Claire: Meaning, Pronunciation and Origin
Claire is an Irish girl's name meaning “clear, bright, famous.” Here’s how to say it, where it comes from, and names that go well with it.
Updated November 2026
- Meaning
- Clear, bright, famous
- Gender
- Girl
- Also spelled
- Clare
- Popularity in Ireland
- No. 352 for girls (2025)
How do you pronounce Claire?
Claire is pronounced KLAIR. It has one syllable. Other spellings: Clare.
What does Claire mean?
Claire is the French form of Clara, from the Latin name Clarus, “clear, bright, famous.” The name has been used in English since the Middle Ages, first spelled Clare, and it was popularised by Saint Clare of Assisi, who founded the order of nuns known as the Poor Clares.
Clare (1194–1253), called Chiara in Italian, was one of the first followers of Saint Francis of Assisi. In 1212 she left her wealthy, noble family to follow him, and she went on to found the Order of Poor Ladies, writing its rule herself; after her death it became the Order of Saint Clare. In 1629 five Irish Poor Clare nuns settled in Dublin and set up a convent on Merchants’ Quay.
Sources: Behind the Name, Wikipedia.
How popular is Claire in Ireland?
In 2025, 11 baby girls in Ireland were named Claire, which made it No. 352 that year. That's down from No. 185 ten years earlier. It was most popular in 1986, when 476 baby girls were named Claire, No. 10 that year. The most babies got the name in 1982: 499. The records go back to 1964, when 78 baby girls were given the name.
See the numbers by year
| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 11 | No. 352 |
| 2024 | 6 | No. 556 |
| 2023 | 11 | No. 339 |
| 2022 | 11 | No. 357 |
| 2021 | 16 | No. 270 |
| 2020 | 13 | No. 315 |
| 2019 | 16 | No. 284 |
| 2018 | 21 | No. 228 |
| 2017 | 11 | No. 365 |
| 2016 | 23 | No. 208 |
| 2015 | 30 | No. 185 |
| 2014 | 27 | No. 197 |
| 2013 | 35 | No. 170 |
| 2012 | 37 | No. 157 |
| 2011 | 34 | No. 170 |
| 2010 | 38 | No. 164 |
| 2009 | 57 | No. 117 |
| 2008 | 58 | No. 114 |
| 2007 | 42 | No. 144 |
| 2006 | 58 | No. 97 |
| 2005 | 70 | No. 79 |
| 2004 | 65 | No. 86 |
| 2003 | 84 | No. 61 |
| 2002 | 96 | No. 54 |
| 2001 | 127 | No. 44 |
| 2000 | 127 | No. 41 |
| 1999 | 118 | No. 39 |
| 1998 | 117 | No. 37 |
| 1997 | 206 | No. 28 |
| 1996 | 212 | No. 28 |
| 1995 | 241 | No. 22 |
| 1994 | 268 | No. 20 |
| 1993 | 246 | No. 22 |
| 1992 | 299 | No. 17 |
| 1991 | 349 | No. 16 |
| 1990 | 337 | No. 15 |
| 1989 | 365 | No. 14 |
| 1988 | 427 | No. 12 |
| 1987 | 451 | No. 10 |
| 1986 | 476 | No. 10 |
| 1985 | 475 | No. 10 |
| 1984 | 455 | No. 10 |
| 1983 | 418 | No. 15 |
| 1982 | 499 | No. 12 |
| 1981 | 457 | No. 16 |
| 1980 | 458 | No. 16 |
| 1979 | 369 | No. 24 |
| 1978 | 404 | No. 18 |
| 1977 | 330 | No. 23 |
| 1976 | 307 | No. 28 |
| 1975 | 251 | No. 32 |
| 1974 | 225 | No. 39 |
| 1973 | 215 | No. 39 |
| 1972 | 175 | No. 49 |
| 1971 | 155 | No. 57 |
| 1970 | 123 | No. 68 |
| 1969 | 119 | No. 62 |
| 1968 | 128 | No. 59 |
| 1967 | 94 | No. 74 |
| 1966 | 101 | No. 70 |
| 1965 | 99 | No. 63 |
| 1964 | 78 | No. 75 |
Claire 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 Claire, letter by letter.
- CColl, hazel
- LLuis, rowan
- AAilm, pine
- IIodhadh, yew
- RRuis, elder
- EEadhadh, aspen
Write any name in Ogham with our Ogham translator
Names that go with Claire
Questions about Claire
- How do you pronounce Claire?
- Claire is pronounced KLAIR, in one syllable.
- What does Claire mean?
- Claire is an Irish girl's name meaning “clear, bright, famous.”
- Is Claire a girl's name or a boy's name?
- Claire is a girl's name.
- How popular is Claire in Ireland?
- In 2025, Claire was No. 352 for girls in Ireland, with 11 babies, according to the Central Statistics Office. It was most popular in 1986, at No. 10.
Sources: popularity from the Central Statistics Office, table VSA60 (CC BY 4.0). Meaning and origin from Behind the Name and Wikipedia. How we research names: our sources. Spotted a mistake? support@babynamesofireland.com