| Aiden | Connor | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Little fire | lover of hounds/wolves (disputed) |
| Origin | Irish | irish |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | AY-den | KON-er |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1970 | 1913 |
| Peak year | 2009 (16,030) | 2004 (10,049) |
| In 2025 | 5,046 | 2,211 |
| Trend | Declining | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Aiden | Connor |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 42,793 | 19,074 |
| 2010s | 129,675 | 68,270 |
| 2000s | 83,554 | 85,985 |
| 1990s | 1,642 | 57,391 |
| 1980s | 76 | 3,319 |
| 1970s | 25 | 233 |
| 1960s | 0 | 84 |
| 1950s | 0 | 39 |
| 1940s | 0 | 50 |
| 1930s | 0 | 23 |
| 1920s | 0 | 47 |
| 1910s | 0 | 31 |
Aiden (Aidan) is from the Irish Aodhán, a diminutive of Aodh, the name of a Celtic sun and fire god — hence the sense “little fire.”
From the Old Irish Conchobar, usually read as 'con' ('hound', sometimes extended to 'wolf') plus 'cobar' ('desiring'), hence 'lover of hounds' or 'wolf-lover'. The wolf sense is secondary to 'hound' and the early elements are debated, so the wolf connection is DISPUTED and flagged.
Aiden is more popular than Connor today: about 5,046 US babies were given the name Aiden in 2025, compared with 2,211 named Connor.
Aiden means Little fire (Irish origin), while Connor means lover of hounds/wolves (disputed) (irish origin).
In US records, Aiden first appears in 1970 and Connor in 1913, so Connor has the longer recorded history.