Birk vs Samuel
Birk and Samuelcompared 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 2025, Birk was ranked #18 and Samuel #75 among boys in Norway.
Birk and Samuel over time
Birk and Samuel appear together in 1 published list, across 35 years of shared records. Samuel held the stronger position in more years in 1 of them, Birk in 0.
The order between them changed and held in one of those lists — a change in that published list, never a claim that one name displaced the other.
Samuel reached its own highest recorded position earlier in 1 of those lists, and Birk 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.
- One took the other's place near the top
In Norway · Boys, Birk moved into the top 50 at #36 in 2022 as Samuel fell out of it to #53, having been #48 the year before.
- One moved ahead of the other
In 2022, Birk moved ahead of Samuel in Norway · Boys — #70 and #48 the year before became #36 and #53.
- Closest over the longest run
Across 35 shared years in Norway · Boys, Birk and Samuel averaged 56.0 places apart, ending at #18 and #75.
- Longest-running competitions
Birk and Samuel were both ranked in Norway · Boys for 35 years, from 1990 to 2025, ending at #18 and #75.
List by list
Norway · Boys35 shared years, 1990–2025
Birk held the stronger position in 8 of those years, Samuel in 27.
Highest recorded here: Birk #18 in 2025, Samuel #44 in 2019.
The order changed in 2022: Birk moved ahead. In 2021 they stood at #70 and #48; by 2022 that had become #36 and #53.
Most recent shared year, 2025: Birk #18, Samuel #75.
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 | Birk | Samuel |
|---|---|---|
| Record type | Official statistical record (evidence-only) | Editorially researched profile |
| Gender usage | male | male |
| Meaning | Not yet recorded | Traditionally rendered as 'name of God', though also popularly interpreted as 'God has heard' — sources differ on which root is emphasised. |
| Origin | Not yet recorded | Biblical Hebrew, via Greek Samouel |
| Pronunciation | Not yet recorded | /ˈsæmjuːəl/ |
| Syllables | 1 | 2 |
| 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 #18 (2025) | New South Wales, Australia · Boys #38 (2025) |
| Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score) | Not yet recorded | 90/100 |
| Spelling simplicity (demonstration score) | 95/100 | 88/100 |
| International familiarity (demonstration score) | 40/100 | 100/100 |
| Data Confidence | medium | medium |
What the data shows
- Samuel has a recorded origin (Biblical Hebrew, via Greek Samouel); Birk does not have one recorded yet.
- Birk has 1 syllable, compared with 2 for Samuel.
- A meaning is recorded for Samuel; Birk doesn't have one written yet.
- Both names have recorded usage in NO.
How each name got here
Birk
Popularity journey
First recorded1990
First recorded at #562 among boys in Norway in 1990 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Boys
Highest recorded1990–2025
Highest recorded position: #18 among boys in Norway, in 2025 (recorded 1990–2025).
Norway · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #18 among boys in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Boys
Samuel
Popularity journey
First recorded1946
First recorded at #339 among boys in Norway in 1946 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Boys
Highest recorded1967–2023
Highest recorded position: #3 among boys in New Zealand, in 1998 (recorded 1967–2023).
New Zealand · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #38 among boys in New South Wales, Australia, in 2025.
New South Wales, Australia · Boys