Ethan means…

strong
optimistic
solid
enduring
permanent

The name Ethan appears eight times in the Hebrew Bible. Ethan the Ezrahite, is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. It may be that Ethan was a cymbal-player in King David’s court. He authored Psalm 89. Charles Spurgeon theorized that this was the same person as Jeduthun. Ethan was the 4th most popular boy’s name in the US in 2006, and was ranked 19th in the UK.