The first name Sean
A boy’s name from Irish meaning “god is gracious”.
Pronounced /ʃɔn/ 1 syllable Male
Meaning and origin
Irish origin
Sean means “god is gracious” in Irish.
Anglicised form of Irish Seán, from Old French Jehan, from Latin Johannes, variant of Ioannes, from Koine Greek Ἰωάννης (Iōánnēs), from Hebrew יוֹחָנָן (Yōḥānān, literally “God is gracious”). Doublet of John, Jack, Johan, Johann, Johannes, Jean, Ian, Evan, Ivan, Shaun, Shane, and Giovanni.
More names that mean grace.
From Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Popularity
Babies registered in England and Wales, 1996–2025
In 2025, 61 boys were named Sean, making it the 615th most popular boys’ name. It peaked in 1996, with 1,594 births (#49).
Office for National Statistics; years with fewer than three births are not published and show as zero. Compare Sean with other names.
Popularity in the United States
Babies named Sean at birth, 1880–2025
In 2025, 616 boys born in the United States were named Sean, the 489th most popular boys’ name that year. It was used most in 1990, when 12,018 were.
US Social Security Administration, from applications for a Social Security card. A name is only published for a year when at least five babies were given it, so quieter years show as zero.
Sean in other languages
Equivalent forms of the name, from Wiktionary
Nicknames and spellings
Famous people named Sean
179 on Wikidata, most written-about first
- Sean PennAmerican actor, born 1960
- Sean CombsDiddy touched me, born 1969
- Sean BeanBritish actor (born 1959)
- Sean AstinAmerican actor (born 1971)
- Robert Sean LeonardAmerican actor, born 1969
- Sean HayesAmerican actor (born 1970)
- Sean YoungAmerican actress, born 1959
- Sean LennonAmerican composer and musician, son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, born 1975
- Sean BakerAmerican film director, born 1971
- Sean HannityAmerican television host and political commentator (born 1961)
- Sean ParkerAmerican entrepreneur, programmer and philanthropist, born 1979
- Sean DycheEnglish football player and manager, born 1971
More Irish boys’ names
Questions
- What does the name Sean mean?
- Sean means “god is gracious” in Irish.
- What is the origin of the name Sean?
- Anglicised form of Irish Seán, from Old French Jehan, from Latin Johannes, variant of Ioannes, from Koine Greek Ἰωάννης (Iōánnēs), from Hebrew יוֹחָנָן (Yōḥānān, literally “God is gracious”). Doublet of John, Jack, Johan, Johann, Johannes, Jean, Ian, Evan, Ivan, Shaun, Shane, and Giovanni.
- How popular is the name Sean?
- In 2025, 61 boys born in England and Wales were named Sean, ranking 615th. Its peak was 1996, with 1,594 births.
- Is Sean a boy's or a girl's name?
- Mostly a boy's name: 99% of the 426,606 US babies named Sean since 1880 were boys.
- When was Sean most popular?
- 1990 in the United States, when 12,018 babies were named Sean, its highest rank at 37th.
- How do you pronounce Sean?
- Sean is /ʃɔn/, one syllable.
- What are other spellings of Sean?
- Shaun, Shawn, Shohn, Shon and Shone.