Names like Finnegan
Finnegan is a three-syllable Irish name that ends in -an. Each list below follows one of those threads on its own, so you can see exactly what the names share.
The same sound
Three syllables, ending the same way as Finnegan.
Finnian Irish · traditionally 'fair, white'; borne by early Irish saints
Donovan Irish · surname Ó Donndubháin, traditionally "dark chieftain"
Sullivan Irish · surname Ó Súilleabháin, traditionally "dark eyes"
Jonathan Hebrew · "Yahweh has given," from the Hebrew Yehonatan; in the Bible the prince whose loyalty to David defined friendship. A steady Anglo-American classic for three centuries that folds warmly to Jon and Johnny without being John
The same roots
Also Irish names, from the tradition Finnegan comes from.
Callahan Irish · Irish surname meaning 'descendant of Ceallachán', traditionally linked to 'strife' or 'bright-headed'
Killian Irish · little church, strife (Saint Killian)
Brian Irish · traditionally "noble, high," its old Celtic root debated; the name of Brian Boru, the high king who broke Viking power in Ireland, which kept it beloved there for a millennium. A mid-century American everyman that still reads friendly and honest
Sean Irish · "Yahweh is gracious," John come home to Ireland through the Norman French Jehan; anglicized without its accent mark, it became a mid-century Irish-American signature and spun off the phonetic Shawn and Shaun
The same feel
Also classic and literary names.
Oliver Latin · traditionally "olive tree," from the Old French Olivier, though scholars suspect a Norse or Germanic name beneath the Latin polish; a knight of the oldest French epics and a Dickens hero, lately the top boys' name across much of the English-speaking world
Dorian Greek · referring to the Dorians, an ancient Greek people; popularized by Oscar Wilde's 'The Picture of Dorian Gray'
Lucien French · French form of Lucius/Lucianus, from Latin 'lux' meaning light
Lucian Latin · from Lucianus, derived from 'lux' meaning 'light'
Names of the same moment
Each of these is at its highest in the 2020s, the same decade as Finnegan, on a similar curve.
Nolan Irish · descendant of a champion
Declan Irish · meaning uncertain; the Irish form Deaglán probably begins with dag, "good"
Cassian Latin · meaning uncertain, from the Roman family name Cassius (possibly 'empty' or 'vain')
Caspian Persian · from the Caspian Sea, named for an ancient people near the Caucasus; popularized by C.S. Lewis
Which of these fits YOUR family? →