Seán
Say it: SHAWN/ʃɑːnˠ/
BoyIrishMeans "God is gracious", as the Irish form of John4 letters1 syllable
#23
in Ireland (2025)
#13 with spellings combined
231
babies in 2025
#1
best rank (1997)
32,838
babies since 1964
Down 8
10-year rank change
Seán through the years
Compare with another name →Show the numbers
| Year | Babies (boys) | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 231 | #13 |
| 2024 | 275 | #10 |
| 2023 | 296 | #8 |
| 2022 | 307 | #10 |
| 2021 | 347 | #7 |
| 2020 | 355 | #6 |
| 2019 | 359 | #6 |
| 2018 | 440 | #5 |
| 2017 | 453 | #5 |
| 2016 | 501 | #5 |
| 2015 | 530 | #5 |
| 2014 | 526 | #5 |
| 2013 | 609 | #5 |
| 2012 | 677 | #4 |
| 2011 | 755 | #3 |
| 2010 | 827 | #2 |
| 2009 | 934 | #2 |
| 2008 | 970 | #2 |
| 2007 | 965 | #2 |
| 2006 | 994 | #1 |
| 2005 | 893 | #2 |
| 2004 | 928 | #1 |
| 2003 | 897 | #1 |
| 2002 | 866 | #2 |
| 2001 | 867 | #2 |
| 2000 | 816 | #2 |
| 1999 | 760 | #2 |
| 1998 | 662 | #2 |
| 1997 | 872 | #1 |
| 1996 | 804 | #2 |
| 1995 | 705 | #4 |
| 1994 | 628 | #7 |
| 1993 | 662 | #6 |
| 1992 | 729 | #5 |
| 1991 | 657 | #7 |
| 1990 | 620 | #10 |
| 1989 | 594 | #9 |
| 1988 | 560 | #11 |
| 1987 | 533 | #14 |
| 1986 | 519 | #16 |
| 1985 | 497 | #16 |
| 1984 | 476 | #15 |
| 1983 | 464 | #15 |
| 1982 | 443 | #22 |
| 1981 | 445 | #20 |
| 1980 | 370 | #28 |
| 1979 | 346 | #28 |
| 1978 | 275 | #34 |
| 1977 | 338 | #27 |
| 1976 | 282 | #34 |
| 1975 | 278 | #34 |
| 1974 | 327 | #30 |
| 1973 | 317 | #29 |
| 1972 | 274 | #33 |
| 1971 | 291 | #27 |
| 1970 | 259 | #31 |
| 1969 | 232 | #35 |
| 1968 | 211 | #37 |
| 1967 | 221 | #36 |
| 1966 | 235 | #33 |
| 1965 | 163 | #41 |
| 1964 | 171 | #38 |
Source: CSO, Irish Babies' Names (VSA50, VSA60), CC BY 4.0. Spellings with and without fadas are combined; the CSO only recorded fadas from 2018.
★ What does Seán mean?
"God is gracious", as the Irish form of John
Irish form of John, borrowed from Old French Jehan.
Say it right
SHAWN
The S before an e sounds like "sh", and the fada makes the "á" long, like "aw".
Not:SEENSEE-un
The story of Seán
Seán is the Irish form of John. It was borrowed from the Norman French Jehan, which goes back through Latin and Greek to the Hebrew Yohanan, meaning “God is gracious”. Eoin is an older Irish form of the same name. Older written forms of Seán include Seaán and Seaghán.
Seán has been one of Ireland’s leading boys’ names throughout the CSO records. Counting every spelling together, it was number 1 in 1997, 2003, 2004 and 2006, and 994 boys got the name in 2006, its biggest year.
The CSO lists Seán, Sean and other spellings as separate names. In 2025, 185 boys were registered as Seán and 38 as Sean, so Seán on its own ranked 23rd while all spellings together came 13th. It has never been as common in Northern Ireland, where its best was 13th, in 2001.
Say it differently where you're from, or spotted something wrong? Tell us.
Sources
- Wiktionary: Seán (Irish proper noun)
- Wikipedia: Sean
- CSO VSA50, Boys Names in Ireland with 3 or More Occurrences
- NISRA, First Forenames Given to Babies Registered in Northern Ireland
At a glance
Similar names
Sibling ideas
Spellings counted here
| Spelling | 2025 | All years |
|---|---|---|
| Seán | 185 | 1,998 |
| Sean | 38 | 30,691 |
| Séan | 4 | 142 |
| Seàn | 4 | 7 |
In Northern Ireland
#67 in 2025 with 35 babies. Best rank #13 (2001); 2,915 babies since 1997.
Source: NISRA, Open Government Licence.