Alan meaning and name origin

Alan

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Alan meaning and name origin

Alan \a-lan\ as a boy's name is pronounced AL-an. It is of Old German origin, and the meaning of Alan is "precious". From Adal. Also possibly derived from the Gaelic "ailin" meaning "little rock". Introduced into England by Breton followers of William the Conqueror, such as Alan, Earl of Brittany, who was rewarded for his services with vast estates in the newly conquered kingdom. Popular in the Middle Ages, with a boom around the 1950s influenced by the popularity of actor Alan Ladd. In Russia, the name is linked to the ancient warrior tribe Alans that is the origin of the Ossetians. Alun is a Welsh form; Alain (al-LAYN) is French; Alano is Spanish. South African author Alan Paton; lyricist Alan Jay Lerner; playwright Alan Bennett; astronaut Alan Shepard; actors Alan Alda, Alan Cumming; poet Allen Ginsberg; basketball player Allen Iverson.

Alan has 25 variant forms: Ailean, Ailin, Al, Alain, Alair, Aland, Alann, Alano, Alanson, Alen, Alin, Allain, Allan, Allayne, Allen, Alley, Alleyn, Alleyne, Allie, Allin, Allon, Allyn, Alon, Alun and Alyn.

For more information, see also the related name Elwyn.

Alan is also pronounced similarly to Aloin, Aluin, Alwin, Alwyn, Eilan, Elan, Elian, Elon, Ilan, Ilon, Olen, Olin, Olyn and Wylan. Other suggested similar baby names are Adan, Alban, Aldan, Alem, Alvan, Aman, Aran, Arlan and Aslan.

View a list of the 10 names that reference Alan.

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Popularity of Alan

Alan is a very popular first name for males (#91 out of 1220) and also a very popular surname or last name for all people (#23264 out of 88799) (2000 U.S. Census).

Displayed below is the baby names popularity of Alan name for boys (2012 statistics). Compare Alan with its variant forms and related boy baby names.

Read more at http://www.thinkbabynames.com/meaning/1/Alan#mXRKfYXxMTQeFA3t.99