Branna: Meaning, Pronunciation and Origin
Branna is an Irish girl's name meaning “raven.” Here’s how to say it, where it comes from, and names that go well with it.
Updated September 2026
- Meaning
- Raven
- Gender
- Girl
- Also spelled
- Brannagh
How do you pronounce Branna?
Branna is pronounced BRAN-na. It has two syllables, with the stress on the first. Other spellings: Brannagh.
What does Branna mean?
Branna is a modern feminine name formed from Bran, an old Irish name meaning “raven.” It is not a traditional Irish name in its own right. Bran was once common in Ireland; Patrick Woulfe noted that it stayed in use in the O’Byrne family until the middle of the 17th century or later.
The name is well known from Irish legend. Bran mac Febail is the hero of Immram Brain, “The Voyage of Bran,” a seventh- or eighth-century tale of a sea voyage to the Otherworld, and Bran and Sceólang were the hounds of Fionn mac Cumhaill in the Fenian stories. In modern Irish, bran survives as a literary word for a raven.
Sources: Woulfe, Irish Names and Surnames (1923), Behind the Name, Ó Dónaill's Irish dictionary (teanglann.ie), Wikipedia.
How popular is Branna in Ireland?
Branna is rare in Ireland. Since 1964, fewer than three baby girls a year have been registered with the name, so it doesn't appear in the Central Statistics Office's baby name tables.
Source: Central Statistics Office, Irish Babies’ Names 2025 and its girls' names table.
Branna in Ogham
Ogham is the oldest way of writing Irish. It was carved along the edges of standing stones, mostly between the 4th and 6th centuries, and read from the bottom up. In later tradition each letter was named after a tree or plant. Here’s Branna, letter by letter.
- BBeith, birch
- RRuis, elder
- AAilm, pine
- NNion, ash
- NNion, ash
- AAilm, pine
Write any name in Ogham with our Ogham translator
Names that go with Branna
Questions about Branna
- How do you pronounce Branna?
- Branna is pronounced BRAN-na. Two syllables, stress on the first.
- What does Branna mean?
- Branna means “raven.”
- Is Branna a girl's name or a boy's name?
- Branna is a girl's name.
- Is Branna a rare name?
- Yes. Fewer than three girls a year are registered as Branna in Ireland, too few to appear in the Central Statistics Office's tables.