Sullivan: name meaning, origin & popularity
- Meaning
- “dark-eyed”
- Origin
- Irish
- Say it
- SUL-ih-vun · 3 syllables
- Used for
- Boys (91% of all uses)
Sullivan comes from the Irish surname Ó Súileabháin, traditionally interpreted as 'descendant of Súileabhán.' The personal name is commonly explained from súil meaning 'eye,' giving the usual sense 'dark-eyed.'
How popular is Sullivan?
Babies named Sullivan in 20241,113
2024 rank#339 boys
Peak year2024
Total US babies since 188015,914
Sullivan is rising: use over the last five years is 1.9× what it was a decade earlier.
Names like Sullivan
Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.
Sullivan questions
What does the name Sullivan mean?
Sullivan means "dark-eyed". It comes from Irish. Sullivan comes from the Irish surname Ó Súileabháin, traditionally interpreted as 'descendant of Súileabhán.' The personal name is commonly explained from súil meaning 'eye,' giving the usual sense 'dark-eyed.'
Is Sullivan a boy or girl name?
Sullivan is mainly a boy's name in US records (91% of uses since 1880).
How popular is Sullivan?
1,113 US babies were named Sullivan in 2024. Its peak year was 2024.
How do you pronounce Sullivan?
Sullivan is usually pronounced SUL-ih-vun.
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.