Alan
AL-ən
Alan is a name associated with cheerfulness and, in some traditions, with the ancient Alani people.
Meaning
The excerpts point to two main explanations: a Celtic interpretation connected with "harmony" and "cheerful," and a French/Latin line of derivation from Old French alan or allan, originally the name for a hunting dog and linked by some writers to the Alani people. The evidence in the excerpts does not settle a single origin, so the name is best presented as having mixed etymologies.
Origin
CelticOld FrenchLatinmasculine
Fun fact
The related spelling Allan is noted as doubtless the same name as Alan in one of the excerpts.
Confidence: mixed. Sources: History of Christian Names, Praenomina; or, the etymology of the principal Christian names of Great Britain and Ireland.