Name of the Week: Cillian

 

Origin:

Cillian is an Anglicised form of the Irish name Cillín (earlier Cillíne, Cilléne) most likely derived from the Old Irish cell "a church, a cell."  In some cases, Cillian may also be an Anglicised form of Ceallachán, a diminutive of Ceallach (earlier Cellach). This, too, has been traditionally derived from cell "a church, a cell," but it is now considered to be a much older name, derived from the Old Irish cenn "head" and luach "bright, value, worth."

Usage:

One of the most notable saints to bear the name was an Irish missionary bishop in the 7th century. Legend has it that he left Ireland with eleven companions and travelled to Würzburg (modern northern Bavaria). There he converted the pagan Frankish Duke, Gozbert and many of local inhabitants but got into trouble when he objected to the Duke having married his brother's widow. Upon the outraged duchess's orders, he was beheaded and quickly became one of Germany's principle saints.  Across Europe, he is most commonly called Saint Kilian (or Killian), though the preferred spelling in Ireland itself is Cillian.  Thanks to the saint's prominence, Kilian can be found in Germany from at least the 16th century.  Usage in Ireland Both Cilléne/Cillíne and Cellach were borne by several early Irish saints, and both names are recorded in use several times in the 8th and 9th century in the Irish Annals.**  Both Cillian and Killian have had regular use in Ireland in the 20th century. By 1964, Killian ranked #204 with 5 births, intermittently rising gradually over the following decades. Killian reached the Irish top 100 at #98 in 1988 and remained in the top 100 until 2016 -- peaking at #55 (121 births) in 2001.  The spelling Cillian was later to catch on, not ranking until 1970, but it too, swiftly rose in popularity, reaching the top 100 for the first time in 1992 at #84. By 2003, Cillian took over as the dominant spelling when it ranked #60 and Killian ranked #67. Since then, Cillian has continued to rise, ranking in the top 30 since 2006.  Cillian's rise as the dominant spelling coincides with the career of Irish actor Cillian Murphy, whose Hollywood career began in 2002. He landed the lead role in 28 Days Later (2002) and starring in blockbuster films Batman Begins (2005), Red Eye (2005) and Inception (2010). Since 2013, he has played the lead role in the hugely successful BBC television series Peaky Blinders. In 2017, Cillian ranked #16 (302 births) and Killian ranked #106 (62 births) in Ireland. Usage in Britain  Despite it's common use in neighbouring Ireland, Cillian was little used in Britain until the 20th century – even in fellow Gaelic Scotland.  The spelling Kilian (like the saint) has some rare usage in England in the 19th century -- it was registered once in 1867, 1872 and 1875 -- but Cillian and Killian were not registered at all until 1965 and 1942 respectively.  In Scotland, Killian was used as a middle name once in 1869 but wasn't used again until 1925, and until 1955 as a first name. Cillian wasn't registered in Scotland as a first name until 1973.   Northern Ireland Unlike in Ireland where Killian and Cillian have been in good use since the 80s, Cillian's rise in neighbouring Northern Ireland directly coincides with Cillian Murphy's career. Both Cillian and Killian ranked below the top 150 in NI from 1997 until 2005. Killian has continued to do so, whereas Cillian started rising, reaching the top 100 at #79 (40 births) in 2007 and continuing to #15 (109 births) in 2017.  England and Wales Cillian and Killian have both seen rare in England and Wales from the 1970s onwards. From 1996 to 2006, both spellings ranked below the top 1000.  Cillian moved into the top 1000 in 2007 at #782 (34 births) As with the rest of Britain, Cillian's rise in usage matches Cillian Murphy's fame -- especially since the airing of the first series of Peaky Blinders in 2013.  In 2014, Cillian jumped up to #550 (66 births) and has been rising since. Killian moved up into the top 1000 for the first time in 2016 at #712 (48 births).  In 2017, Cillian ranked #324 (151 births) and Killian ranked #628 (57 births).   Scotland In Scotland, too, Cillian was in rare use up until the late 2000s. It was only registered once in 1983, 1992, 1995, 2000, 2004 and 2005. However, from 2006, it began to be used more regularly, reaching the top 500 in 2009. By 2014, Cillian ranked #276 (15 births) and continued to rise to #204 (25 births) in 2017.  World Wide Thanks to Saint Kilian, the name has had some usage across Europe. It has been particularly notable in recent years. In Germany, Kilian is a modern staple, having ranked in the top 100 since the turn of the century. In 2017, it ranked #75. Kilian has been in the Austrian top 100 since 2001, and currently ranks at #56. Similarly, in Switzerland, Kilian was a top 100 name from 1998-2004 and 2010-2017. It currently ranks at #77 in Catalonia, too.  In France, Killian was in the top 100 from 1997 to 2009, peaking at #43 in 2002 and 2003. It has since been superseded by the spelling Kylian (made famous by footballers Kylian Hazard and Kylian Mbappe) which entered the French top 100 in 2001, peaked at #41 in 2008 and 2009, and currently ranks at #73.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Killian K. Van Rensselaer (1763–1845), member of the United States House of Representatives. Contemporary: * Killian Brennan, Irish footballer. * Kílian Jornet Burgada, Spanish ski mountaineer, long-distance runner, mountain biker and duathlete. * Kylian Hazard, Belgian footballer * Kylian Mbappé, French footballer. * Cillian Murphy, Irish actor. * Cillian Sheridan, Irish professional footballer who plays for Kilmarnock. * Cillian Vallely, Irish musician. * Cillian Willis, Irish professional rugby union player. Literature and Other Media: * Captain Killian "Hook" Jones, a fictional character on the TV series Once Upon a Time.

Variants:

Kilian (German), Killian (Anglicised, French), Kylian (French)

Pronunciation:

KIL-ee-ən [key]

Possible diminutives:

Cilly, Kee, Keel, Lian, Lee

Sibling Names:

Maeve     Orla     Niamh     Cora     Farrah     Robyn  Conor     Shea     Ronan     Lorcan     Sullivan     Brodie

Name Lists:

N/A

 

If you like Cillian you may also like:   Cian, Faolan, Conall, Cormac, Fintan, Nolan, Caolan, Ciaran, Tiernan, Flynn

Thanks to Laura for requesting this name.