Alan

Primarily a boy's name · 100% boys

Meaning

Alan is a masculine given name in the English and Breton languages. Its surname form is Aland. There is consensus that in modern English and French, the name is derived from the nomadic Iranian people known as the Alans, who settled in Western Europe during the Migration Period.

From Wikipedia

Alan first appears in the data in 1882 and has been recorded in 142 different years as a boy's name. Its single biggest year was 1955 with 9,033 babies (rank #43 that year). In 2024 it was given to 2,183 boys (rank #167). Its popularity has been fairly steady recently.

Numerology of Alan

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

1Destiny numberThe leaderIndependent, pioneering, drawn to going first.Sum of every letter. The overall character a name carries.
2Soul urgeThe peacemakerDiplomatic, sensitive, partnership-minded.Sum of the vowels — what's said to drive the heart.
8PersonalityThe achieverDriven, capable, comfortable wielding influence.Sum of the consonants — the outer impression.

362,464

Total babies (all years)

142

Years in the data

9,033

Peak in a single year

Popularity Over Time — Boys

Famous people named Alan

Alan Turingcryptographer · b. 1912
Alan Rickmanfilm actor · b. 1946
Alan Shearersports commentator · b. 1970
Alan Arkinscience fiction writer · b. 1934
Alan Garcíasociologist · b. 1949

Share your Alan story

Why did you choose this name — or what does it mean to you? Approved stories appear on this page.

More popular boys' names

Names ranked near Alan in 2024

Other boys' names starting with A

Year-by-Year Detail

Rank is among all boys' names registered that year.

Year	Babies	Rank
1882	6	#838
1884	9	#664
1885	10	#604
1886	5	#961
1887	5	#926
1888	6	#918
1889	10	#629
1890	12	#566
1891	9	#636
1892	17	#481
1893	12	#572
1894	11	#632
1895	21	#426
1896	13	#593
1897	19	#439
1898	14	#573
1899	16	#481
1900	27	#431
1901	20	#422
1902	27	#380
1903	25	#393
1904	29	#379
1905	23	#463
1906	28	#411
1907	38	#359
1908	31	#429
1909	45	#348
1910	59	#321
1911	55	#380
1912	102	#381
1913	158	#321
1914	184	#344
1915	238	#346
1916	251	#338
1917	310	#299
1918	333	#302
1919	330	#299
1920	433	#263
1921	375	#289
1922	479	#256
1923	588	#221
1924	625	#217
1925	804	#179
1926	836	#174
1927	808	#178
1928	964	#157
1929	1,101	#146
1930	1,301	#136
1931	1,423	#120
1932	1,339	#127
1933	1,345	#122
1934	1,369	#124
1935	1,425	#122
1936	1,755	#108
1937	1,846	#103
1938	2,241	#91
1939	2,330	#85
1940	2,377	#88
1941	2,624	#84
1942	3,134	#81
1943	3,855	#67
1944	4,277	#55
1945	5,073	#52
1946	6,490	#49
1947	7,823	#45
1948	7,394	#46
1949	7,255	#45
1950	7,738	#41
1951	8,408	#40
1952	8,310	#42
1953	8,454	#43
1954	8,712	#43
1955	9,033	#43
1956	8,735	#44
1957	8,209	#48
1958	8,226	#49
1959	8,152	#50
1960	8,357	#50
1961	8,612	#51
1962	7,720	#53
1963	6,931	#56
1964	6,811	#53
1965	5,613	#59
1966	4,943	#57
1967	4,573	#61
1968	3,976	#74
1969	3,854	#76
1970	3,553	#91
1971	3,168	#99
1972	2,580	#110
1973	2,269	#115
1974	2,231	#118
1975	2,249	#115
1976	2,185	#115
1977	2,134	#127
1978	2,122	#122
1979	2,323	#116
1980	2,671	#112
1981	2,588	#112
1982	2,687	#107
1983	2,770	#102
1984	2,704	#105
1985	2,683	#109
1986	2,648	#107
1987	2,586	#112
1988	2,754	#110
1989	2,733	#120
1990	2,640	#126
1991	2,545	#128
1992	2,607	#129
1993	2,564	#132
1994	2,434	#144
1995	2,293	#153
1996	2,447	#143
1997	2,177	#158
1998	2,138	#161
1999	2,249	#164
2000	2,415	#161
2001	2,644	#148
2002	2,625	#150
2003	3,098	#131
2004	3,062	#132
2005	3,205	#128
2006	3,475	#122
2007	3,249	#130
2008	3,027	#135
2009	2,847	#142
2010	2,513	#156
2011	2,342	#164
2012	2,285	#170
2013	2,607	#153
2014	2,499	#170
2015	2,487	#167
2016	2,630	#155
2017	2,442	#159
2018	2,250	#174
2019	2,141	#182
2020	1,966	#194
2021	1,931	#197
2022	2,005	#189
2023	2,164	#167
2024	2,183	#167