| Aoife | Siobhan | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Radiant, beautiful | God is gracious |
| Origin | Irish | irish |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | EE-fuh | shiv-AWN |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1985 | 0 |
| Peak year | 2018 (117) | 1980 (282) |
| In 2025 | 88 | 0 |
| Trend | Rising | Vintage |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Aoife | Siobhan |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 592 | 543 |
| 2010s | 862 | 548 |
| 2000s | 503 | 758 |
| 1990s | 201 | 1,334 |
| 1980s | 23 | 2,086 |
| 1970s | 0 | 996 |
| 1960s | 0 | 869 |
| 1950s | 0 | 265 |
Aoife comes from the Irish for “radiant” or “beautiful,” and is borne by a great warrior of Irish legend.
The Irish form of Jeanne/Joan (Siobhán), a feminine of John, ultimately from Hebrew 'Yochanan' meaning 'God is gracious.' A John-root grace name.
Aoife is more popular than Siobhan today: about 88 US babies were given the name Aoife in 2025, compared with 0 named Siobhan.
Aoife means Radiant, beautiful (Irish origin), while Siobhan means God is gracious (irish origin).
In US records, Aoife first appears in 1985 and Siobhan in 0, so Siobhan has the longer recorded history.