Leif vs Paul
Leif and Paul compared 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 2024, Leif was ranked #300 and Paul #370 among boys in Norway.
England and Wales · Boys
In 2025, Leif was ranked #1007 and Paul #602 among boys in England and Wales.
Leif and Paul over time
Higher on the chart is a stronger position. The scale is logarithmic, so the gap from #1 to #10 is drawn as large as the gap from #100 to #1,000.
Higher on the chart is a stronger position. The scale is logarithmic, so the gap from #1 to #10 is drawn as large as the gap from #100 to #1,000.
Leif and Paul over time
Leif and Paul appear together in 2 published lists, across 107 years of shared records. Neither was ahead in more lists than the other.
In none of those lists did their order change and stay changed.
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
Leif and Paul changed places 16 times in Norway · Boys between 1945 and 2024, ending at #300 and #370.
- Closest over the longest run
Across 80 shared years in Norway · Boys, Leif and Paul averaged 52.7 places apart, ending at #300 and #370.
- Longest-running competitions
Leif and Paul were both ranked in Norway · Boys for 80 years, from 1945 to 2024, ending at #300 and #370.
- Peaked in the same years
Both reached their highest recorded position in Norway · Boys within 2 years — Leif #17 in 1945, Paul #67 in 1946.
List by list
Norway · Boys80 shared years, 1945–2024
Leif held the stronger position in 60 of those years, Paul in 20.
Highest recorded here: Leif #17 in 1945, Paul #67 in 1946.
The order between them never changed and held in this list.
Most recent shared year, 2024: Leif #300, Paul #370.
England and Wales · Boys27 shared years, 1996–2025
Leif held the stronger position in 0 of those years, Paul in 27.
Highest recorded here: Leif #814 in 2024, Paul #72 in 1996.
The order between them never changed and held in this list.
Most recent shared year, 2025: Leif #1007, Paul #602.
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 | Leif | Paul |
|---|---|---|
| Record type | Editorially researched profile | Editorially researched profile |
| Gender usage | male | male |
| Meaning | Commonly interpreted as 'heir' or 'descendant'. | 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 | Old Norse | Latin |
| Pronunciation | /leɪf/ (also /liːf/) | /ˈpɔːl/ |
| Syllables | 1 | 1 |
| Common variants / nicknames | Leiv | Not yet recorded |
| Recorded regional usage | England and Wales, Norway | New South Wales, Australia, England and Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Republic of Ireland, Norway, New Zealand |
| Most recent popularity observation | Norway · Boys #225 (2025) | Republic of Ireland · Boys #286 (2025) |
| Data Confidence | high | medium |
What the data shows
- Leif is recorded with a Old Norse origin, while Paul is recorded with a Latin origin.
- Leif and Paul both have 1 syllable.
- Leif's recorded meaning differs from Paul's — see the table above for each.
- Both names have recorded usage in GB-ENW, NO.
- The available evidence gives Leif a "high" Data Confidence level and Paul a "medium" level — this reflects how complete and corroborated the underlying evidence is, not a judgement of either name.
How each name got here
Leif
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #17 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: #17 among boys in Norway, in 1945 (recorded 1945–2025).
Norway · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #1007 among boys in England and Wales, in 2025.
England and Wales · 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 #602 among boys in England and Wales, in 2025.
England and Wales · Boys