boy's name
Eoin
OH-in
- Origin Irish
- Gender Boy
- Letters 4
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 20,011
Northern Ireland
#72
2024 births
Eoin is a boy's name of Hebrew origin meaning "God is gracious," the older of Irish's two forms of John, taken directly from Latin rather than through Norman French. It ranks 72nd in Northern Ireland and 106th in Ireland.
- Eoin is a name of Irish origin.
- Peaked in Ireland in 2004, when 429 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade in Ireland.
- Today about 1 in 846 babies in Ireland is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1964.
Eoin over time
Births per decade in Ireland, 1960s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1960s | 384 |
| 1970s | 1,530 |
| 1980s | 3,291 |
| 1990s | 3,387 |
| 2000s | 3,622 |
| 2010s | 1,779 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 428 |
What Eoin means
Eoin means God is gracious. The sense is the Hebrew original's: Yohanan joins a form of the divine name to a root meaning to show favor, and every European descendant of it carries that reading unchanged.
Where Eoin comes from
Eoin is the older of Irish's two forms of John, borrowed straight from the Latin Ioannes when Latin arrived with Christianity, several centuries before Seán came in from the Norman French Jehan. Both mean the same thing and both are in use, but Irish convention distinguishes them: Eoin is used for the biblical figures — Eoin Baiste is John the Baptist, and the Gospel is Soiscéal Eoin — while Seán is the general-purpose form. Owen is often given as an equivalent, and that is wrong twice over: the Welsh Owain is a separate Brittonic name of disputed derivation, and the Irish Eoghan, which anglicizes to Owen, is also distinct, usually read as born of the yew. The three are frequently conflated, including in official records.
Eoin in use
Eoin ranks 72nd in Northern Ireland with 34 births in 2024 and 106th in Ireland, so the North uses it more heavily relative to its size. Our records mark it stable with a peak in 2020 and carry it from 1971. It has little life abroad: 1,201st in England and Wales, 2,804th in the United States, where the spelling defeats most readers.
How popular is Eoin?
In 2025, Eoin was given to 53 babies in Ireland, ranking #106 that year. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Eoin is used
Irish figures withhold any name given to fewer than three babies in a year, so a gap means the name fell below that floor rather than went unused. The Central Statistics Office began recording the síneadh fada in 2018, so accented and unaccented spellings are counted separately from that year on. Data & sources.
How Eoin is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Eóin | Eóin is a rare spelling of Eoin, written with a fada and recorded 44 times, mostly in Ireland. | 44 |
| Eoín | Eoín is a rare spelling of Eoin, written with a fada and recorded 3 times, mostly in Ireland. | 3 |
Names that peaked alongside Eoin
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Eoin also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Eoin over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Eoin 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.
Sibling names for Eoin
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Eoin — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Eoin
What does the name Eoin mean?
Eoin means "God is gracious," inherited from the Hebrew Yohanan through John.
What is the difference between Eoin and Sean?
Both mean John. Eoin came directly from Latin and is used for the biblical Johns; Seán came later through Norman French.
Is Eoin the same as Eoghan?
No. Eoghan is a separate Irish name, usually read as born of the yew, and anglicizes to Owen.
How do you pronounce Eoin?
OH-in, close to the English Owen but with the stress and vowel slightly different.
How popular is the name Eoin?
In 2025, Eoin was given to 53 babies in Ireland, ranking #106 that year. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Is Eoin a girl's or a boy's name?
Eoin is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
When was Eoin most popular?
Eoin peaked in 2004, when 429 babies were given the name. It has been falling over the past decade.
Is Eoin a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Eoin currently ranks #72 in Ireland. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.