Boy nameCurrently #28 in the USFalling
Dylan
DIL-un//ˈdɪlən//
2 syllablesPeak year: 20015 lettersStarts with D
Meaning & origin
Great tide, son of the sea
Dylan comes from Welsh mythology, where Dylan Eil Ton was a sea deity whose name means roughly 'great tide' or 'son of the wave'. Its poetic, watery meaning gained further resonance through poet Dylan Thomas and musician Bob Dylan.
Dylan's popularity over time
| Year | Births named Dylan |
|---|---|
| 1953 | 6 |
| 1954 | 7 |
| 1955 | 12 |
| 1956 | 10 |
| 1957 | 11 |
| 1958 | 22 |
| 1959 | 30 |
| 1960 | 39 |
| 1961 | 32 |
| 1962 | 20 |
| 1963 | 33 |
| 1964 | 38 |
| 1965 | 47 |
| 1966 | 62 |
| 1967 | 68 |
| 1968 | 121 |
| 1969 | 237 |
| 1970 | 324 |
| 1971 | 266 |
| 1972 | 308 |
| 1973 | 282 |
| 1974 | 394 |
| 1975 | 461 |
| 1976 | 404 |
| 1977 | 535 |
| 1978 | 488 |
| 1979 | 650 |
| 1980 | 838 |
| 1981 | 750 |
| 1982 | 709 |
| 1983 | 798 |
| 1984 | 992 |
| 1985 | 1,354 |
| 1986 | 1,868 |
| 1987 | 2,034 |
| 1988 | 2,213 |
| 1989 | 2,915 |
| 1990 | 4,491 |
| 1991 | 9,879 |
| 1992 | 15,226 |
| 1993 | 12,944 |
| 1994 | 12,737 |
| 1995 | 12,265 |
| 1996 | 12,195 |
| 1997 | 13,151 |
| 1998 | 14,715 |
| 1999 | 16,110 |
| 2000 | 15,533 |
| 2001 | 16,696 |
| 2002 | 15,077 |
| 2003 | 16,275 |
| 2004 | 15,472 |
| 2005 | 14,250 |
| 2006 | 13,551 |
| 2007 | 13,231 |
| 2008 | 12,288 |
| 2009 | 11,918 |
| 2010 | 11,026 |
| 2011 | 10,388 |
| 2012 | 10,595 |
| 2013 | 10,740 |
| 2014 | 11,244 |
| 2015 | 11,113 |
| 2016 | 10,561 |
| 2017 | 10,209 |
| 2018 | 9,386 |
| 2019 | 8,284 |
| 2020 | 7,471 |
| 2021 | 7,298 |
| 2022 | 7,263 |
| 2023 | 7,523 |
| 2024 | 7,868 |
Dylan through the decades
- Dylan peaked in 2001, when 16,696 babies were named Dylan in the US.
- Over the last 10 years of data (2015–2024), use of Dylan has fallen 27% compared to the 10 years before that.
- Dylan currently ranks #28 in the US and is cooling off.
Nicknames
Dyl
Variants & spellings
Dillon
Famous people named Dylan
- Bob Dylan — musician