boy's name
Fionn
FYUN
- Origin Irish
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 1
- Letters 5
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 10,375
Ireland
#6
2025 births
Fionn is a boy's name of Irish origin meaning "fair" or "white," and by extension bright or blessed. It belongs to Fionn mac Cumhaill, the greatest hero of the Fenian cycle, and ranked sixth in Ireland in 2025 with 321 births.
- Fionn is a name of Irish origin.
- Peaked in Ireland in 2020, when 353 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade in Ireland.
- Today about 1 in 140 babies in Ireland is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1971.
Fionn over time
Births per decade in Ireland, 1970s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1970s | 24 |
| 1980s | 98 |
| 1990s | 362 |
| 2000s | 1,670 |
| 2010s | 2,962 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 1,942 |
What Fionn means
Fionn means fair, white or bright. The word describes fair coloring in the first place, but it carries a secondary sense of brightness and blessedness that Irish poetry uses freely, so the name reads as much as radiant as blond.
Where Fionn comes from
Fionn comes from the Old Irish find, fair or white, from a Celtic root that also gives the Welsh gwyn. Its bearer is Fionn mac Cumhaill, leader of the Fianna, whose stories make up the Fenian cycle — the salmon of knowledge, the building of the Giant's Causeway, the pursuit of Diarmuid and Gráinne. In the tale he is born Deimne and earns the name Fionn for his fair hair. Anglicized as Finn, the name became widely used across the English-speaking world in the twenty-first century, largely detached from its Irish source; Fionn is the Irish spelling and has remained far more strongly Irish in its distribution.
Fionn in use
Fionn ranked sixth in Ireland in 2025 with 321 births. The spelling is what marks its territory: it stands at 661 in England and Wales and 4,179 in the United States, where the anglicized Finn is common, so the Irish form has not traveled with the sound. Our Irish records carry Fionn from 1971 onward.
How popular is Fionn?
In 2025, Fionn was given to 321 babies in Ireland, ranking #6 that year. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Fionn 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 Fionn is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Fíonn | Fíonn is Fionn written with a fada, used in Ireland, where it ranks #287. | 141 |
Names that peaked alongside Fionn
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Fionn also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Fionn over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Fionn
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Fionn 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 Fionn
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Fionn — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Fionn
What does the name Fionn mean?
Fionn means "fair" or "white," and by extension bright or blessed.
Is Fionn the same as Finn?
Finn is the anglicized spelling of Fionn. The sound is close, but Fionn is the Irish form and stays much more strongly Irish in use.
Who was Fionn mac Cumhaill?
The leader of the Fianna and the central hero of the Fenian cycle, credited in legend with building the Giant's Causeway.
How do you pronounce Fionn?
FYUN, one syllable, rhyming roughly with the start of union.
How popular is the name Fionn?
In 2025, Fionn was given to 321 babies in Ireland, ranking #6 that year. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Is Fionn a girl's or a boy's name?
Fionn is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Fionn?
Fionn has 1 syllable.
When was Fionn most popular?
Fionn peaked in 2020, when 353 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
What are the nicknames for Fionn?
Fionn is usually shortened to Finn.
Is Fionn a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Fionn currently ranks #6 in Ireland. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.