Nolan

N1O1L1A1N1
UK/ˈnəʊlən/US/ˈnoʊlən/Australia/ˈnəʉlən/

proper noun

A surname from Irish.

OriginIrish Ó Nualláin →
Less commonScrabble 5
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Meanings

proper noun
  1. A surname from Irish.
    1 more example

    Recently, Christopher Nolan made an interesting admission: The most famous line from his fan-favorite Batman film, 2008’s The Dark Knight, wasn’t his creation and was a line that he initially didn’t quite get. Nolan said his brother, frequent collaborator and co-writer Jonathan came up with the prophetic line, “You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.”

    2024 March 29, James Hibberd, “Jonathan Nolan Explains the Origin of ‘The Dark Knight’s’ Most Famous Line”, in The Hollywood Reporter
  2. A male given name transferred from the surname.
  3. An unincorporated community in Nolan County, Texas, United States.
  4. An unincorporated community in Mingo County, West Virginia, United States.

Origin

  1. IrishÓ Nualláin
  2. EnglishNolan

Anglicized from Irish Ó Nualláin (literally “descendant of Nuallán”), diminutive of nuall (“chariot-fighter, champion”).

More words from Irish

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with Nolan

stolencolonswollenDolansolonBolanmesocolontetracolon
All rhymes →

Anagrams

nonalLonan
Cite this entry
APA

Nolan. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Nolan

MLA

“Nolan.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Nolan. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Nolan,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Nolan.

Source: Nolan on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.