Aisling (name)
Aisling is an Irish feminine given name meaning "dream" or "vision".[1][2][3] It refers to an aisling, a poetic genre that developed in Irish poetry during the 17th and 18th centuries. There is no evidence that it was used as a given name before the 20th century.[4]
 An 1883 painting by Pierre Puvis de Chavannes depicting an aisling | |
| Gender | Female |
|---|---|
| Language(s) | Irish |
| Origin | |
| Meaning | Aisling (a dream or vision) |
| Other names | |
| Short form(s) | Ash |
There are many variant anglicised forms of the name including Ashling, Aislin, Aislinn, Aislene, Ashlyn, and Ashlynn.[4] Pronunciation of the name also varies, with the most common pronunciation being /ˈæʃlɪŋ/ ASH-ling; other forms acceptable to Irish speakers are /ˈæʃlɪn/ ASH-lin and /ˈæʃliːn/ ASH-leen. Others, such as /ˈeɪzlɪŋ/ AYZ-ling, /ˈæslɪŋ/ ASS-ling, and /ˈeɪslɪŋ/ AYSS-ling, do not follow the Irish pronunciation.
Aisling was the 31st most popular name for baby girls in Ireland in 2005, while Ashlyn was the 140th most popular name for baby girls in the United States in 2006, and the variant spelling Ashlynn the 293rd most popular name for baby girls in the United States in 2006. Ashlyn is also occasionally regarded as a modern name derived from both Ashley and Lynn.[5]
People
- Aislin, the pen name of Canadian political cartoonist Terry Mosher (born 1942)
- Aisling Bea (born 1984), Irish comedian
- Aisling Burnand, British businesswoman and lobbyist
- Aisling Daly (born 1987), Irish mixed martial arts fighter
- Aisling Franciosi (born 1993), Irish-Italian actress
- Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace (born 1978), British glamour model and former Big Brother contestant
- Ashlyne Huff, American singer
- Aislinn Hunter, Canadian writer
- Aislin Jones, Australian skeet shooter
- Aisling Loftus, English actress of Irish parentage
- Aislín McGuckin (born 1974), Northern Irish actress
- Aisling O'Neill, Irish actress
- Aisling O'Sullivan (born 1968), Irish actress
- Aislinn Paul (born 1994), Canadian actress
- Aisling Swaine, Irish academic
- Ashlynn Yennie, American actress
- Ashlyn Harris, (Born 1985), US Women's National Team Soccer goalkeeper
- Aishlin Garnett, (Born 1993), Australian Radio and Podcast host
Fictional characters
- Aisling, the titular subject in the song "Aisling", on Shane MacGowan's 1994 album The Snake
- Aisling, the main character in Malinda Lo's novel Ash
- Aisling in the Irish animated TV programme Ballybraddan
- Aisling in the anonymous novel Diary of an Oxygen Thief
- Aisling, a hero in the video game Gigantic
- Aisling in the novel Son of the Shadows
- Aisling, aspiring film director in the play Stones in His Pockets
- Aisling, a young faerie girl in the animated film The Secret of Kells
- Ashlynn in the video game Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation
- Aisling, the protagonist of the Aisling book series by Emer McLysaght and Sarah Breen, Irish Book Awards 2018 & 2019 winner
- Ashling, the Pilgrim, a character in the TCG Magic: The Gathering female fire elemental, traveling through her world
- Aisling, a recurring character in the British-made sitcom Derry Girls
- Queen Aislinn, wife of the tyrant King Freyne and mother of King Einon in the movie Dragonheart
- Ashelin in the Jak and Daxter video game series, introduced in Jak II
- Aisling Duval, a princess of the Empire in the video game Elite: Dangerous
- Aislinn Foy, the main character in Melissa Marr's novel Wicked Lovely
- Aisling Laffrey, a character in the video game Path of Exile, member of Immortal Syndicate
- Aisling "Ash" McCarthy, one of the two main characters in the novel Like
- Aisling O'Connor, a main character in the novel Light a Penny Candle
- Aisling O'Dowd, a character in the television show Can't Cope, Won't Cope
- Aisling Querelle, a character in the television show Carnival Row
- Aislinn Wishart, a character in the Japanese manga Saki
References
- "Irish Spelling and Pronunciation". www.smo.uhi.ac.uk. Retrieved 2020-08-13.
- Campbell, Mike. "User Comments for the name Aisling". Behind the Name. Retrieved 2020-08-13.
- Campbell, Mike (22 April 2018). "User Comments for the name Aisling". Behind the Name. Retrieved 2020-08-13.
- "Aisling". Behind the Name.
- "Ashlyn". Behind the Name.