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Lucan

lucan
Knights of the Round Table


Lucan (LUU-kahn) is a boy's baby name from Arthurian legend. Sir Lucan was a Knight of the Round Table, son of Duke Corneus, brother of Sir Bedivere and cousin of Sir Griflet. He was in charge of the royal court as part of his duties in Camelot. In these stories, Lucan stays by Arthur's side until the very end of their lives, and he was consider endlessly loyal and reliable. Ironically, Arthur Lucan was an English actor (1885 - 1954).

Another namesake was known as Lucan in English, but his full name was Marcus Annaeus Lucanus, grandson of Seneca the Elder. In Latin, Lucan is simply a version of Luke and Lucas, from the Roman cognomen Lucanus. Lucanus means "from Lucania," an ancient Roman city, the name of which derived from Greek loukas, meaning "white," cognate with the Latin word lux, meaning "light." Lucania itself has been used a few times as a girl's baby name, as have the personal names Lucano and Lucana. These names are, of course, related to Lucius, Lucian, Lucia, Luciana, Luca, Luce, Lucy, Lucille, Lucinda, Luzia, Luken and Lucio.

The Earl of Lucan is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. Lucan is also a town in Dublin. There was also a TV series and a movie, both titled "Lucan."

Lucan is a very rare name, only given to 15 boys in 2016, which is a slightly lower amount than the previous few years, but a normal amount in all. It's only been used since about 1977 in the U.S. Lucanus was used in 1977 as well, but never seen again. Lucas took off just before 1980 and sits pretty at #14 right now, while Luca is #151 for boys and Lucca #683. Lucia is extremely popular as well at #213, and Lucille is #284, while Luciana is a modest #434. Lux, Lucien, Lucana, Lucano, Luzia, Luken, Lucio, Lucinda, Lucius and Luce do not rank or have not in decades. Luciano is #512, Lucian #626.
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