Ellen vs Kari
Ellen and Karicompared 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.
Republic of Ireland · Girls
In 1989, Ellen was ranked #93 and Kari #503 among girls in Republic of Ireland.
Norway · Girls
In 2025, Ellen was ranked #208 and Kari #222 among girls in Norway.
England and Wales · Girls
In 2024, Ellen was ranked #736 and Kari #5891 among girls in England and Wales.
Ellen and Kari over time
Ellen and Kari appear together in 2 published lists, across 101 years of shared records. Neither was ahead in more lists than the other.
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.
Each reached its own highest recorded position first in 1 of the lists they share.
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
Ellen and Kari changed places 15 times in Norway · Girls between 1945 and 2025, ending at #208 and #222.
- Closest over the longest run
Across 81 shared years in Norway · Girls, Ellen and Kari averaged 27.7 places apart, ending at #208 and #222.
- Longest-running competitions
Ellen and Kari were both ranked in Norway · Girls for 81 years, from 1945 to 2025, ending at #208 and #222.
- Peaked in the same years
Both reached their highest recorded position in England and Wales · Girls within 2 years — Ellen #63 in 1996, Kari #2165 in 1998.
List by list
Norway · Girls81 shared years, 1945–2025
Ellen held the stronger position in 39 of those years, Kari in 42.
Highest recorded here: Ellen #15 in 1955, Kari #3 in 1946.
The order changed in 2024: Ellen moved ahead. In 2023 they stood at #193 and #175; by 2024 that had become #221 and #280.
Most recent shared year, 2025: Ellen #208, Kari #222.
England and Wales · Girls20 shared years, 1996–2024
Ellen held the stronger position in 20 of those years, Kari in 0.
Highest recorded here: Ellen #63 in 1996, Kari #2165 in 1998.
The order between them never changed and held in this list.
Most recent shared year, 2024: Ellen #736, Kari #5891.
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 | Ellen | Kari |
|---|---|---|
| Record type | Official statistical record (evidence-only) | Official statistical record (evidence-only) |
| Gender usage | female | female |
| Meaning | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Origin | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Pronunciation | Not yet recorded | |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| Common variants / nicknames | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Recorded regional usage | AU-NSW, GB-ENW, GB-NIR, GB-SCT, IE, NO, NZ | GB-ENW, IE, NO |
| Most recent popularity observation | Republic of Ireland · Girls #166 (2025) | Norway · Girls #222 (2025) |
| Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score) | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Spelling simplicity (demonstration score) | 94/100 | 95/100 |
| International familiarity (demonstration score) | 100/100 | 100/100 |
| Data Confidence | medium | medium |
What the data shows
- Ellen and Kari both have 2 syllables.
- Both names have recorded usage in GB-ENW, IE, NO.
How each name got here
Ellen
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #29 among girls in Norway in 1945 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Girls
Highest recorded1945–2025
Highest recorded position: #15 among girls in Norway, in 1955 (recorded 1945–2025).
Norway · Girls
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #208 among girls in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Girls
Kari
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #4 among girls in Norway in 1945 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Girls
Highest recorded1945–2025
Highest recorded position: #3 among girls in Norway, in 1946 (recorded 1945–2025).
Norway · Girls
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #222 among girls in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Girls