Birte vs Margaret
Birte and Margaretcompared 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 · Girls
In 2001, Birte was ranked #479 and Margaret #599 among girls in Norway.
Birte and Margaret over time
Birte and Margaret appear together in 1 published list, across 45 years of shared records. Birte held the stronger position in more years in 1 of them, Margaret 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.
Margaret reached its own highest recorded position earlier in 1 of those lists, and Birte 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
Birte and Margaret changed places 11 times in Norway · Girls between 1946 and 2001, ending at #479 and #599.
- Longest-running competitions
Birte and Margaret were both ranked in Norway · Girls for 45 years, from 1946 to 2001, ending at #479 and #599.
List by list
Norway · Girls45 shared years, 1946–2001
Birte held the stronger position in 24 of those years, Margaret in 21.
Highest recorded here: Birte #171 in 1963, Margaret #108 in 1953.
The order changed in 1991: Birte moved ahead. In 1990 they stood at #593 and #529; by 1991 that had become #355 and #661.
Most recent shared year, 2001: Birte #479, Margaret #599.
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 | Birte | Margaret |
|---|---|---|
| Record type | Official statistical record (evidence-only) | Editorially researched profile |
| Gender usage | female | female |
| Meaning | Not yet recorded | From Latin Margarita, from Greek 'margarites' meaning 'pearl' — likely originally borrowed from an Indo-Iranian language. Associated with Saint Margaret, a 4th-century martyr and patron saint of expectant mothers. |
| Origin | Not yet recorded | Greek |
| Pronunciation | Not yet recorded | /ˈmɑɹ.ɡɹɪt/ |
| Syllables | 2 | 3 |
| 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 · Girls #590 (2006) | Republic of Ireland · Girls #135 (2025) |
| Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score) | Not yet recorded | 90/100 |
| Spelling simplicity (demonstration score) | 94/100 | 76/100 |
| International familiarity (demonstration score) | 40/100 | 100/100 |
| Data Confidence | medium | medium |
What the data shows
- Margaret has a recorded origin (Greek); Birte does not have one recorded yet.
- Birte has 2 syllables, compared with 3 for Margaret.
- A meaning is recorded for Margaret; Birte doesn't have one written yet.
- Both names have recorded usage in NO.
How each name got here
Birte
Popularity journey
First recorded1946
First recorded at #324 among girls in Norway in 1946 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Girls
Highest recorded1946–2006
Highest recorded position: #171 among girls in Norway, in 1963 (recorded 1946–2006).
Norway · Girls
Most recent2006
Most recently recorded at #590 among girls in Norway, in 2006.
Norway · Girls
Margaret
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #173 among girls in Norway in 1945 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Girls
Highest recorded1964–2025
Highest recorded position: #2 among girls in Republic of Ireland, in 1965 (recorded 1964–2025).
Republic of Ireland · Girls
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #135 among girls in Republic of Ireland, in 2025.
Republic of Ireland · Girls