Liv vs Mali
Liv and Malicompared 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 2025, Liv was ranked #73 and Mali #410 among girls in Norway.
England and Wales · Girls
In 2025, Liv was ranked #2278 and Mali #328 among girls in England and Wales.
Liv and Mali over time
Liv and Mali appear together in 2 published lists, across 75 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.
Liv reached its own highest recorded position earlier in 2 of those lists, and Mali 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.
- Longest-running competitions
Liv and Mali were both ranked in Norway · Girls for 49 years, from 1947 to 2025, ending at #73 and #410.
List by list
Norway · Girls49 shared years, 1947–2025
Liv held the stronger position in 48 of those years, Mali in 1.
Highest recorded here: Liv #4 in 1947, Mali #82 in 2009.
The order between them never changed and held in this list.
Most recent shared year, 2025: Liv #73, Mali #410.
England and Wales · Girls26 shared years, 1996–2025
Liv held the stronger position in 0 of those years, Mali in 25.
Highest recorded here: Liv #1088 in 2015, Mali #328 in 2025.
The order between them never changed and held in this list.
Most recent shared year, 2025: Liv #2278, Mali #328.
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 | Liv | Mali |
|---|---|---|
| Record type | Editorially researched profile | Official statistical record (evidence-only) |
| Gender usage | female | female |
| Meaning | Traditionally traced to an Old Norse name (Hlif) commonly interpreted as 'protection'. In modern Scandinavian usage the name is also strongly associated with the everyday word for 'life', though that is a separate word, not the historical root. | Not yet recorded |
| Origin | Old Norse, used in Norwegian, Swedish and Danish tradition | Not yet recorded |
| Pronunciation | /liːv/ | Not yet recorded |
| Syllables | 1 | 2 |
| Common variants / nicknames | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Recorded regional usage | GB-ENW, GB-SCT, IE, NO | GB-ENW, NO |
| Most recent popularity observation | Norway · Girls #73 (2025) | England and Wales · Girls #328 (2025) |
| Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score) | 90/100 | Not yet recorded |
| Spelling simplicity (demonstration score) | 95/100 | 95/100 |
| International familiarity (demonstration score) | 100/100 | 60/100 |
| Data Confidence | medium | medium |
What the data shows
- Liv has a recorded origin (Old Norse, used in Norwegian, Swedish and Danish tradition); Mali does not have one recorded yet.
- Liv has 1 syllable, compared with 2 for Mali.
- A meaning is recorded for Liv; Mali doesn't have one written yet.
- Both names have recorded usage in GB-ENW, NO.
How each name got here
Liv
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #3 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 1945 (recorded 1945–2025).
Norway · Girls
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #2278 among girls in England and Wales, in 2025.
England and Wales · Girls
Mali
Popularity journey
First recorded1947
First recorded at #391 among girls in Norway in 1947 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Girls
Highest recorded1947–2025
Highest recorded position: #82 among girls in Norway, in 2009 (recorded 1947–2025).
Norway · Girls
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #328 among girls in England and Wales, in 2025.
England and Wales · Girls