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Dylan

Boy / Girl name · 8,147 babies recorded · 1974–2025

Dylan: 8,147 babies born in Scotland since 1974, given to both boys and girls, peaking at 451 births in 2001.

Of Welsh origin, Dylan means "son of the sea" or "born from the ocean," drawn from the ancient elements *dy* (great) and *llanw* (flood or flow). In Welsh mythology, Dylan ail Ton—Dylan, son of the Wave—was a sea deity slain by his uncle, whose death caused the waters to lament. The name soared far beyond Wales thanks to the poet Dylan Thomas, whose lyrical masterpiece *Under Milk Wood* made the name synonymous with Celtic creativity. Bob Dylan (born Robert Zimmerman) adopted it as his stage surname, further cementing its cultural cachet. It shares a linguistic root with the River Dee and several places called "Dylan" or similar across the Celtic world, though no major town bears it directly. The variant Dillon is sometimes used in Ireland.