boy's name
Aylan
eye-LAHN
- Origin Turkish
- Gender Boy
- Letters 5
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 9,641
France
#33
2025 births
Aylan is a boy's name of Turkish and Arabic origin, usually glossed as "moon" or "shield." It ranks thirty-third in France, and our records show it entering the data only in 2008, making it one of the newest names in the French top fifty.
- Aylan is a name of Turkish origin.
- Peaked in France in 2025, when 1,330 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade in France.
- Today about 1 in 447 babies in France is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1997.
Aylan over time
Births per decade in France, 1990s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1990s | 10 |
| 2000s | 295 |
| 2010s | 2,540 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 5,565 |
What Aylan means
Aylan is generally read as moon-related, from the Turkish ay, moon, with a suffix. A competing gloss gives shield, and reference sources divide between the two without either being settled, which is common for names this recent.
Where Aylan comes from
Aylan is built on the Turkish ay, moon, the element behind Aylin, Ayla and Aynur, with a suffix that reference works read variously. An alternative derivation treats it as Arabic and glosses it as shield. The name has almost no documented history before this century, which is why the sources disagree so freely: with nothing attested, each site reasons backwards from a different older word. Its recognition outside Turkey owes a great deal to Alan Kurdi, the three-year-old Syrian Kurdish boy who drowned in 2015 and was widely reported under the Turkish spelling of his name, though the French rise began before that.
Aylan in use
Aylan ranks thirty-third in France with about 1,330 births in 2025. Our records carry it only from 2008, which makes its whole history shorter than almost anything else in the French top fifty, and its peak in our data is 2016. It has barely traveled: beyond 1,700 in England and Wales and 2,059 in the United States.
How popular is Aylan?
In 2025, Aylan was given to 1,320 babies in France, ranking #33 that year. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Aylan is used
French counts are rounded to the nearest five and nothing below five is published, so these figures show the shape of the name's use rather than an exact tally. Data & sources.
How Aylan is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Aÿlan | Aÿlan is a variant spelling of Aylan, recorded in France. | 10 |
| Aylän | Aylän is a rare spelling of Aylan, written with a diaeresis and recorded about 5 times, mostly in France. | 5 |
Names that peaked alongside Aylan
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Aylan also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Aylan over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Aylan in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
- Dutch
- Ayla
Sibling names for Aylan
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Aylan — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Aylan
What does the name Aylan mean?
Usually "moon," from the Turkish ay. Some sources give "shield" instead.
Why do sources disagree about Aylan?
It has almost no documented history before this century, so each reference site reasons backwards from a different older word.
How new is Aylan?
Very. Our records carry it only from 2008.
How popular is Aylan in France?
Thirty-third, with about 1,330 births in 2025.
Is Aylan a girl's or a boy's name?
Aylan is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
Is Aylan a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Aylan currently ranks #33 in France. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.