Roisin: Meaning, Pronunciation and Origin
Roisin is an Irish girl's name meaning “little rose.” Here’s how to say it, where it comes from, and names that go well with it.
Updated September 2026
- Irish spelling
- Róisín
- Meaning
- Little rose
- Gender
- Girl
- English forms
- Rosaleen
- Popularity in Ireland
- No. 29 for girls (2025)
How do you pronounce Roisin?
Roisin is pronounced ro-SHEEN. It has two syllables, with the stress on the second.
What does Roisin mean?
From the Latin name Rosa and means “little rose”. Records show that the name has been in use in Ireland since the sixteenth century. When the expression of Irish patriotic poetry and song was outlawed during Ireland’s troubled and turbulent past, the Irish bards would disguise their nationalistic verse as love songs. In the figure of Roisin Dubh (“Dark Rosaleen”), a Gaelic poem translated by James Clarence Mangan in 1835, the name became a poetic symbol of Ireland, reflecting the Irish tradition of disguising outlawed patriotic verse as love songs where she is told not to be downhearted for her friends are returning from abroad to come to her aid.
How popular is Roisin in Ireland?
In 2025, 135 baby girls in Ireland were named Róisín, which made it No. 29 that year. Another 11 were registered as Roisin, Roisín, Roísín or Róisin. It was most popular in 1999, when 254 baby girls were named Roisin, No. 17 that year. The most babies got the name in 2005: 280. The records go back to 1964, when 24 baby girls were given the name.
See the numbers by year
| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 146 | No. 29 (Róisín) |
| 2024 | 140 | No. 33 (Róisín) |
| 2023 | 142 | No. 36 (Róisín) |
| 2022 | 179 | No. 31 (Róisín) |
| 2021 | 172 | No. 34 (Róisín) |
| 2020 | 170 | No. 32 (Róisín) |
| 2019 | 160 | No. 40 (Róisín) |
| 2018 | 161 | No. 38 (Róisín) |
| 2017 | 151 | No. 37 (Roisin) |
| 2016 | 186 | No. 32 (Roisin) |
| 2015 | 226 | No. 25 (Roisin) |
| 2014 | 162 | No. 37 (Roisin) |
| 2013 | 178 | No. 37 (Roisin) |
| 2012 | 229 | No. 31 (Roisin) |
| 2011 | 223 | No. 34 (Roisin) |
| 2010 | 224 | No. 32 (Roisin) |
| 2009 | 257 | No. 27 (Roisin) |
| 2008 | 250 | No. 28 (Roisin) |
| 2007 | 233 | No. 27 (Roisin) |
| 2006 | 233 | No. 27 (Roisin) |
| 2005 | 280 | No. 23 (Roisin) |
| 2004 | 237 | No. 27 (Roisin) |
| 2003 | 222 | No. 27 (Roisin) |
| 2002 | 228 | No. 24 (Roisin) |
| 2001 | 239 | No. 25 (Roisin) |
| 2000 | 245 | No. 23 (Roisin) |
| 1999 | 254 | No. 17 (Roisin) |
| 1998 | 213 | No. 20 (Roisin) |
| 1997 | 272 | No. 21 (Roisin) |
| 1996 | 248 | No. 22 (Roisin) |
| 1995 | 182 | No. 30 (Roisin) |
| 1994 | 179 | No. 30 (Roisin) |
| 1993 | 191 | No. 29 (Roisin) |
| 1992 | 198 | No. 29 (Roisin) |
| 1991 | 183 | No. 31 (Roisin) |
| 1990 | 169 | No. 36 (Roisin) |
| 1989 | 168 | No. 32 (Roisin) |
| 1988 | 138 | No. 51 (Roisin) |
| 1987 | 148 | No. 49 (Roisin) |
| 1986 | 147 | No. 55 (Roisin) |
| 1985 | 138 | No. 57 (Roisin) |
| 1984 | 141 | No. 60 (Roisin) |
| 1983 | 133 | No. 64 (Roisin) |
| 1982 | 161 | No. 57 (Roisin) |
| 1981 | 150 | No. 60 (Roisin) |
| 1980 | 127 | No. 71 (Roisin) |
| 1979 | 107 | No. 81 (Roisin) |
| 1978 | 125 | No. 71 (Roisin) |
| 1977 | 93 | No. 90 (Roisin) |
| 1976 | 108 | No. 79 (Roisin) |
| 1975 | 96 | No. 85 (Roisin) |
| 1974 | 98 | No. 87 (Roisin) |
| 1973 | 92 | No. 92 (Roisin) |
| 1972 | 90 | No. 91 (Roisin) |
| 1971 | 62 | No. 118 (Roisin) |
| 1970 | 46 | No. 134 (Roisin) |
| 1969 | 61 | No. 113 (Roisin) |
| 1968 | 49 | No. 117 (Roisin) |
| 1967 | 44 | No. 123 (Roisin) |
| 1966 | 33 | No. 146 (Roisin) |
| 1965 | 36 | No. 135 (Roisin) |
| 1964 | 24 | No. 154 (Roisin) |
Roisin 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 Roisin, letter by letter.
- RRuis, elder
- OOnn, gorse
- IIodhadh, yew
- SSail, willow
- IIodhadh, yew
- NNion, ash
Write any name in Ogham with our Ogham translator
Names that go with Roisin
Questions about Roisin
- How do you pronounce Roisin?
- Roisin is pronounced ro-SHEEN. Two syllables, stress on the second. There's a short video above where you can hear it said.
- What does Roisin mean?
- Roisin means “little rose.”
- Is Roisin a girl's name or a boy's name?
- Roisin is a girl's name.
- How do you spell Roisin in Irish?
- In Irish it's spelled Róisín. That's the spelling most parents in Ireland now register, according to the Central Statistics Office.
- What is Roisin in English?
- The English form of Roisin is Rosaleen.
- How popular is Roisin in Ireland?
- In 2025, Róisín was No. 29 for girls in Ireland, with 135 babies, according to the Central Statistics Office. It was most popular in 1999, at No. 17.