Ian

Primarily a boy's name · 100% boys

Meaning

Ian or Iain is a male name of Scottish Gaelic origin, which is derived from the Hebrew given name יוֹחָנָן‎ and corresponds to the English name John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename Iain.

From Wikipedia

Ian first appears in the data in 1991 and has been recorded in 34 different years as a boy's name. Its single biggest year was 1992 with 581 babies (rank #79 that year). In 2024 it was given to 189 boys (rank #180). Its popularity has been fairly steady recently.

Numerology of Ian

In Pythagorean numerology, every letter has a value from 1 to 9. Adding the letters of Ian yields these three numbers — a playful read on the name's character.

6Destiny numberThe carerNurturing, responsible, family at the centre.Sum of every letter. The overall character a name carries.
1Soul urgeThe leaderIndependent, pioneering, drawn to going first.Sum of the vowels — what's said to drive the heart.
5PersonalityThe free spiritCurious, restless, energised by change.Sum of the consonants — the outer impression.

10,276

Total babies (all years)

Years in the data

581

Peak in a single year

Popularity Over Time — Boys

Also a character in

In Outlander: Young Ian Murray — Jamie's nephew

Famous people named Ian

Ian Flemingprose writer · b. 1908
Ian McKellenfilm actor · b. 1939
Ian McShanefilm producer · b. 1942
Ian Somerhalderfilm actor · b. 1978
Ian McEwanfilm screenwriter · b. 1948

More popular boys' names

Names ranked near Ian in 2024

Other boys' names starting with I

Year-by-Year Detail

Rank is among all boys' names registered that year.

Year	Babies	Rank
1991	574	#81
1992	581	#79
1993	488	#90
1994	397	#94
1995	443	#91
1996	418	#87
1997	392	#88
1998	354	#102
1999	319	#103
2000	336	#95
2001	346	#96
2002	287	#113
2003	312	#101
2004	307	#102
2005	303	#108
2006	302	#107
2007	287	#123
2008	296	#130
2009	272	#142
2010	273	#142
2011	235	#159
2012	259	#151
2013	239	#158
2014	232	#162
2015	216	#172
2016	222	#169
2017	223	#170
2018	207	#184
2019	220	#169
2020	172	#205
2021	194	#189
2022	209	#167
2023	172	#189
2024	189	#180