Given name & surname
Gavan
“a little white falcon”
Gavan is a variant of Gavin. One Welsh interpretation is “a little white falcon.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Gavan is a variant of Gavin. One Welsh interpretation is “a little white falcon.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Gavan is a variant of Gavin. A possible origin is Celtic, although the derivation remains uncertain.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1970. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Gavan is a variant of Gavin. The history of Gavin gives this family its wider story. Gavin’s literary history includes the stories of King Arthur and his knights.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Gavan through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 987
- 987 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2003
- 80 babies
- 2025
- 5
- #12,657 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −55%
- Cooling
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 5 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 12,657 among boys’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Its largest published annual count for boys was 80 in 2003. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 979 as a first name in 2020; 373 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 2
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
People named Gavan
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Gavan, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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