Dylan
Masculine · “sea”
Dylan is given to both — 418,679 boys and 16,272 girls since 1880. See Dylan as a girl nameSee other names given to both
Dylan comes out of medieval Welsh storytelling — a sea-child in one of the oldest prose tales in Britain — and it stayed almost entirely Welsh until a poet from Swansea carried it out into the wider language. Two syllables, one settled spelling in English, and a sound that hasn't needed adjusting in any country it has traveled to.
How old is the name Dylan?
Dylan first appears in US birth records in 1953 — 72 years ago. The typical Dylan alive today was born around 2004, making them about 21 years old. About 411,000 people named Dylan are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Dylan most popular?
Dylan peaked in 2003, reaching #19 nationally. Today it ranks #41, 22 places below that high. See the whole 2003 chart.
Where it comes from
From Dylan ail Don (Mabinogi) to Dylan
The story of Dylan
Dylan first appears as Dylan ail Don in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, the collection of Welsh tales written down in the Middle Ages; in the story the newborn makes straight for the sea and swims as naturally as a fish. For centuries the name stayed inside that literature rather than in ordinary use. The Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, born in Swansea in 1914, changed that — his fame carried the name into English, and a young American musician borrowed it as a surname soon after. From there it spread through the English-speaking world, and it still charts on both sides of the Atlantic.
Meaning
sea, ocean
The Welsh word dylan means sea or tide, and the medieval tale itself connects the name to the water. Some scholars read the older form as something nearer 'great flow' or 'great tide' — the same image, differently angled.
Cultural footprint
Dylan Thomas (b. 1914) — "Do not go gentle" poet — Bob Dylan took his name
Dylan O'Brien (b. 1991) — The Maze Runner star
Source: Wikidata — the one source on this page that is not an official agency.
How the name formed
- Dylan ail DonMabinogi
- DylanWelsh
- DylanEnglish
Related forms: Dylan · Dillon · Dylon
Pronouncing Dylan
DIL-an
That is the standard English pronunciation everywhere the name is common. In Welsh it is closer to DUH-lan, with the y sounding like the u in 'but' — worth knowing if the family has Welsh ties, though almost no one outside Wales will say it that way.
Nicknames for Dylan
High
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
- 1990 — Beverly Hills, 90210 premieres
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1953
- Most boys named
- 200116,497 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #19reached in 2003
- Change vs 2024
- −17.1%6,208 in 2025, from 7,487
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Dylan in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Dylan in Welsh — same name
- Dillon in English — spelling variant
- Dylon in English — spelling variant
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, Florida. International figures from Office for National Statistics. Sources
Dylans among us
people named Dylan are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 275 born in 2025 was named Dylan
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Stephen test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Dylan's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Stephen climbed just as high around 1949, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Stephen's path sketches the road Dylan is walking now.
Dylan sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Dylan is headed
Dylan should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
High confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Dylan beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Dylan in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- One dominant spelling in English, recognized on sight and almost never needing to be spelled out loud.
- Two short syllables that survive intact in most languages — no sound in it is hard for a non-English speaker.
- A documented literary root going back to a medieval Welsh manuscript, which is more history than most modern two-syllable names carry.
- Established short forms — Dyl, Dill, a plain initial — none of which have to be taught to anyone.
- Charts in England and Wales as well as the US, so it travels without explanation.
- Dillon is a real alternative spelling and also an Irish surname, so some people will write it that way by default. A quick correction, but a lifelong one.
- On the girls' side this spelling is very rare — nearly every Dylan on record is a boy. A girl named Dylan will meet forms, teachers and strangers assuming otherwise, which some families welcome and some would rather avoid.
- For older generations the name still points straight at the Welsh poet and the American songwriter. That association has faded for younger ears, but it hasn't disappeared.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Dylan to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Dylan? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Dylan
Masculine · #41 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Dylans are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 411,000 people named Dylan are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Dylan in 2025?
- Dylan ranks #41 among US boy names in 2025, with 6,208 babies given the name.
- How common is the name Dylan?
- About 1 in every 275 US boys born in 2025 was named Dylan — 6,208 in all.
- Will my child share the name Dylan with classmates?
- Dylan will almost certainly be the only one in school.
- What explains the spikes and dips on Dylan's chart?
- Dylan climbed after 1990 — Beverly Hills, 90210 premieres.
Ranked beside Dylan
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Bennett#40 · Roman#42 · Mason#39 · Jacob#43 · Miles#44 · Wyatt#38 · Carter#45 · Gabriel#37
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Dylan? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Dylan and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Or jump into a head-to-head
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration; international figures from national statistics agencies. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle