Sullivan

Dark-eyed

boyIrish

How does Sullivan feel alongside your favorites? Talk through the sound, meaning and fit with your family.

Sullivan meaning & origin

Sullivan is listed in our catalog as a boy name. Its listed meaning is "Dark-eyed". Listed origin: Irish.

Pronunciation

SUL-i-van

Catalog phonetic spelling

Popularity

In 2024, Sullivan ranked #339 in US Social Security name records for male births. This is the latest verified year in our catalog, not a live ranking.

Nicknames

Sully

Sullivan popularity by year

US Social Security birth-name ranks. A smaller rank means more recorded births in the reported sex category.
Birth yearRank
2020#398
2021#372
2022#366
2023#358
2024#339

Source: Social Security Administration. US data is not a worldwide measure of usage. Missing years are not zero births.

Middle Name Ideas

  • Sullivan Kyle
  • Sullivan Jay
  • Sullivan Patrick

Famous Namesakes

  • Sullivan, a character in literature

Sources & notes

Meanings, origins, pronunciations, and namesakes are catalog entries that have not yet completed source-by-source editorial review. Nicknames and middle-name pairings are ideas to try, not usage statistics. We show birth-name ranks only when the record includes source-file provenance; missing data is not evidence of rarity.

The pronunciation button uses your device's speech voice, not a native-speaker recording.

Variants & Alternate Spellings of Sullivan

Turn a name you like into a shortlist.

Compare sound, try the full name aloud, and find the names you want to come back to.

Frequently Asked Questions About Sullivan

What does the name Sullivan mean?

Sullivan is listed in our catalog as a boy name. Its listed meaning is "Dark-eyed". Listed origin: Irish.

How do you pronounce Sullivan?

Our catalog's pronunciation guide is SUL-i-van. Pronunciation can vary by language and family.

How popular is the name Sullivan?

In 2024, Sullivan ranked #339 in US Social Security name records for male births. This is the latest verified year in our catalog, not a live ranking.

What nickname ideas could work for Sullivan?

Ideas to try include Sully. These are suggestions, not a measure of usage.

What middle names could work with Sullivan?

Try Sullivan Kyle, Sullivan Jay, Sullivan Patrick aloud with your surname. These pairings are subjective suggestions.

Still deciding on the perfect name?

Save Sullivan to your shortlist, swipe through thousands of names, and find the one you and your partner both love.

Discover more names