Declan

Declan: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning
“uncertain, possibly full of goodness”
Origin
Irish
Say it
DEK-lun · 2 syllables
Used for
Boys

An Irish name borne by Saint Declan. Its exact etymology is uncertain; a common interpretation links it to Old Irish deag 'good' with a diminutive element.

How popular is Declan?

2024833 per million US babies
1880192019602000
Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Babies named Declan in 20242,772

2024 rank#131 boys

Peak year2019

Total US babies since 188056,351

Declan has been fairly stable over the last fifteen years.

Names like Declan

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

  • Liamresolute protector · Irish
  • Aidenlittle fire · Irish
  • Nolandescendant of Nuallán · Irish
  • Ryanlittle king · Irish
  • Connorlover of hounds · Irish
  • Kevinhandsome, gentle, kind · Irish
  • Braydendescendant of Bradán · Irish
  • Finnfair, white · Irish

Declan questions

What does the name Declan mean?

Declan means "uncertain, possibly full of goodness". It comes from Irish. An Irish name borne by Saint Declan. Its exact etymology is uncertain; a common interpretation links it to Old Irish deag 'good' with a diminutive element.

Is Declan a boy or girl name?

Declan is mainly a boy's name in US records (99% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Declan?

2,772 US babies were named Declan in 2024. Its peak year was 2019.

How do you pronounce Declan?

Declan is usually pronounced DEK-lun.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.