Ichabod was the son of Phinehas, who was the son of Eli, Israel’s chief priest. So, Ichabod was born into one of the greatest families in Israel. However, he was born at a terrible time in Israel’s history.
Like many boys in Israel at that time, Ichabod never knew his father. Ichabod’s father died on the day that Ichabod was born, in the battle against Philistia’s army. In that series of two battles, 34,000 men from Israel died. Many families lost their fathers during those battles.
Ichabod never knew his mother either. When the news came of his father’s death, she began to give birth suddenly. Ichabod was born alive, but his mother died.
We do not know who brought up Ichabod. Perhaps it was his older brother, Ahijah. Ahijah appears in 1 Samuel 14:3, when he was carrying out some of the duties of a chief priest.
Even Shiloh, Ichabod’s town and Israel’s most holy place, did not last long. In 1 Samuel chapter 21, the priests were carrying out their duties at another town, called Nob.
Ichabod’s name would always remind him of the terrible events that happened at the time of his birth. It means ‘no glory’, in other words ‘no greatness’. Nothing seemed great or good in Israel still. His mother chose that name for him when she heard about the deaths of Ichabod’s father and grandfather. However, she chose it because a much worse thing had happened in Israel on that day. Israel’s enemy had taken away the ark, or box, which acted as evidence of Israel’s relationship with God. She said, ‘The glory has left Israel.’ She did not merely mean that Israel was no longer a great nation. By the word ‘glory’, she meant God himself. God had left Israel; and without God’s kindness, there is no hope for anyone. 1 Samuel 4:19-22.
 
The sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas sins what that were behaving wickedly, for example by taking for themselves all the prime cuts of meat from sacrifices, and by committing adultery with the women who serve at the sanctuary entrance. In the biblical narrative, Hophni and Phinehas are criticized for engaging in illicit behavior, such as appropriating the best portion of sacrifices for themselves, and having sexual relations with the sanctuary’s serving women.
Source: http://www.usefulbible.com/1samuel/ichabod.htm