Back to Top

 Skip navigation

Information Notice - Irish Babies' Names 2018

Open in Excel:
  • Why is there a 'break in the series' and what does it mean?
  • Why do names recorded before 2018 not contain the síneadh fada or other diacritics?

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has published babies' forenames since 1998.  At the beginning of the collection process, names had to be manually inputted on a database from paper records by the General Registration Office (GRO).  This was a labour-intesnsive task and a decision was taken in 1998 to input names without the sínte fada.  When data became digitally available it was decided to continue as before, as any change would result in a break in the series.

However, following the launch in 2017 of the CSO's popular 'Baby Names of Ireland' App, feedback was received from users that sínte fada should be included.  The CSO discussed the matter with the GRO and testing was successfully carried out in mid-2018.

The publication of the 2018 baby names data was the first year of the new series as it includes forenames to account for the sínte fada and other diacritics.

Unfortunately, it is not feasible to back cast older data.  Therefore, this change, while welcome to users, introduces a break in the series.  For example, some names that were grouped together pre-2018 may appear separately in 2018 and beyond, impacting where they appear on the baby names list. 

Press Statement Irish Babies' Names 2018

Irish Babies Names 2018: Background Notes