UK boy's name
Colm
An Irish masculine name from the Gaelic "colm" meaning "dove".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Colm is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Colm popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #5119, with 3 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 1997, with 31 births.
This profile covers 284 England and Wales registrations across 25 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
The latest count is about 10% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 549 living people in the UK are called Colm. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Colm ranked #5119 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 3 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 1997, when 31 boys were registered as Colm.
- • Colm ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #433 in 2021.
- • About 549 living people in the UK are estimated to have Colm as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#5119
2024
Births in 2024
3
Latest year
Peak year
1997
31 births
Estimated living
549
2026
Meaning
What does Colm mean?
The name Colm is of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic name Colmán, which means "dove". It has been used in Ireland since ancient times and is associated with several notable figures in Irish history and folklore.
The name Colm is believed to have been introduced into Ireland during the 5th or 6th century AD, as Christianity spread throughout the island. Several early Irish saints bore this name, including St. Colm Cille (also known as St. Columba), who was born in 521 AD in County Donegal. He is revered as one of the most influential figures in the spread of Christianity in Ireland and Scotland.
Another significant figure with the name Colm was Colm Cille mac Feradaig (c. 555-639 AD), also known as St. Columba of Iona. He was an Irish monk and missionary who founded several monasteries, including the famous Iona Abbey in Scotland.
In Irish mythology, Colm appears as the name of a legendary hero or warrior. The Fenian Cycle, a collection of tales and legends from ancient Ireland, mentions a figure named Colm mac Crimthainn, who was a member of the Fianna, a group of warrior-hunters led by the famous Finn MacCool.
Throughout Irish history, there have been several notable individuals bearing the name Colm. These include Colm Cille Comhraic (c. 916-962), an Irish king who ruled over the Kingdom of Ailech in the 10th century, and Colm Ó Cléirigh (c. 1590-1644), a renowned Irish historian and chronicler who compiled the Annals of the Four Masters.
In more recent times, the name Colm has been borne by several influential Irish figures, such as Colm Wilkinson (born 1944), a renowned Irish actor and singer who originated the role of Jean Valjean in the musical Les Misérables; Colm Tóibín (born 1955), an acclaimed Irish novelist and essayist; and Colm Feore (born 1958), an Irish-Canadian actor known for his roles in films such as Pearl Harbor and The Amazing Spider-Man 2.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Colm over time
The chart below shows babies named Colm registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Colm, the clearest high point is 1997. The latest England and Wales figure is 3 births in 2024, compared with 31 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Colm by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Colm was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | #4585 | 10 | 3 |
| 2010s | #4092 | 32 | 8 |
| 2000s | #1459 | 141 | 10 |
| 1990s | #667 | 101 | 4 |
Geography
Where Colm is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Colm. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.
Colm ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #433 in 2021.
Across the UK
Colm in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#544 in 2011
14 years of NRS records, 62 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#433 in 2021
23 years of NISRA records, 208 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Colm
-
Colm Cannon
ice hockey player
Luxembourgian ice hockey player
1986-
-
Colm Singleton
business executive
Bermudian insurance executive
1976-
-
Colm Gildernew
politician
Sinn Féin politician (born 1969)
1969-
-
Colm Kelleher
business executive; banker
Irish banker and business executive
1957-
-
Colm McAlarney
Gaelic football player
Gaelic football player
1948-
-
Colm Gallagher
politician
Irish politician
?-1957
-
Colm O'Connell
missionary
Irish missionary and track and field coach
-
Colm Cavanagh
Gaelic football player
Gaelic football player
Related
Names similar to Colm
- Charlie 104,761
- Callum 65,796
- Connor 53,072
- Cameron 40,394
- Charles 33,091
- Christopher 26,849
- Caleb 15,553
- Corey 12,622
- Carter 11,505
- Cody 11,075
- Conor 10,298
- Christian 9,695
FAQ
Colm: questions and answers
How popular is the name Colm in the UK right now?
In 2024, Colm was ranked #5119 for boys in England and Wales, with 3 births registered.
When was Colm most popular?
The peak year on record was 1997, with 31 babies registered as Colm in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Colm?
An Irish masculine name from the Gaelic "colm" meaning "dove".
How many people are called Colm in the UK?
A total of 284 babies have been registered as Colm across the 25 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 62 more in Scotland and 208 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Colm most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Colm ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #433 in 2021. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.