1. -an
a suffix with the general sense “of, pertaining to, having qualities of,” occurring orig. in adjectives borrowed from Latin and formed from nouns denoting places (
Roman; urban; ) or persons (; Augustan; ), now commonly forming adjectives and nouns denoting affiliation with a place or membership in a group (Chicagoan; crustacean; Episcopalian); attached to personal names, it may additionally mean “contemporary with” (Elizabethan) or “proponent of” (Freudian). The suffix -an1 also occurs in personal nouns denoting one who engages in, practices, or works with the referent of the base word (comedian; electrician; historian). See -ian for relative distribution with that suffix. Compare -arian , -ician .
2. -an
a suffix used in the names of organic chemical compounds, esp. polysaccharides:
pentosan; xanthan.
Etymology: (of uncert. orig.)
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Definitions of -an 
