Bridget
Bridget is an Irish female name derived from the Gaelic noun brígh, meaning "power, strength, vigor, virtue". An alternate meaning of the name is "exalted one". Its popularity, especially in Ireland, is largely related to the popularity of Saint Brigid of Kildare, who was so popular in Ireland she was known as "Mary of the Gael". This saint took on many of the characteristics of the early Celtic goddess Brigid, who was the goddess of agriculture and healing and possibly also of poetry and fire. One of her epithets was "Brigid of the Holy Fire". In German and Scandinavian countries, the popularity of the name spread due to Saint Bridget of Sweden. 
In the Irish language, the name is spelled Bríd or Brighid, pronounced [bʲɾʲiːdʲ]. In the Scottish Gaelic language, the name is spelled Brìghde, pronounced [ˈpɾʲiːʝtʲə]. At one time the name was so popular for Irish girls that Bridey was used as a slang term for an Irish girl in English-speaking countries. Some Irish servant girls were called Biddie or Biddy by their employers even if that wasn't their real first name. It has been steadily used in the United States throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, though never among the top 100 most popular names for girls. It was most popular in the 1970s, when it ranked as the 153rd most popular name for girls born in that decade in the United States. It was ranked as the 367th most common name for girls and women in the United States in the 1990 census.

People with the name
Bridget Adams (1928–2019), English figure skater
Bridget Allchin (1927–2017), English archaeologist
Bridget Archer (born 1975), Australian politician
Bridget Armstrong (born 1937), New Zealand actress
Bridget S. Bade (born 1965), American judge and lawyer
Bridget Barrett (died 1845), Irish murder victim
Bridget Becker (born 1981), New Zealand curler
Bridget Bedard, American producer and television writer
Bridget Bendish (1650–1726), daughter of Bridget Cromwell
Bridget Benenate, American songwriter
Bridget Bevan (1698–1779), Welsh educationalist and public benefactor
Bridget Bishop (c. 1632–1692), first person executed for witchcraft during the Salem witch trials
Bridget Boakye, Ghanaian data scientist, entrepreneur and writer
Bridget Boland (1913–1988), Irish novelist, playwright and screenwriter
Bridget Breiner (born 1974), American dancer and choreographer
Bridget M. Brennan (born 1974), American judge and lawyer
Bridget Brind, British diplomat
Bridget A. Brink, American diplomat
Bridget Buckley (born 1955), English rower
Bridget Burgess (born 2001), Australian stock car racing driver
Bridget Calitz (born 1997), South African lawn bowler
Bridget Callahan (born 1996), American soccer player
Bridget Carleton (born 1997), Canadian basketball player
Bridget Carey (born 1984), American technology journalist
Bridget Carpenter, American playwright and screenwriter
Bridget Carragher (born 1957), South African physicist
Bridget Cherry (born 1941), English architectural historian
Bridget Christie (born 1971), English actress, comedian and writer
Bridget Cleary (1867–1895), Irish woman murdered by her husband
Bridget Connolly (1890–1981), Irish nationalist and republican
Bridget R. Cooks, American academic, curator, scholar and writer
Bridget Cromwell (1624–1662), eldest daughter of Oliver Cromwell
Bridget Dirrane (1894–2003), Irish memoirist and nurse
Bridget Donahue, American art dealer
Bridget Dowling (1891–1969), sister-in-law of Adolf Hitler
Bridget Doyle, Irish camogie player
Bridget Drinka (born 1951), American linguist
Bridget Durity (born 1951), Trinidadian cricketer
Bridget Dwyer (born 1980), American golfer
Bridget Egerton (1577–1648), English religious writer
Bridget Everett (born 1972), American comedian
Bridget Flanery, American actress
Bridget Flannery (born 1959), Irish painter
Bridget Fonda (born 1964), American actress
Bridget Franek (born 1987), American middle distance runner
Bridget Gainer (born 1968/1969), American politician
Bridget Galloway (born 1999), English footballer player
Bridget Gilling (1922–2009), English–Australian activist and feminist
Bridget Goodwin (c. 1827–1899), Irish–New Zealand goldminer
Bridget Hall (born 1977), American model
Bridget Hanley (1941–2021), American actress
Bridget Haraldsdotter (c. 1131–1208), Queen consort of Sweden
Bridget Harrison (born 1971), English freelance journalist
Bridget Hodson, English actress
Bridget Hoffman (born 1961/1962), American voice actress
Bridget Holmes (1591–1691), English domestic servant
Bridget Hustwaite (born 1991), Australian radio presenter and journalist
Bridget Hutter, English sociologist
Bridget Hyem (1933–2014), Australian equestrian
Bridget Ikin, New Zealand film producer
Bridget Jackson (born 1936), English golfer
Bridget Jones Nelson (born 1964), American actress and screenwriter
Bridget Kahele (born 1996), American rugby player
Bridget Karlin, American entrepreneur
Bridget Katsriku, Ghanaian public servant
Bridget Kearney (born 1985), American musician and songwriter
Bridget Anne Kelly (born 1972), American political consultant
Bridget Kelly (born 1986), American singer and songwriter
Bridget Kendall (born 1956), English journalist
Bridget Kumwenda (born 1991), Malawi netball player
Bridget Terry Long (born 1973), American economics professor
Bridget Lowe, American poet
Bridget Maasland (born 1974), Dutch television presenter
Bridget G. MacCarthy (1904–1993), Irish academic and writer
Bridget Malcolm, Australian model
Bridget Markham (1579–1609), English courtier
Bridget Martyn (1935–2020), Egyptian–born English encyclopedist
Bridget Masango (born 1962), South African politician
Bridget Masinga (born 1981), South African actress, model, radio and television personality
Bridget Marquardt (born 1973), American television personality
Bridget McConnell (born 1958), Scottish cultural administrator
Bridget Mary McCormack (born 1966), American judge, lawyer and professor
Bridget McDonough, American theatre director
Bridget McEvilly (born 1946), English nursing administrator
Bridget McKeever (born 1983), Irish field hockey player
Bridget McKenzie (born 1969), Australian politician
Bridget Minamore (born 1991). British poet, essayist, journalist and critic
Bridget Moran (1923–1999), Canadian activist and author
Bridget Motha (born 1986), South African soccer player
Bridget Moynahan (born 1971), American actress and model
Bridget Mutuma, Kenyan–South African nanotechnologist
Bridget Namiotka (born 1990), American pair skater
Bridget Neval (born 1985), Indian–born Australian–Canadian actress
Bridget Newell (1911–1937), English barrister and golfer
Bridget Parsons (1907–1972), English socialite
Bridget Partridge (1890–1966), Irish–born Australian Catholic religious sister
Bridget Pastoor (born 1940), Canadian politician
Bridget Patterson (born 1994), Australian cricketer
Bridget Perrier (born 1977), Canadian anti-prostitution activist
Bridget Pettis (born 1971), American basketball player and coach
Bridget Phillipson (born 1983), English politician
Bridget Pickering, Namibian Film producer
Bridget Pitt, Zimbabwean–born South African environmental activist and writer
Bridget Poulett (1912–1975), English socialite
Bridget Powers (born 1980), American pornographic actress with dwarfism
Bridget Prentice, (born 1952), Scottish politician
Bridget Redmond (1904–1952), Irish politician
Bridget Regan (born 1982), American actress
Bridget Reweti, New Zealand photographer and moving image artist
Bridget Rice (1885–1967), Irish politician
Bridget Riley (born 1931), English painter
Bridget Robinson, New Zealand oncology academic
Bridget Rosewell, (born 1951), English economist
Bridget Rowe (1950–2021), English newspaper editor
Bridget Scanlon (born 1959), American hydrogeologist
Bridget Sequeira (1905–1987), Pakistani religious sister
Bridget Sloan (born 1992), American artistic gymnast
Bridget St John (born 1946), English singer and songwriter
Bridget Stutchbury, Canadian biologist
Bridget Tan (1948–2022), Singaporean activist
Bridget Tolley (born 1960), Canadian Algonquin community worker
Bridget Turner (1939–2014), English actress
Bridget Vallence, Australian politician
Bridget Valverde (born 1982), American politician
Bridget Wade, English micropalaeontologist
Bridget Walters, Australian actress
Bridget Williams (born 1948), New Zealand publisher and founder of Bridget Williams Books
Bridget Wishart (born 1962), English musician, singer and performance artist

Fictional characters
Bridget (Guilty Gear), in the fighting game series Guilty Gear
Bridget, in the film The Wild
Bridget, in the film An American Tail
Bridget Forrester, in The Bold and the Beautiful
Bridget Hennessey, the eldest child on the sitcom 8 Simple Rules
Bridget Jones
Bridget von Hammersmark, played by Diane Kruger in the film Inglourious Basterds
Bridget "Bee" Vreeland, in the book and movie The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

Variations
See also
Brigid (disambiguation)
List of Irish-language given names

References
Bibliography
Rosenkrantz, Linda, and Satran, Pamela Redmond (2008). Cool Names for Babies. St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 978-0-312-37786-1
Todd, Loreto (1998). Celtic Names for Children. Irish American Book Company. ISBN 0-86278-556-1.