Murphie
A diminutive of the Irish surname Murphy, derived from the Irish Gaelic name Murchadh meaning "sea warrior".
Name Census estimates that about 245 living Americans carry the first name Murphie. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Murphie today is around 5 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Murphie births was 2024 (56 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Murphie. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Murphie with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
245
~ 1 in 1,398,997 Americans
Peak year
2024
56 babies that year
Average age
5
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,950
Tracked since 2015
Popularity
Murphie: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Murphie from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 186 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Murphie by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Murphie during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Murphies live
Origin
Meaning and history of Murphie
The name Murphie is believed to have its origins in the ancient Celtic languages, particularly Irish Gaelic. It is thought to be derived from the Old Irish word "muire," which means "sea" or "ocean." The name may have been used to describe someone who lived near the sea or had a connection to maritime activities.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Murphie can be found in the Annals of Ulster, a medieval Irish chronicle dating back to the 15th century. In this text, a person named "Muirfhertach" is mentioned, which is a variation of the name Murphie. This suggests that the name has a long history in Irish culture and tradition.
During the Middle Ages, the name Murphie was relatively uncommon, but it gained more prominence in the 17th and 18th centuries. One notable bearer of the name was Murphie O'Flaherty (1629-1716), an Irish soldier and member of the Catholic Confederacy during the Irish Confederate Wars.
In the 19th century, a Murphie McManus (1820-1890) was a prominent Irish nationalist and member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood, an organization dedicated to the establishment of an independent Irish republic.
Another notable figure named Murphie was Murphie O'Sullivan (1858-1924), an Irish writer and journalist who played a significant role in the Irish literary revival of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
A more recent historical figure bearing the name Murphie was Murphie Beirne (1899-1975), an Irish politician and member of the Fianna Fáil party, who served as a Teachta Dála (Member of Parliament) for several constituencies.
While the name Murphie has its roots in Irish culture, it has also been adopted and used in other parts of the world, particularly in communities with Irish heritage or connections.
People
Murphie + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Murphie as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Murphie: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Murphie?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 245 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Murphie going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,398,997 US residents.
Is Murphie a common name?
We classify Murphie as "Very Rare". It ranks above 76.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 246 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Murphie most popular?
The single biggest year for Murphie was 2024, when 56 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Murphie is about 5 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Murphie in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Murphie a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Murphie in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Murphie still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Murphie in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Murphie can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people share the name Murphie?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.