Nils vs Ragnar
Nils and Ragnarcompared 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, Nils was ranked #61 and Ragnar #196 among boys in Norway.
England and Wales · Boys
In 2024, Nils was ranked #4270 and Ragnar #1460 among boys in England and Wales.
Nils and Ragnar over time
Nils and Ragnar appear together in 2 published lists, across 89 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.
- Longest-running competitions
Nils and Ragnar were both ranked in Norway · Boys for 81 years, from 1945 to 2025, ending at #61 and #196.
- Peaked in the same years
Both reached their highest recorded position in Norway · Boys within 2 years — Nils #21 in 1947, Ragnar #42 in 1946.
List by list
Norway · Boys81 shared years, 1945–2025
Nils held the stronger position in 81 of those years, Ragnar in 0.
Highest recorded here: Nils #21 in 1947, Ragnar #42 in 1946.
The order between them never changed and held in this list.
Most recent shared year, 2025: Nils #61, Ragnar #196.
England and Wales · Boys8 shared years, 2014–2024
Nils held the stronger position in 2 of those years, Ragnar in 6.
Highest recorded here: Nils #2248 in 2014, Ragnar #1218 in 2021.
The order changed in 2016: Ragnar moved ahead. In 2015 they stood at #2319 and #2707; by 2016 that had become #4810 and #2027.
Most recent shared year, 2024: Nils #4270, Ragnar #1460.
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 | Nils | Ragnar |
|---|---|---|
| Record type | Official statistical record (evidence-only) | Official statistical record (evidence-only) |
| Gender usage | male | male |
| Meaning | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Origin | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Pronunciation | ||
| Syllables | 1 | 2 |
| Common variants / nicknames | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Recorded regional usage | GB-ENW, IE, NO | GB-ENW, GB-SCT, NO |
| Most recent popularity observation | Norway · Boys #61 (2025) | Norway · Boys #196 (2025) |
| Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score) | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Spelling simplicity (demonstration score) | 95/100 | 88/100 |
| International familiarity (demonstration score) | 100/100 | 100/100 |
| Data Confidence | medium | medium |
What the data shows
- Nils has 1 syllable, compared with 2 for Ragnar.
- Both names have recorded usage in GB-ENW, NO.
How each name got here
Nils
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #26 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: #21 among boys in Norway, in 1947 (recorded 1945–2025).
Norway · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #61 among boys in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Boys
Ragnar
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #44 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: #42 among boys in Norway, in 1946 (recorded 1945–2025).
Norway · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #196 among boys in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Boys