Thirty years of Ethan
Ethan in numbers
Ethan peaked in 2011 with 4,581 boys and has fallen since, to 917 in 2025. Its biggest three-year rise came between 1999 and 2002, from 1,772 to 3,523. It ranked 92nd in 1996, reached 11th in 2011 and ranks 54th now. On average it was given to 1,245 boys a year in the late 1990s, 3,455 in the 2000s, 3,146 in the 2010s and 1,220 in the 2020s so far.
† Shapes, averages and turning points are Baby Data calculations from the ONS counts.
Similar spellings in the 2025 list†: Eithan (11), Ethen (4). Matched by their letters, not by meaning or origin. ONS counts each spelling separately, so these are not added to Ethan.
Milestones
First year in each bandChange
- On last year-16%1,086 to 917
- 5 years-37%1,454 to 917
- 10 years-69%2,940 to 917
- 20 years-74%3,528 to 917
- Since 1996+52%604 to 917
- Total, 1996 to 202578,311boys
† All changes and totals are Baby Data calculations from ONS counts. A total adds only the published years.
Across the three nations, 2025
Each from its own statistics office, never added togetherRank 54 · ONS · 1,086 in 2024
Rank 55 · NRS · 85 in 2024
Rank 32 · NISRA · 44 in 2024
England and Wales (ONS) count births in the calendar year; Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland (NISRA) count births registered in the year. Each comes from its own statistics office and they are never added together.
Year by year, 1996 to 2025 Show all 30 yearsHide the table
| Year | Rank | Babies | Change† | 1 in X† |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 54 | 917 | -16% | 1 in 328 |
| 2024 | 48 | 1,086 | -9% | 1 in 281 |
| 2023 | 47 | 1,198 | -6% | 1 in 253 |
| 2022 | =43 | 1,268 | -9% | 1 in 245 |
| 2021 | 43 | 1,398 | -4% | 1 in 229 |
| 2020 | 36 | 1,454 | -18% | 1 in 216 |
| 2019 | 30 | 1,770 | -16% | 1 in 186 |
| 2018 | 25 | 2,106 | -9% | 1 in 160 |
| 2017 | 26 | 2,323 | -15% | 1 in 150 |
| 2016 * | 19 | 2,722 | -7% | 1 in 131 |
| 2015 | 18 | 2,940 | -4% | 1 in 122 |
| 2014 | 18 | 3,061 | -14% | 1 in 117 |
| 2013 | 14 | 3,572 | -15% | 1 in 100 |
| 2012 | 13 | 4,221 | -8% | 1 in 89 |
| 2011 | 11 | 4,581 | +10% | 1 in 81 |
| 2010 | 13 | 4,166 | +12% | 1 in 89 |
| 2009 | 13 | 3,729 | +8% | 1 in 97 |
| 2008 | 15 | 3,451 | -3% | 1 in 105 |
| 2007 | 15 | 3,544 | +4% | 1 in 100 |
| 2006 | =18 | 3,400 | -4% | 1 in 101 |
| 2005 | 18 | 3,528 | -9% | 1 in 94 |
| 2004 | 13 | 3,864 | -2% | 1 in 85 |
| 2003 | 15 | 3,924 | +11% | 1 in 81 |
| 2002 | 18 | 3,523 | +10% | 1 in 87 |
| 2001 | 21 | 3,195 | +34% | 1 in 95 |
| 2000 | 32 | 2,392 | +35% | 1 in 129 |
| 1999 | 40 | 1,772 | +13% | 1 in 180 |
| 1998 | 47 | 1,565 | +51% | 1 in 208 |
| 1997 | 62 | 1,037 | +72% | 1 in 318 |
| 1996 | 92 | 604 | 1 in 552 |
* ONS’s boys’ 2016 file repeats the October total as September, so the 2016 births total is about 932 too low and 1 in X for 2016 is slightly too low. Rank follows ONS: names with the same count share a rank (shown with =). “Under 3” means the name was given to fewer than 3 babies that year, so ONS did not publish it.
Compare Ethan
Draws the second name on the chart above, on a shared scale.
Share and download
Ethan is in the free dataset (CSV and JSON), with the method and how to cite it.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0; National Records of Scotland; NISRA. Exact spellings are counted separately and names given to fewer than 3 babies are not published. Figures marked † are Baby Data calculations. How we calculate