UK boy's name
Ethan
A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "enduring, firm, strong".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Ethan is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Ethan popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #48, with 1,086 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2011, with 4,581 births.
This profile covers 77,394 England and Wales registrations across 29 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
The latest count is about 24% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 86,040 living people in the UK are called Ethan. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Ethan ranked #48 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 1,086 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2011, when 4,581 boys were registered as Ethan.
- • Ethan ranks best in North East in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #1 in 2012.
- • About 86,040 living people in the UK are estimated to have Ethan as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#48
2024
Births in 2024
1,086
Latest year
Peak year
2011
4,581 births
Estimated living
86,040
2026
Meaning
What does Ethan mean?
The name Ethan is derived from the Hebrew name Etan, which means "firm", "enduring", or "strong". It is believed to have originated in ancient Israel, and the name can be traced back to biblical times.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ethan appears in the Bible, in the First Book of Kings. Ethan the Ezrahite is mentioned as being one of the wisest men of his time, along with Heman, Chalcol, and Darda.
In the Bible's Book of Chronicles, Ethan is also listed as a musician and singer who played the cymbal during the time of King David. This suggests that the name was in use as early as the 10th century BCE.
The name Ethan gained popularity among Jews and later spread to other cultures and languages. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name outside of the Hebrew Bible is Ethan Allen, an American Revolutionary War patriot and leader of the Green Mountain Boys. He was born in 1738 and played a crucial role in the capture of Fort Ticonderoga from the British in 1775.
Another notable figure named Ethan was Ethan A. Hitchcock, an American Army officer who served in the Mexican-American War and the American Civil War. He was born in 1798 and is remembered for his efforts in reforming the military's medical services.
In the literary world, Ethan Frome is the titular character of Edith Wharton's 1911 novel, which explores the themes of isolation, fatality, and the consequences of repressed desires. The novel's protagonist, Ethan Frome, is a farmer living in a fictional town in Massachusetts.
Ethan Allen, the American Revolutionary War patriot and leader, was born in 1737 and died in 1789. Ethan A. Hitchcock, the American Army officer, was born in 1798 and died in 1870. While Ethan Frome is a fictional character, the novel by Edith Wharton was published in 1911.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Ethan over time
The chart below shows babies named Ethan registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Ethan, the clearest high point is 2011. The latest England and Wales figure is 1,086 births in 2024, compared with 4,581 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ethan by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Ethan was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | #43 | 6,404 | 5 |
| 2010s | #19 | 31,462 | 10 |
| 2000s | #18 | 34,550 | 10 |
| 1990s | #60 | 4,978 | 4 |
Geography
Where Ethan is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Ethan. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.
Ethan ranks best in North East in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #1 in 2012.
Across the UK
Ethan in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#54 in 2024
36 years of NRS records, 5,468 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#57 in 2024
28 years of NISRA records, 3,818 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Ethan
-
Ethan Nwaneri
association football player
English association football player (born 2007)
2007-
-
Ethan Wheatley
association football player
English association football player
2006-
-
Ethan Hardin
association football player
American soccer player
2003-
-
Ethan Johnston
association football player
English association football player
2002-
-
Ethan Walker
association football player
English association football player (born 2002)
2002-
-
Ethan Wiltshire
athletics competitor
British athletics
2002-
-
Ethan Laird
association football player
English association footballer
2001-
-
Ethan van Leeuwen
badminton player
badminton player
2001-
Related
Names similar to Ethan
- Edward 53,212
- Elliot 23,450
- Elijah 22,369
- Ellis 19,358
- Elliott 16,964
- Evan 14,535
- Ezra 11,838
- Ewan 10,685
- Eli 8,126
- Elias 7,049
- Eric 6,654
- Emmanuel 5,491
FAQ
Ethan: questions and answers
How popular is the name Ethan in the UK right now?
In 2024, Ethan was ranked #48 for boys in England and Wales, with 1,086 births registered.
When was Ethan most popular?
The peak year on record was 2011, with 4,581 babies registered as Ethan in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Ethan?
A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "enduring, firm, strong".
How many people are called Ethan in the UK?
A total of 77,394 babies have been registered as Ethan across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 5,468 more in Scotland and 3,818 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Ethan most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Ethan ranks best in North East, where it placed #1 in 2012. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.