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Kerrigan

#4,607 in 2025Girls' name

Grandson/descendant of Ciaragán

Kerrigan has been given to 2,571 babies in the U.S. since 1972. In 2025 it ranked #4,607 of 17,293 girls’ names in use. Its peak year was 2012, with 118 recorded.

Babies named Kerrigan, 2025

1 in 111,000

Kerrigan over time, 1880–2025

GirlsBoys
05010015018801900192019401960198020002020

Based on births in the U.S. Babies given the name each year. Hover the chart — or focus it and use the arrow keys — for any year. Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.

Kerrigan: meaning, origin, and history

Grandson/descendant of Ciaragán

Irish

What Kerrigan means

Kerrigan means “grandson/descendant of Ciaragán”, associated with Ciaragáin.

Dictionary etymologyReferences, data & attribution

Reduced Anglicized form of Irish Ó Ciaragáin (“grandson/descendant of Ciaragán”), a byname from a double diminutive of ciar (“black”).

Excerpt from Wiktionary: Kerrigan (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0

Wiktionary material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Origin, language, and formation

Kerrigan is used in English. Its origins include Irish.

Kerrigan comes through Irish Ó Ciaragáin.

Related names and everyday forms

Related names include Ó Ciaragáin.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 2,460 girls were recorded with the name Kerrigan between 1972 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 118 in 2012; its best national rank was #1,554 in 1996.

Over 5 years its rank fell, from #3,118 in 2020 to #4,607 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank fell, from #2,021 in 2015 to #4,607 in 2025.

In the United States, 111 boys were recorded with the name Kerrigan between 1993 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 9 in 1996; its best national rank was #6,271 in 1996.

Over 5 years its rank rose, from #13,147 in 2020 to #11,375 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank rose, from #13,108 in 2015 to #11,375 in 2025.

How common is Kerrigan?

Everything below is computed from the 2025 data — the most recent year available.

Among all babies, 2025
1 in 111,000
30 of 3,315,165 births
Among girls only
1 in 53,600
<0.01% of girls
Rank, 2025
#4,607
of 17,293 girls’ names in use
Coin-flip room size
76,598 kids
Even odds of a second one

Where Kerrigan sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Olivia (13,544)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 2025 national name distribution. Real classrooms cluster by region and community, so treat these as a floor, not a ceiling.

Class of 20Under 1%
Class of 30Under 1%
Grade of 100Under 1%
School of 500Under 1%

Put another way: gather 76,598 children born in 2025 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Kerrigan. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Kerrigans were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Kerrigan was born before 2008 — so the typical Kerrigan is around 17 today.

Median birth year
2008
About 17 years old
Biggest decade
2010s
35.9% of all use
Born in the last 25 years
77.4%
A modern name
Recorded since 1950
2,460
People you could plausibly meet
Choose a decade

2010s — 35.9% of all recorded uses (884).

Is Kerrigan rising or falling?

Rank movement and count movement can disagree — the number of distinct names in use keeps growing, so a name holding a steady count still slides down the list. Both are shown.

Rank vs 1 year ago
−528
Places dropped
Rank vs 5 years ago
−1,489
Places dropped
Rank vs 10 years ago
−2,586
Places dropped
Births vs 10 years ago
0.31×
Fewer babies than then
Share of its own peak
25.4%
Peak was 2012 (118)
Years since peak
13
Years
Year-to-year steadiness
Shifting
18.1% average annual change
Best rank ever
#1,554
1996

Spellings of Kerrigan

Kerrigan is the most-used spelling, taking 34.8% of the 7,064 babies given a near-identical spelling.

Grouped by closeness of spelling (up to two letter changes), same sex, with a floor on all-time use. It catches Sophia/Sofia and Aiden/Ayden, and misses spellings that sound alike but look different, like Sean and Shawn.

Where Kerrigan is used

Across 2016–2025, Kerrigan was most concentrated in North Carolina — about 1 in 33,333 girls, against 1 in 71,157 across all states with data. It was least common in California (1 in —).

03 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1North Carolina1 in 33,333
  2. 2Ohio1 in 33,333
  3. 3Pennsylvania1 in 33,333
  4. 4Virginia1 in 33,333
  5. 5Indiana1 in 50,000
  6. 6Florida1 in 100,000
  7. 7Illinois1 in 100,000
  8. 8Michigan1 in 100,000

Shading is the share of that state's recorded girls given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings.

Kerrigan around the world

Where Kerrigan ranks in official birth records elsewhere in the world. Rankings only — the number of births isn’t comparable between places, so it isn’t shown.

  • England & Wales
    1997–2006
    #5,061
    in 2006
  • Canada
    1997–2017
    #2,944
    in 2017

Popularity data from Office for National Statistics and Statistics Canada. ONS data under Open Government Licence v3.0. StatCan data under Statistics Canada Open Licence.

Kerrigan by the numbers

The raw record for each sex the name is used for.

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025
#4,607
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Down 1,489
Best rank ever
#1,554
1996
Peak year
2012
118 that year
First recorded
1972
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
2,460
Count in 2025
30

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025
#11,375
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Up 1,772
Best rank ever
#6,271
1996
Peak year
1996
9 that year
First recorded
1993
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
111
Count in 2025
6

Names similar to Kerrigan

Matched on shared beginnings and endings, similar length, and comparable popularity.

KeriganCarriganMorriganKerstinKerianneKerriannKerringtonKerrieKeriannTeeganKerenKerstenKeaganKeraganKeeganTeiganKerryannKeraRheaganTaeganKerrianneKerissaRayganKerrin

Names with a curve like Kerrigan

Not spelling — timing. These names rose, peaked and faded in the same years as Kerrigan, so they read as being from the same moment even when they look nothing alike.

BaileighJustyceGracenGraysonOlyviaCarringtonLexyTristynMackennaKarsonAlanisMattison

Sibling names for Kerrigan

Names from the same era and popularity tier — the two things that make a sibling set feel deliberate — skipping lookalike spellings and shared initials.

Explore around Kerrigan

Top names of 2012, Kerrigan's peak yearThe 2010s in fullOther names that peaked in 1996Girls' names starting with K