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Elan

♂ Boy

Pronounced EH-lan /ˈɛ.lan/Medium

Meaning: Tree.Medium

In 30 seconds: Elan is a Hebrew name meaning 'tree' — a short, grounded nature word used as a given name.

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Origin MediumHebrew

MeaningTree.

U.S. rank (2025)#2490 ↗ Rising

2025 U.S. births54 boys (0.00% of U.S. boys)

Peak year2011

Total births (all-time)≈ 3,532

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

From Hebrew, Elan means simply 'tree,' placing it among nature-rooted Hebrew names. The meaning is concrete and unembellished: the tree itself, with its associations of growth and rootedness. It is a brief, two-syllable name that wears its meaning directly.

The clean vowel-heavy sound makes it easy to say across languages, and the spelling stays close to its Hebrew form. It happens to look like the French word élan, though the Hebrew 'tree' meaning is unrelated to that resemblance.

Did you know? The meaning usually attached to Elan is 'torch', and that core idea is what gives the name most of its long-term appeal.

Overall data confidence 70%

Behind the Name - Elan — etymology, usage, pronunciation, and related formsU.S. Social Security Administration — 2024 popularity rank and count supplied in the batch input CSVEtymology — Elan — meaning/etymology

Variations

E Lan

Nicknames

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Famous Bearers

★Elan Mastai
Canadian screenwriter and novelist, writer on the TV series This Is Us

If you like Elan…

Ilan— a common alternate spelling of the same Hebrew word for tree

Eitan— another short Hebrew boys' name with a single grounded meaning

Eythan— lands in the same popularity range

Evan— lands in the same popularity range

Eydan— a fellow Hebrew choice

Explore names like Elan

By themechinese

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Elan mean?

Elan is usually explained as meaning 'torch' and is most often linked with Chinese tradition.

How do you pronounce Elan?

It's commonly said EH-lan /ˈɛ.lan/.

Is Elan a boy or girl name?

In this batch and in recent U.S. usage data, Elan is used as a boy name.

How popular is Elan?

In 2024, Elan ranked #2636 in the U.S. for boys, with 50 births recorded.