Séamus
Say it: SHAY-mus/ˈʃeːmˠəsˠ/
BoyIrishMeans irish form of James, from the Hebrew Jacob6 letters2 syllables
#147
in Ireland (2025)
#126 with spellings combined
45
babies in 2025
#55
best rank (1966)
4,927
babies since 1964
Up 14
10-year rank change
Séamus through the years
Compare with another name →Show the numbers
| Year | Babies (boys) | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 45 | #126 |
| 2024 | 53 | #108 |
| 2023 | 41 | #136 |
| 2022 | 39 | #151 |
| 2021 | 50 | #128 |
| 2020 | 51 | #122 |
| 2019 | 42 | #142 |
| 2018 | 45 | #136 |
| 2017 | 46 | #134 |
| 2016 | 50 | #131 |
| 2015 | 45 | #140 |
| 2014 | 47 | #136 |
| 2013 | 36 | #178 |
| 2012 | 45 | #153 |
| 2011 | 44 | #160 |
| 2010 | 37 | #174 |
| 2009 | 46 | #146 |
| 2008 | 45 | #148 |
| 2007 | 44 | #143 |
| 2006 | 39 | #137 |
| 2005 | 42 | #129 |
| 2004 | 36 | #134 |
| 2003 | 40 | #120 |
| 2002 | 50 | #99 |
| 2001 | 42 | #113 |
| 2000 | 48 | #101 |
| 1999 | 45 | #103 |
| 1998 | 45 | #95 |
| 1997 | 47 | #106 |
| 1996 | 63 | #91 |
| 1995 | 58 | #94 |
| 1994 | 55 | #97 |
| 1993 | 62 | #93 |
| 1992 | 71 | #84 |
| 1991 | 82 | #75 |
| 1990 | 100 | #70 |
| 1989 | 87 | #76 |
| 1988 | 79 | #79 |
| 1987 | 87 | #77 |
| 1986 | 105 | #72 |
| 1985 | 106 | #69 |
| 1984 | 101 | #71 |
| 1983 | 110 | #70 |
| 1982 | 152 | #60 |
| 1981 | 143 | #66 |
| 1980 | 128 | #71 |
| 1979 | 148 | #65 |
| 1978 | 144 | #62 |
| 1977 | 157 | #59 |
| 1976 | 138 | #65 |
| 1975 | 146 | #61 |
| 1974 | 134 | #63 |
| 1973 | 153 | #60 |
| 1972 | 146 | #58 |
| 1971 | 146 | #56 |
| 1970 | 112 | #64 |
| 1969 | 114 | #59 |
| 1968 | 101 | #60 |
| 1967 | 110 | #55 |
| 1966 | 112 | #55 |
| 1965 | 105 | #58 |
| 1964 | 87 | #60 |
Source: CSO, Irish Babies' Names (VSA50, VSA60), CC BY 4.0. Spellings with and without fadas are combined; the CSO only recorded fadas from 2018.
★ What does Séamus mean?
Irish form of James, from the Hebrew Jacob
Irish, borrowed from English James, which goes back through Latin to the Hebrew Jacob.
Say it right
SHAYmus
The modern standard Irish spelling is Séamas. Séamus and Seamus are the older, more familiar forms.
Not:SEE-musSEEM-us
The story of Séamus
Séamus is the Irish form of James. It was borrowed from the English name, which came through French from the late Latin Iacomus, a form of Iacobus, Jacob. Jacob is a Hebrew name. It is usually linked with the word for “heel”, from the Bible story of Jacob being born holding his twin brother Esau’s heel, though scholars treat that story as a folk explanation and the true meaning is debated. The standard Irish spelling today is Séamas.
The best-known bearer is Seamus Heaney, the poet from County Derry who won the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The CSO recorded no fadas before 2018, so all earlier figures combine Seamus and Séamus. The name was a steady choice in the 1960s and 1970s, reaching number 55 in 1966, and the most babies came in 1977, with 157 boys. Since 2018 most parents have used the fada: in 2025 there were 36 boys named Séamus and 9 named Seamus. In Northern Ireland its best place was number 108 in 2001.
Say it differently where you're from, or spotted something wrong? Tell us.
Sources
- Wiktionary: Séamus (Irish proper noun)
- Wiktionary: Séamas (Irish proper noun)
- Wikipedia: Séamus
- CSO VSA50, Boys Names in Ireland with 3 or More Occurrences
- NISRA, Baby Names in Northern Ireland
At a glance
Similar names
Sibling ideas
Spellings counted here
| Spelling | 2025 | All years |
|---|---|---|
| Séamus | 36 | 267 |
| Seamus | 9 | 4,660 |
In Northern Ireland
#185 in 2025 with 11 babies. Best rank #108 (2001); 334 babies since 1997.
Source: NISRA, Open Government Licence.