Girl's name

Sorcha

“SOR-kha (Ulster SUR-akha)”

IPA: /ˈsɔɾˠəxə/

'brightness, radiance, clarity'

SorkaSarahSally

The story behind the name

Long anglicised, quite wrongly, as Sarah, with which it has no connection at all. Its real meaning is light: the same root as the word for brightness. A common name among Gaelic noblewomen in the medieval annals.

Famous people with this name

Sorcha Cusack (born 1949) — Irish actress
Sorcha MacMahon (1888–1970) — Irish nationalist and republican

Irish people with an English Wikipedia article whose given name is recorded as Sorcha on Wikidata; descriptions from Wikidata.

Quick answers

How do you pronounce Sorcha?

Sorcha is pronounced “SOR-kha (Ulster SUR-akha)” (IPA: ˈsɔɾˠəxə). Irish has three main dialect groups (Ulster, Connacht and Munster) and many names are said differently in each. The respellings here give the pronunciation most commonly heard in Irish English; where a well-known variant exists, both are shown.

What does the name Sorcha mean?

Sorcha means 'brightness, radiance, clarity'.

Is Sorcha a boy's or a girl's name?

Sorcha is traditionally a girl's name in Ireland.

How popular is the name Sorcha in Ireland?

Sorcha was the number 66 girls' name in the Republic of Ireland in 2025, from number 14 ten years earlier. Its best year was 1983, at number 1. Source: the CSO's register of names given three or more times.

How else is Sorcha spelled?

Other spellings and equivalents include Sorka, Sarah, Sally. Irish names were written down by English-speaking clerks for centuries, which is why so many spellings survive for one name.

In the register

#66 for girls in 2025 (#14 in 2015) · best: #1 in 1983

The full register → CSO, Republic of Ireland, names given three or more times.

Meanings follow Ó Corráin & Maguire's Irish Names and Woulfe; pronunciations give the commonest Irish-English form. Know this name better — a dialect pronunciation, a family tradition? Tell us. · All Irish names A–Z