boy's name
Faolan
FWAY-lan
- Origin Irish
- Gender Boy
- Letters 6
- Popularity Rare
- Births on record 639
Northern Ireland
#117
2024 births
Faolan is a boy's name of Irish origin meaning "little wolf," from faol — the word for the wild animal specifically, not the hound. It ranks 117th in Northern Ireland, is rising, and our records carry it only from 2006.
- Faolan is a name of Irish origin.
- Peaked in 2023, when 23 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 368,460 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 2006.
Faolan over time
Births per decade in Ireland, 1990s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2010s, still in progress — it covers 2010 to 2017, not a full ten years. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2017, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1990s | 14 |
| 2000s | 27 |
| 2010s (to 2017) | 101 |
| 2020s (to 2017) | 123 |
What Faolan means
Faolan means little wolf, from the Irish faol, a wolf, with a diminutive ending. Unlike cú, which covered both hounds and wolves, faol means the wild animal specifically, so the reading is unambiguous.
Where Faolan comes from
Faolan anglicizes the Irish Faolán, from faol, a wolf, with the diminutive -án. It is the source of the surname Whelan and of Phelan, both by way of Ó Faoláin. Several early saints carried it, including Saint Faolán of Rathkeale, a seventh-century Irish missionary who worked in Scotland and gave his name to Strathfillan in Perthshire — Fillan being the Scottish form. The wolf was extinct in Ireland by the eighteenth century, hunted out, but it is heavily present in early Irish naming: Faolán, Conall and Conán all point at it. The name was effectively dormant for centuries and its current use is part of the same Irish-language revival that lifted Odhrán, Ruadhán and Iarlaith.
Faolan in use
Faolan ranks 117th in Northern Ireland with 19 births in 2024 and 171st in Ireland, and it is rising in our data with a peak in 2023. Our records carry it only from 2006, which makes it one of the newest names in either top 200. Outside the island it barely registers at 2,232nd in England and Wales.
How popular is Faolan?
In 2025, Faolan was given to 9 babies in the United States. It is a rare choice.
Where Faolan is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
How Faolan is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Faolán | Faolán is Faolan written with a fada, used in Ireland, where it ranks #171. | 146 |
Names that peaked alongside Faolan
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Faolan also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Faolan over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Faolan 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 Faolan
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Faolan — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Faolan
What does the name Faolan mean?
Faolan means "little wolf," from the Irish faol with a diminutive ending.
How do you pronounce Faolan?
FWAY-lan, two syllables.
Is Whelan related?
Yes — Whelan and Phelan both come from Ó Faoláin, descendant of Faolán.
How popular is Faolan?
117th in Northern Ireland and 171st in Ireland.
Is Faolan a girl's or a boy's name?
Faolan is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
Is Faolan a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Faolan currently ranks #117 in the United States. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.