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Dylan

Meaning, origin and pronunciation, with published usage by place and year.

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Meaning

Sea-word association in the Welsh name tradition.

The dictionary connects the name to a Celtic word for sea and identifies early Welsh use. This is a word association, not a settled literal compound translation such as man-from-the-sea or son-of-the-sea. Alternative same-spelling histories remain separate.

Origin

Welsh use with a Celtic sea-word connection.

The scholarly entry identifies Celtic origin and initial use in Wales. The existing conditional Dilan relationship and English reading remain unchanged.

English pronunciation

/ˈdɪlən/

Directly recorded English pronunciation of the exact given-name spelling. The exact English entry documents given-name use; its uncertain etymological alternatives are not adjudicated in this pronunciation fact. The plain-text guide is approximate; a bearer’s preferred reading can differ. No audio reused.

Recorded English reading, as published. Accents and preferred pronunciations can differ.

Published name usage

Counts apply only to the exact spelling, place, year and recorded usage shown. Places are separate; these figures are never added into a worldwide total. Missing or suppressed records never mean zero.

Latest published record available for this spelling in each place and recorded usage
PlaceYearRecorded usagePublished birthsRankNotes
Canada2025Girls20 · preliminary12652025 figures are preliminary. Quebec counts below five are randomly imputed by the publisher before national aggregation. Accents are removed in the source; this profile was matched only where the catalog spelling was unambiguous. Unpublished values are unknown, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Canada2025Boys259 · preliminary1182025 figures are preliminary. Quebec counts below five are randomly imputed by the publisher before national aggregation. Accents are removed in the source; this profile was matched only where the catalog spelling was unambiguous. Unpublished values are unknown, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
France2020Girls5 (rounded to 5)5747Counts are rounded to the nearest multiple of five. Ranks use unrounded publisher counts with randomly ordered ties; equally rounded counts can have different ranks. National coverage excludes Mayotte before 2012. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Automated direction labels are withheld for this rounded-count series. Rank basis: source published.
France2025Boys170 (rounded to 5)310Counts are rounded to the nearest multiple of five. Ranks use unrounded publisher counts with randomly ordered ties; equally rounded counts can have different ranks. National coverage excludes Mayotte before 2012. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Automated direction labels are withheld for this rounded-count series. Rank basis: source published.
England & Wales2025Girls142006Published ranks differ from ranks calculated over visible rows. Counts retained; automated trend labels withheld. Rank basis: source published.
England & Wales2025Boys71772Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Northern Ireland2025Boys16143Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Scotland2025Girls4632Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Scotland2025Boys46110Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Ireland2003Girls3655Names below three occurrences are unpublished. Accent recording changed in 2018; comparisons across that boundary may not describe the same spelling coverage. Counts refer to registrations in the year. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Ireland2025Boys8469Names below three occurrences are unpublished. Accent recording changed in 2018; comparisons across that boundary may not describe the same spelling coverage. Counts refer to registrations in the year. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
United States2025Girls338807Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts.
United States2025Boys6,20841Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts.

Canada, Ireland and France coverage includes confidently matched existing profiles only; unmatched spellings are awaiting review. French counts are rounded to five.

Sources & notes

Open an entry for its source, credit, licence and full qualifications. Different name traditions remain separate.

Language of use: English

Checked against cited source

The exact English entry explicitly documents given-name use. This is separate from linguistic origin, nationality, ancestry or religious identity. Credit: Wiktionary contributors; adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

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This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

Meaning: Sea-word association in the Welsh name tradition.

Checked against cited source

The dictionary connects the name to a Celtic word for sea and identifies early Welsh use. This is a word association, not a settled literal compound translation such as man-from-the-sea or son-of-the-sea. Alternative same-spelling histories remain separate. Credit: Eva Brylla and Katharina Leibring, Förnamn i Sverige – kortfattat namnlexikon, second edition (Institutet för språk och folkminnen, 2026), printed page 118. Original factual summary by Rare Baby Names; copyright remains with Charlotta Seiler Brylla, Katharina Leibring and Isof. No source prose, image or audio reproduced.

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Original factual summary; source rights retained

Origin: Welsh use with a Celtic sea-word connection.

Checked against cited source

The scholarly entry identifies Celtic origin and initial use in Wales. The existing conditional Dilan relationship and English reading remain unchanged. Credit: Eva Brylla and Katharina Leibring, Förnamn i Sverige – kortfattat namnlexikon, second edition (Institutet för språk och folkminnen, 2026), printed page 118. Original factual summary by Rare Baby Names; copyright remains with Charlotta Seiler Brylla, Katharina Leibring and Isof. No source prose, image or audio reproduced.

View original source

Original factual summary; source rights retained

English pronunciation: /ˈdɪlən/

Checked against cited source

Directly recorded English pronunciation of the exact given-name spelling. The exact English entry documents given-name use; its uncertain etymological alternatives are not adjudicated in this pronunciation fact. The plain-text guide is approximate; a bearer’s preferred reading can differ. No audio reused. Credit: Wiktionary contributors; adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

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This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

Supporting evidence: Isof: Dylan’s qualified sea connection

Checked against cited source

The scholarly explanation supports a sea-word association, without selecting the stronger licensed man-from-the-sea gloss. Credit: Eva Brylla and Katharina Leibring, Förnamn i Sverige – kortfattat namnlexikon, second edition (Institutet för språk och folkminnen, 2026), printed page 118. Original factual summary by Rare Baby Names; copyright remains with Charlotta Seiler Brylla, Katharina Leibring and Isof. No source prose, image or audio reproduced.

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Original factual summary; source rights retained

Syllables: 2 (this documented English reading)

Checked against cited source

Vowel-phoneme count for the cited reading only; no universal syllable count or source-language transfer asserted. Credit: Wiktionary contributors; adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

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This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

Spelling variant: Dilan

Checked against cited source

English given-name relationship. These spellings remain separate in popularity statistics.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

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This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

country_CA

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country_FR

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country_IE

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Source: NISRA : Website: www.nisra.gov.uk

Attribution: Source: NISRA : Website: www.nisra.gov.uk

License: Open Government Licence v3.0

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(C) Crown copyright. Data supplied by National Records of Scotland.

Attribution: (C) Crown copyright. Data supplied by National Records of Scotland.

License: Open Government Licence v3.0

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Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence

Attribution: Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence

License: Open Government Licence v3.0

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Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence

Attribution: Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence

License: Open Government Licence v3.0

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U.S. Social Security Administration

Attribution: U.S. Social Security Administration

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Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.

Credit: Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.

License: Statistics Canada Open Licence

Adaptation: Adapted from Statistics Canada, First names at birth by sex at birth, selected indicators, Table 17-10-0147-01, reference years 1991–2025. This does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada of this product.

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Central Statistics Office, Ireland, VSA50 and VSA60, updated 27 February 2026.

Credit: Central Statistics Office, Ireland, VSA50 and VSA60, updated 27 February 2026.

License: CC BY 4.0

Adaptation: Adapted by Rare Baby Names: joined the published count and rank indicators and matched unambiguous existing spellings. Source values retained.

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Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.

Credit: Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.

License: Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab)

Adaptation: Adapted by Rare Baby Names: column names and sex codes mapped and unique case-only spellings matched to existing profiles. Published rounded counts and ranks retained.

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