Bradan: Meaning, Pronunciation and Origin
Bradan is an Irish boy's name meaning “salmon.” Here’s how to say it, where it comes from, and names that go well with it.
Updated September 2026
- Irish spelling
- Bradán
- Meaning
- Salmon
- Gender
- Boy
- English forms
- Braden
How do you pronounce Bradan?
Bradan is pronounced BRAY-dawn. It has two syllables, with the stress on the first.
What does Bradan mean?
Bradan comes from the Irish word bradán, “salmon.” The salmon has a special place in Irish myth. In the Fenian Cycle, the poet Finnegas spent seven years fishing for the bradán feasa, the Salmon of Knowledge, which had gained all the world’s wisdom by eating hazelnuts from the Well of Wisdom. The young Fionn mac Cumhaill (Finn MacCool) burned his thumb while cooking it, sucked the thumb and gained that wisdom.
Bradán was also an early Irish personal name, which Patrick Woulfe explained as a diminutive of brádach, “spirited,” as well as the word for salmon. It gave the surname Ó Bradáin, anglicized as Bradan, Bradden and, by translation, Salmon. The American name Braden comes from the same surname.
Sources: Ó Dónaill's Irish dictionary (teanglann.ie), Wikipedia, Woulfe, Irish Names and Surnames (1923), Behind the Name.
How popular is Bradan in Ireland?
Bradan wasn't in the 2025 tables, which list names given to at least three babies. It was last recorded in 2021, when 3 baby boys got the name. It was most popular in 2015, when 7 baby boys were named Bradan, No. 459 that year. It first appears in the records in 2011, with 6 baby boys.
See the numbers by year
| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 3 | No. 755 (Bradán) |
| 2020 | 4 | No. 637 (Bradán) |
| 2019 | 4 | No. 646 (Bradán) |
| 2018 | 3 | No. 749 (Bradán) |
| 2015 | 7 | No. 459 (Bradan) |
| 2014 | 5 | No. 550 (Bradan) |
| 2013 | 6 | No. 479 (Bradan) |
| 2012 | 5 | No. 548 (Bradan) |
| 2011 | 6 | No. 490 (Bradan) |
Bradan in Ogham
Ogham is the oldest way of writing Irish. It was carved along the edges of standing stones, mostly between the 4th and 6th centuries, and read from the bottom up. In later tradition each letter was named after a tree or plant. Here’s Bradan, letter by letter.
- BBeith, birch
- RRuis, elder
- AAilm, pine
- DDair, oak
- AAilm, pine
- NNion, ash
Write any name in Ogham with our Ogham translator
Names that go with Bradan
Questions about Bradan
- How do you pronounce Bradan?
- Bradan is pronounced BRAY-dawn. Two syllables, stress on the first.
- What does Bradan mean?
- Bradan means “salmon.”
- Is Bradan a girl's name or a boy's name?
- Bradan is a boy's name.
- How do you spell Bradan in Irish?
- In Irish it's spelled Bradán. That's the spelling most parents in Ireland now register, according to the Central Statistics Office.
- What is Bradan in English?
- The English form of Bradan is Braden.