Fun Facts About the Name Aisling
- More than 1 thousand babies named Aisling: U.S. records list 1,533 babies given the name Aisling from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Aisling Mean?
Aisling is an Irish name meaning "dream" or "vision." It comes directly from the Irish noun aisling, which has that meaning, and which descends from the earlier form aislinge. The literal sense of the word is simply a dream or a vision seen in sleep or in the mind, not a figurative or symbolic meaning, and the name preserves that plain sense.
The word later took on a specialized literary sense in Irish: an aisling is a vision poem in which Ireland appears to the poet as a woman who speaks of the country's condition. That poetic use grew out of the word's basic meaning of "vision," and it is a later application of the term rather than the source of the name's meaning.
Aisling Name History & Origins
The name is built on the Irish word aisling (older aislinge), a native Irish term for a dream or vision. From the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, aisling also named a well-known genre of Irish poetry. In these poems, often written in the Jacobite period, the poet falls asleep and is visited by a woman who represents Ireland; she describes the country's troubles and foretells better times. Poets associated with the tradition include Aodhagán Ó Rathaille. This literary tradition made the word familiar in Irish speech and writing.
Its use as a personal name is more recent than the word itself, and it belongs chiefly to modern Irish naming, appearing in Ireland and among Irish communities abroad. The spelling Aisling is the standard Irish form; Ashling is a common anglicized spelling, and Aislinn is a related spelling derived from the same root. The name's English pronunciation follows the Irish sound of s before l here, giving the "sh" heard in ASH-ling.
How Popular is the Name Aisling?
Aisling has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2002. Its best rank was #2,555 in 2002.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #3,782 | 39 | 0.0024% |
| 2024 | #4,547 | 30 | 0.0019% |
| 2023 | #4,045 | 36 | 0.0022% |
| 2022 | #3,365 | 47 | 0.0029% |
| 2021 | #3,440 | 45 | 0.0027% |
| 2020 | #4,453 | 30 | 0.0019% |
| 2019 | #4,074 | 35 | 0.0021% |
| 2018 | #4,241 | 33 | 0.0019% |
| 2017 | #4,922 | 27 | 0.0016% |
| 2016 | #3,280 | 49 | 0.0028% |
| 2015 | #3,345 | 48 | 0.0027% |
| 2014 | #3,653 | 42 | 0.0024% |
| 2013 | #3,406 | 46 | 0.0026% |
| 2012 | #3,466 | 46 | 0.0026% |
| 2011 | #3,133 | 53 | 0.0030% |
| 2010 | #3,624 | 43 | 0.0024% |
| 2009 | #4,109 | 37 | 0.0020% |
| 2008 | #4,010 | 39 | 0.0021% |
| 2007 | #3,723 | 43 | 0.0022% |
| 2006 | #4,687 | 30 | 0.0016% |
| 2005 | #3,511 | 42 | 0.0023% |
| 2004 | #3,493 | 42 | 0.0023% |
| 2003 | #3,190 | 46 | 0.0025% |
| 2002 | #2,555 | 61 | 0.0034% |
| 2001 | #3,942 | 32 | 0.0018% |
| 2000 | #3,666 | 35 | 0.0019% |
| 1999 | #3,148 | 41 | 0.0023% |
| 1998 | #2,974 | 43 | 0.0024% |
| 1997 | #3,225 | 36 | 0.0021% |
| 1996 | #3,151 | 37 | 0.0021% |
| 1995 | #3,492 | 31 | 0.0018% |
| 1994 | #5,256 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 1993 | #3,879 | 27 | 0.0015% |
| 1992 | #3,867 | 27 | 0.0015% |
| 1991 | #4,498 | 22 | 0.0012% |
| 1990 | #6,134 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 1989 | #3,673 | 27 | 0.0015% |
| 1988 | #3,893 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 1987 | #3,332 | 27 | 0.0016% |
| 1986 | #4,030 | 20 | 0.0012% |
| 1985 | #4,284 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 1984 | #4,320 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 1983 | #3,949 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 1981 | #6,807 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1980 | #9,112 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1978 | #9,765 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1973 | #8,440 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1972 | #8,302 | 5 | 0.0003% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
Explore More Lists with Name Aisling
Most Popular Girl Names That Start with A
How the Name Aisling Shapes Your Personality and Life?
Powerful and complete. You are good intellectually and require several outlets for your energies. You are not a builder but a planner, and you want others to carry out your plans. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
Position and social status is very important for you and you are always looking for way to improve your position in society. You have power and ability to chose your own destiny and achieve anything you want in life. You can expand in any direction according to your will and the set of values. You have passion for justice and belong to the position of authority. You have an inherent courage and endurance to accomplish "The Impossible Dream". With the power comes responsibility. You hold keys to the material world, but with this gift comes high spiritual responsibility to be fair and true to others. You are philosophical and mature, determined and intense with a desire to endure, often religious.
✦ Aisling's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Aisling's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.