Shannon

“Descendant of 'Old' (Shanahan variant); also named for the River Shannon” — Irish origin

Girl's name · #2387 in the US (2025) · Retro

Shannon has appeared in US records since 1912 — best rank #17 (1976) · 295,782 babies named Shannon all-time · 1 in 20,000 girls born in 2025.

Around the world: about 1 in 7,000 girls in Ireland (2025) · about 1 in 15,000 girls in Canada (2024) · about 1 in 17,000 girls in Switzerland (2024).

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 8 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Famous Shannons

Shannon Lucid — American biochemist and retired NASA astronaut
Shannon Elizabeth — American actress
Shannon Walker — American scientist and NASA astronaut
Shannon Lee — American actress
Shannon Boxx — American soccer player

In stories & tradition

Shannon Rutherford — Lost
Shannon Reed — Home and Away
Shannon Glaser — Big Mouth

What Shannons become

Among 719 notable people named Shannon:

Athletes appear 2.13× more often than among typical names — e.g. Shannon Boxx, American soccer player.

Browse more girl names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.