Maureen

It’s always worth checking out the variations on a classic name—like Maureen, which is the Irish take on the ultra-classic name, Mary. Maureen shares Mary’s many meanings—bitter, dark, and beloved.

Maureen has some famous folks associated with it, including several actors—McCormick, Stapleton, and McGovern—along with New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd. And its most famous pop culture representative is the character Maureen Johnson, played by Idina Menzel in Rent.

Maureen is one of many variations of Mary—like Maria, Mari, Mariana, Mareike, Molly, Miriam, Mariah, Mara, Marie, Marilyn, Moira, Marietta, Marika and Maura. Names that also mean dark include Baize, Ciara, Darcy, Donnelly, Duncan, Kiera, Kerry, Kieran, Melanie, and Nigel. And if you’re looking for a baby name that means beloved, try names like Amadea Amy, Aiko, Aziz, Cher, Darrell, David, Esme, Jebediah, Marianne, Mariella, Maria, Miriam, Moira, Priya, and Thandie

Maureen was a mid-20th century favorite, appearing in the top 200 from the 1930s to the 1970s, but it fell out of favor and disappeared from the top 1000 in 1997. It’s still a lovely Irish name that’s worthy of another look and a comeback.

Maureen in quotes:

“A tiger in a cage can never see the sun! This diva needs her stage, baby, let's have fun!”—Maureen Johnson, Rent

“The minute you settle for less than you deserve, you get even less than you settled for. ”—Maureen Dowd

"I've been asked repeatedly what the 'key' to acting is, and as far as I'm concerned, the main thing is to keep the audience awake.”—Maureen Stapleton