Ronan is an Irish name, a diminutive of rón, and means "little seal". Several early Irish saints bore the name, and Irish legend tells of selkies, seals that shed their skins to become human, which gives the name a touch of folklore. Ronan has been in the US top 1000 since 2001 and has risen steadily from number 1013 in 2000 to number 247 among boys' names in 2025, its best rank yet.