Are vs Paul
Are and Paulcompared on official birth-registration statistics and Namewise's recorded data. This page states what each name's record shows — it never picks a winner or scores one name against the other.
Head to head
Ranks are only compared within one published list and one year. Two ranks from different years, from a boys' and a girls' list, or from different registrars are not comparable, so they are not placed side by side.
Norway · Boys
In 2022, Are was ranked #463 and Paul #393 among boys in Norway.
Are and Paul over time
Are and Paul appear together in 1 published list, across 77 years of shared records. Paul held the stronger position in more years in 1 of them, Are in 0.
In none of those lists did their order change and stay changed.
Paul reached its own highest recorded position earlier in 1 of those lists, and Are in none. Each position is a place inside its own list, so this compares when they peaked and never how high.
Counted list by list. Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale in the same year, so those comparisons are real — but positions from different lists are not, so nothing here is combined into an overall standing.
How this pair is related
The relationship kinds these two qualify for, each under its own stated rule. Every one is drawn from a list they both appear in.
- Repeatedly exchanged positions
Are and Paul changed places 20 times in Norway · Boys between 1945 and 2022, ending at #463 and #393.
- Longest-running competitions
Are and Paul were both ranked in Norway · Boys for 77 years, from 1945 to 2022, ending at #463 and #393.
List by list
Norway · Boys77 shared years, 1945–2022
Are held the stronger position in 14 of those years, Paul in 63.
Highest recorded here: Are #103 in 1971, Paul #67 in 1946.
The order between them never changed and held in this list.
Most recent shared year, 2022: Are #463, Paul #393.
Two names moving past each other in a ranking is a fact about the ranking. Namewise does not claim one name displaced the other, that families chose between them, or that either influenced the other — none of that is in this data.
Side by side
| Field | Are | Paul |
|---|---|---|
| Record type | Official statistical record (evidence-only) | Editorially researched profile |
| Gender usage | male | male |
| Meaning | Not yet recorded | From the Roman name Paulus, meaning 'small' in Latin. Saint Paul, originally named Saul, converted to Christianity and became a key missionary figure, authoring several New Testament epistles. |
| Origin | Not yet recorded | Latin |
| Pronunciation | Not yet recorded | /ˈpɔːl/ |
| Syllables | 2 | 1 |
| Common variants / nicknames | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Recorded regional usage | NO | AU-NSW, GB-ENW, GB-NIR, GB-SCT, IE, NO, NZ |
| Most recent popularity observation | Norway · Boys #419 (2025) | Republic of Ireland · Boys #286 (2025) |
| Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score) | Not yet recorded | 90/100 |
| Spelling simplicity (demonstration score) | 95/100 | 95/100 |
| International familiarity (demonstration score) | 40/100 | 100/100 |
| Data Confidence | medium | medium |
What the data shows
- Paul has a recorded origin (Latin); Are does not have one recorded yet.
- Are has 2 syllables, compared with 1 for Paul.
- A meaning is recorded for Paul; Are doesn't have one written yet.
- Both names have recorded usage in NO.
How each name got here
Are
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #223 among boys in Norway in 1945 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Boys
Highest recorded1945–2025
Highest recorded position: #103 among boys in Norway, in 1971 (recorded 1945–2025).
Norway · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #419 among boys in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Boys
Paul
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #73 among boys in Norway in 1945 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Boys
Highest recorded1954–1998
Highest recorded position: #3 among boys in New Zealand, in 1965 (recorded 1954–1998).
New Zealand · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #286 among boys in Republic of Ireland, in 2025.
Republic of Ireland · Boys