Ireland	female	#66	82	High	Verified
1996	Republic of Ireland	female	#116	45	High	Verified
1995	Republic of Ireland	female	#95	59	High	Verified
1994	Republic of Ireland	female	#88	67	High	Verified
1993	Republic of Ireland	female	#89	68	High	Verified
1992	Republic of Ireland	female	#101	58	High	Verified
1991	Republic of Ireland	female	#81	82	High	Verified
1990	Republic of Ireland	female	#88	76	High	Verified
1989	Republic of Ireland	female	#86	79	High	Verified
1988	Republic of Ireland	female	#101	67	High	Verified
1987	Republic of Ireland	female	#92	81	High	Verified
1986	Republic of Ireland	female	#93	76	High	Verified
1985	Republic of Ireland	female	#95	75	High	Verified
1984	Republic of Ireland	female	#92	81	High	Verified
1983	Republic of Ireland	female	#83	98	High	Verified
1982	Republic of Ireland	female	#92	91	High	Verified
1981	Republic of Ireland	female	#82	106	High	Verified
1980	Republic of Ireland	female	#102	81	High	Verified
1979	Republic of Ireland	female	#91	92	High	Verified
1978	Republic of Ireland	female	#103	82	High	Verified
1977	Republic of Ireland	female	#79	104	High	Verified
1976	Republic of Ireland	female	#128	59	High	Verified
1975	Republic of Ireland	female	#110	73	High	Verified
1974	Republic of Ireland	female	#110	79	High	Verified
1973	Republic of Ireland	female	#108	79	High	Verified
1972	Republic of Ireland	female	#103	79	High	Verified
1971	Republic of Ireland	female	#90	93	High	Verified
1970	Republic of Ireland	female	#105	76	High	Verified
1969	Republic of Ireland	female	#100	74	High	Verified
1968	Republic of Ireland	female	#83	83	High	Verified
1967	Republic of Ireland	female	#98	69	High	Verified
1966	Republic of Ireland	female	#107	59	High	Verified
1965	Republic of Ireland	female	#93	70	High	Verified
1964	Republic of Ireland	female	#80	74	High	Verified
2024	Scotland	female	#25	129	High	Verified

England and Wales hub — collected by Office for National Statistics
New South Wales, Australia hub — collected by NSW Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages
New Zealand hub — collected by NZ Department of Internal Affairs
Northern Ireland hub — collected by NISRA
Republic of Ireland hub — collected by CSO Ireland
Scotland hub — collected by National Records of Scotland

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

What the record shows

Recorded by 6 registrars between 1964 and 2025, ranked in 62 years of that period.

Its highest recorded position is #25, first reached in 2023.

It held a top-100 place in 41 years, 13 of them consecutive.

Its largest count from any one registrar is 1,265 births, registered in England and Wales in 2024.

A second registrar first ranked it in 1996, and 60 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.

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.

Maelys · #2925, 14y
Maeva · #70, 22y
Mafalda · #3536, 13y
Magda · #295, 46y

A comparable record

Records held by the same 6 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.

Hamish · #25, 61y
Lara · #25, 58y
Jeremy · #24, 61y
Kieran · #26, 62y

Also first recorded in the 1960s

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

Cassandra · #25, 57y
Hamish · #25, 61y
Lara · #25, 58y
Rachael · #25, 61y

Comparisons involving Maeve

Existing comparison pages where Maeve and another name were ranked in the same published list, in the same years, on the same scale. Each has its own evidence; none of them says the names are alike.

Longest shared records

Names ranked alongside Maeve in the same published list across at least 25 years.

Audrey vs Maeve
In 1964 they stood at #85 and #80 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, 5 places apart; by 2025 they were #885 and #60.
Audrey · Maeve · 56 shared years, 1964–2025 · Started together, ended far apart
See the 2025 Republic of Ireland ranking
Monica vs Maeve
In 1964 they stood at #70 and #80 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, 10 places apart; by 2023 they were #727 and #80.
Monica · Maeve · 53 shared years, 1964–2023 · Started together, ended far apart
See the 2023 Republic of Ireland ranking
Deborah vs Maeve
In 1964 they stood at #76 and #80 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, 4 places apart; by 2025 they were #608 and #60.
Deborah · Maeve · 59 shared years, 1964–2025 · Started together, ended far apart
See the 2025 Republic of Ireland ranking

Order changes

Pairs where Maeve and another name exchanged position in a published list, taken as the final meaningful change.

Eva vs Maeve
In England and Wales · Girls, Maeve moved into the top 50 at #36 in 2023 as Eva fell out of it to #52, having been #46 the year before.
Eva · Maeve · 29 shared years, 1996–2024 · One took the other's place near the top
See the 2023 England and Wales ranking
Sophie vs Maeve
In England and Wales · Girls, Maeve moved into the top 50 at #36 in 2023 as Sophie fell out of it to #51, having been #39 the year before.
Sophie · Maeve · 29 shared years, 1996–2024 · One took the other's place near the top
See the 2023 England and Wales ranking

Maeve was ranked #25 in New Zealand · Girls in 2023. 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.

Maeve 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 Maeve without appearing here.

Maeve moved ahead of

Belinda Compare
In 2003 they stood at #933 and #909 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2004 that had become #722 and #1715.
Suzanne Compare
In 2005 they stood at #824 and #745 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2006 that had become #717 and #1585.
Tracey Compare
In 1996 they stood at #891 and #783 in England and Wales · Girls; by 1997 that had become #736 and #1450.
Caroline Compare
In 2011 they stood at #744 and #714 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2012 that had become #690 and #1184.

Moved ahead of Maeve

Ivy Compare
In 2004 they stood at #722 and #758 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2005 that had become #824 and #494.
Sienna Compare
In 1998 they stood at #649 and #1122 in England and Wales · Girls; by 1999 that had become #900 and #641.
Ada Compare
In 2017 they stood at #154 and #190 in Northern Ireland · Girls; by 2018 that had become #208 and #92.
Eabha Compare
In 2007 they stood at #103 and #147 in Northern Ireland · Girls; by 2008 that had become #171 and #78.

Moved the opposite way to Maeve

Abigail Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Girls, Maeve went from #891 to #26 while Abigail went from #21 to #154.
Aimee Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Girls, Maeve went from #891 to #26 while Aimee went from #70 to #1603.
Aisling Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Girls, Maeve went from #891 to #26 while Aisling went from #440 to #2000.
Alex Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Girls, Maeve went from #891 to #26 while Alex went from #161 to #2253.

Moved the same way as Maeve

Caoimhe Compare
Between 1966 and 2025 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Maeve went from #107 to #60 and Caoimhe from #380 to #31.
Cara Compare
Between 1966 and 2025 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Maeve went from #107 to #60 and Cara from #344 to #52.
Jessica Compare
Between 1966 and 2025 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Maeve went from #107 to #60 and Jessica from #380 to #141.
Leah Compare
Between 1966 and 2025 in Republic of Ireland · Girls, Maeve went from #107 to #60 and Leah from #310 to #55.

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 6 regions, from 1964 to 2025. Highest recorded position: #25 in Scotland in 2024. Source data last verified 2026-07-21.

Maeve

Maeve at a glance

What stands out in Maeve's record

What the data shows

Popularity journey

Maeve across 5 official records

Where the highest position is not the biggest year

Maeve by decade in Republic of Ireland · Girls

Maeve 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

Comparisons involving Maeve

Longest shared records

Order changes

Names published alongside Maeve

Maeve and the names beside it

Maeve moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Maeve

Moved the opposite way to Maeve

Moved the same way as Maeve

Maeve at a glance

What stands out in Maeve's record

Maeve across 5 official records

Where the highest position is not the biggest year

Maeve by decade in Republic of Ireland · Girls

Maeve appears in

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1960s

Comparisons involving Maeve

Longest shared records

Order changes

Names published alongside Maeve

Maeve and the names beside it

Maeve moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Maeve

Moved the opposite way to Maeve

Moved the same way as Maeve