Name of the Week

With its dashing, rugged and slightly rakish quality,
Flynn is a lovable rogue inspired by Hollywood.

 

Origin:

Flynn is the anglicised form of the Irish surname Ó Floinn meaning "decendant of Flann." Flann itself is a Old Irish name derived from flann "blood red, dark red, crimson." It was quite a popular early Irish name, borne by many notable men and even a few women. Several early saints answered to the name as well as High King Flann Sinna (d. 916) and renowned poet Flann mac Lonain (d.896). Notable women include Flann Sinna's grandaughter Flann ingen Donnchadha (d. 940), queen consort of Ailech.  Several other names contained the element flann including Flannagán, Flannán, Flannat and Flannacha. There are several websites that derive the meaning as "ruddy," i.e. a person with ruddy complexion. This is possible -- several other Celtic names such as Ciar and Rhys derive from description of complexions -- but most scholarly dictionaries are quite clear that the word is describes a very dark red colour, or a poetic term for blood, so "ruddy" smacks a little of a fanciful derivation to appease modern sensibilities.   Several Old Irish names are taken from colours, including Douglas (black + green), Dougal (black), Liadan (grey), Lachtna (milky-white/grey) and Donndubhán/Donovan (black + blue). We can only guess at the reasons why colours were chosen as inspiration for popular names and they most likely had a symbolic significance now lost to us.

Usage:

Like most surnames, Flynn's usage as a given name can be traced back to the 18th century. More common as a middle name derived from a family surname, Flynn was rare as a first name. For the most part, Flynn was confined to Ireland as a (rare) given name: the two male Flynns on the 1881 UK census, for example, were both born in Ireland. The first record in England and Wales as a first name is in 1894, followed by one in 1907. Curiously, it was not registered again as a first name until 1958, after which it came into uncommon but more regular use.  A notable bearer is Errol Flynn, Australian born Hollywood actor and screen icon in the 1930s and 1940s who epitomised the heroic swashbuckling heartthrob. One of his most notable roles was as Robin Hood in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938). Flynn has been in the top 100 of Australia since the 1990s, and, as Anna Otto points out, it is most popular in Errol Flynn's home state of Tasmania.  From 1960 to 1990, Flynn was still quite rare as a given name in Britain and quite evenly unisex. It picked up more regular use for boys at the end of the 1990s.  click to enlarge In 1996, Flynn ranked #755 with 20 births in England and Wales, breaking the top 300 in 2000. The name doubled in popularity from #264 (107 births) in 2002 to #177 (217 births) in 2003. This was most likely influenced by the character Flynn Saunders on popular soap Home and Away. Flynn plateaued for a while, then fell slightly to #289 (157 births) in 2010. It was at the end of that year, however, that Disney released Tangled. Their revived form of the classic Disney Princess genre features lead male character name Flynn Rider (Eugene Fitzherbert) which Disney used as an homage to Errol Flynn -- The character was originally going to be called Bastion. After the release of the film, Flynn jumped to #162 (352 births). That year also saw the birth of Flynn Bloom, the son of Orlando Bloom and Miranda Kerr, said to be named in honour of Orlando Bloom's grandmother Evelyn.  In 2013, Flynn ranked #153 (376 births) in England and Wales, and in 2014, Flynn ranked #127 (49 births) in Scotland, #153 (17 births) in Northern Ireland, #37 in Australia and #48 in New Zealand.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Errol Flynn (1909-1959), Australian-American Hollywood movie actor. * Flynn Robinson (1941–2013), American professional basketball player. Contemporary: * Flynn Bloom (b.2011), son of Orlando Bloom and Miranda Kerr. Literature and Other Media: * Flynn Rider, character from the animated film Tangled (2010). * Flynn Saunders, a character in Australian soap Home and Away from 2001 to 2006.

Variants:

Flinn, Flyn

Pronunciation:

FLIN [key]

Possible longer forms:

Franklin, Finlay, Felician, Flavian, Florian

Sibling Names:

Zara     Ava      Eden      Thea      Lyra      Mae       Max     Blake     Oscar     Zane      Rhys     Declan

Name Lists:

Lively Lads   Short and Sweet   Celtic Surnames   Golden Age Hollywood   Disney Names

 

If you like Flynn you may also like:    Fraser, Finn, Rowan, Tate, Milo, Quinn, Rio, Jude, Zack, Arlo

 

Thanks to Amelia for requesting this post.