Fionn
Masculine · “fair”
Fionn is the Irish word for fair, and it belongs to the hero at the center of one of the two great cycles of Irish story.
How old is the name Fionn?
Fionn first appears in US birth records in 1973 — 52 years ago. The typical Fionn is a kid of about 11 — this name's wave is very recent. About 700 people named Fionn are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Fionn most popular?
Fionn peaked in 2018, reaching #2943 nationally. Today it ranks #4139, 1,196 places below that high. See the whole 2018 chart.
Where it comes from
From fionn to Fionn
The story of Fionn
Fionn mac Cumhaill leads the Fianna, a warrior band, and gains his wisdom by accident — burning his thumb on the salmon of knowledge while cooking it for someone else, and sucking it. He is said to be sleeping under Ireland, waiting. The Fenian cycle is one of the four great bodies of Irish story. The name was revived in twentieth-century Ireland and is now very well used there.
Meaning
fair, bright, white
From Irish fionn, fair or bright; the same word opens Finlay, Fiona and Fingal and closes a great many Irish place names. Fionn mac Cumhaill's name was originally Deimne and he acquired Fionn as an epithet.
How the name formed
- fionn
- Fionn
Related forms: Fionn · Fionn · Finn
Pronouncing Fionn
FYUN
One syllable in Irish, roughly between fin and fyoon. English speakers say FIN.
Nicknames for Fionn
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1973
- Most boys named
- 201840 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2943reached in 2018
- Change vs 2024
- +13.6%25 in 2025, from 22
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.
Fionn in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Fionn in Irish — same name
- Fionn in Scottish Gaelic — same name
- Finn in English — spelling variant
Strongest US states over the last decade: New York, California.
Fionns among us
people named Fionn are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 68,323 born in 2025 was named Fionn
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 Jalani test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Fionn's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Jalani climbed just as high around 2002, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Jalani's path sketches the road Fionn is walking now.
Fionn 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 Fionn is headed
Fionn should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium 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.
Fionn beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Fionn in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A settled meaning in a living language with a genuinely great story behind it.
- Finn is the international form and a very current name in its own right.
- Five letters and one syllable, quick to write.
- The Irish pronunciation is not the English one and he will supply it constantly.
- Finn is far more common in America and will be written for him.
- The io spelling looks like a typo to readers who do not know Irish.
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Fionn
Masculine · #4139 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Fionns are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 700 people named Fionn are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Fionn in 2025?
- Fionn ranks #4139 among US boy names in 2025, with 25 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Fionn?
- About 1 in every 68,323 US boys born in 2025 was named Fionn — 25 in all.
- Will my child share the name Fionn with classmates?
- Fionn will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Fionn
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Mose#4139 · Lucious#4139 · Karsten#4139 · Nikita#4139 · Hasani#4139 · Jomar#4139 · Josey#4139 · Earnest#4139
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Fionn? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Fionn and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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