Ivan

maleOld Church Slavic, via Greek Ioannes

The Slavic form of John, commonly interpreted as 'God is gracious'.

Origin: Old Church Slavic, via Greek Ioannes

Official popularity data is available for 6 regions, from 1945 to 2025. Highest recorded position: #83 in New Zealand in 1954. See regions.

Ivan: Recorded since 1945, it reached #83 in 1954, and it stood at #235 in 2025.

6registrars recorded it
185times a registrar ranked it
81years from first to last
#83highest recorded position
26groupings it qualifies for

What stands out in Ivan's record

Moved 148 places between two consecutive years — its largest recorded change. Names by largest single-year move

EYE-vun/ˈaɪvən/

Compare Ivan Run Name Checker on Ivan

Data Confidence

Evidence: ModerateCompleteness: SubstantialEditorial review: 2026-07-21

Confidence in the evidencebehind this name's data — never a rating of the name itself, and never affected by how well it matches your preferences. How this is assessed

Because: backed by officially or academically authoritative sources, recently verified, popularity data covers multiple regions.

Source authority

Averaged from the real per-claim source-authority assessments already computed for this name's meaning/origin/pronunciation/popularity evidence.

Independent corroboration

Averaged from the real per-claim supporting-source counts already computed for this name's evidence.

See full evidence assessment (8 dimensions, 1 not yet tracked)

Source agreement

No recorded source disagreement for this name's meanings or origins.

Recency

Calculated from how long ago this record was last verified (2026-07-21), against a 270-day staleness threshold.

Geographic relevance

Calculated from the number of geographies with official popularity data (6) — broader official coverage means the evidence base is relevant to more of where the name is actually used.

Completeness

Calculated from how many of the expected data sections (variants, similar names, popularity, notable usage, IPA pronunciation) are actually populated for this name.

Direct observation vs. inference

Averaged from the real per-claim direct-observation-vs-inference ratios already computed for this name's evidence.

Identity & variant resolution quality

Cross-source identity and variant resolution requires HEKNO Knowledge, which isn't connected yet.

Name Characteristics

How these are calculated

Descriptive attributes of the name itself — not a confidence measurement, and not an overall quality score. Namewise doesn't approve or disapprove of names.

Pronunciation clarity

Editorial judgement of how consistently this name is pronounced correctly on first read, mapped from an easy/moderate/variable rating to a number. Describes the name — not a measure of evidence confidence.

Spelling simplicity

Calculated directly from the name's spelling: shorter names with fewer irregular letter clusters score higher. A disclosed formula, not an editorial opinion — and not a confidence measurement.

Recorded regional spread

Derived from how many geographies' official statistics record this name. It measures where the name is registered, not how well-known it feels to people living there.

International spread

Derived from the same official statistical coverage, scaled to reflect how widely the name crosses national datasets. Not a measure of how easily it is understood in another language.

Trend stability

Derived from the name's traditional/modern classification and its current popularity trend direction.

Overview

Origin: Old Church Slavic, via Greek Ioannes
Meaning: The Slavic form of John, commonly interpreted as 'God is gracious'.
Pronunciation: EYE-vun
Syllables: 2
Common nicknames: None recorded
Classification: Traditional & modern
Gender usage: male
Language family: Old Church Slavic, via Greek Ioannes

Popularity

Region

Rising

among boys in England and Wales · 1996–2025

View as table

England and Wales · Boys rank by year
Year	Rank
1996	#445
1997	#427
1998	#544
1999	#603
2000	#515
2001	#421
2002	#400
2003	#499
2004	#398
2005	#365
2006	#396
2007	#452
2008	#387
2009	#349
2010	#378
2011	#323
2012	#354
2013	#342
2014	#345
2015	#290
2016	#291
2017	#299
2018	#298
2019	#317
2020	#275
2021	#284
2022	#248
2023	#304
2024	#274
2025	#283

VerifiedSource: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales.Confidence: high.

See all England and Wales names · Source: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales

What the data shows

RisingEngland and Wales · Boys

Recorded in official data among boys in Norway in 80 of the 81 years from 1945 to 2025.

In 2025: #235 among boys in Norway, #283 among boys in England and Wales, #348 among boys in Republic of Ireland.

Official data from 6 national registrars across 6 regions, 1945–2025 · Office for National Statistics. Data sources

Popularity journey

First recorded1945
First recorded at #192 among boys in Norway in 1945 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #283 among boys in England and Wales, in 2025.
England and Wales · Boys

Ivan appears in 5 of the published lists Namewise holds. The longest record is Norway · Boys, which has ranked it in 80 years beginning in 1945, and has registered 1,950 births with the name.

Ivan across 5 official records

Each registrar publishes its own list, so these figures are read down a row, never across one. A position in one country is not comparable with a position in another, and Namewise never combines them into a single ranking. The birth counts do not compare across rows either, for a different reason: England and Wales registers roughly thirty times as many births a year as Northern Ireland, so a larger total says which registrar recorded it as much as how widely the name was given.

Ivan's first, highest and most recent recorded position in each official list, with the number of births each registrar registered with the name and its largest single year
Published list	First recorded	Highest	Most recent	Years recorded	Births registered	Most in one year
Norway · Boys	#192 (1945)	#138 (1984)	#235 (2025)	80 of 81	1,950 (1945–2025)	51 (1984)
Republic of Ireland · Boys	#147 (1964)	#91 (1969)	#348 (2025)	62 of 62	1,442 (1964–2025)	59 (1969)
England and Wales · Boys	#445 (1996)	#248 (2022)	#283 (2025)	30 of 30	3,305 (1996–2025)	190 (2022)
Northern Ireland · Boys	#263 (2003)	#263 (2003)	#348 (2023)	8 of 21	36 (2003–2023)	6 (2012)
New Zealand · Boys	#83 (1954)	#83 (1954)	#99 (1959)	4 of 6	236 (1954–1959)	65 (1954)

Ivan by decade in Norway · Boys

Births registered with the name in each decade of this one list, with the number of years the list covers in that decade. Bars are scaled on births a year, which is the figure that compares between decades — a decade the list only partly covers has a smaller total without being a quieter decade. Figures belong to this registrar alone and do not carry to another.

Births registered with Ivan in Norway · Boys, by decade, with years covered and the average per year
Decade	Births registered	Years covered	A year
1940s	65	5 of 10	13
1950s	123	9 of 10	14
1960s	222	10 of 10	22
1970s	355	10 of 10	36
1980sbusiest	401	10 of 10	40
1990s	274	10 of 10	27
2000s	210	10 of 10	21
2010s	193	10 of 10	19
2020s	107	6 of 10	18

Across Norway · Boys, the 1980s were its busiest decade, averaging 40 births a year.

See the names Norwayhas recorded the most births with →

Ivan appears in

Groupings this name qualifies for under their own stated rules, from the same official statistics shown above.

What the record shows

Recorded by 6 registrars between 1945 and 2025, ranked in 80 years of that period.

Its highest recorded position is #83, first reached in 1954.

It held a top-100 place in 7 years, 2 of them consecutive.

Its largest count from any one registrar is 190 births, registered in England and Wales in 2022.

Its record falls into 2 separate stretches, with a longest absence of 1 year.

A second registrar first ranked it in 1954, and 79 years separate the first registrar to record it from the last.

Every figure here is counted from the seven official registrars Namewise holds. A position is only ever a place within the list that published it, and a record that thins or stops is a fact about what registrars printed — never about how many children received the name.

Ivan was ranked #83 in New Zealand · Boys in 1954. These are the names immediately either side of it on that published list — a fact about the registrar's own output, not a similarity judgement.

Where to go next

Records with a comparable body of evidence, so the catalogue can be read outward from this one. Each group states the rule it was selected by.

Next in the catalogue

The records either side of this one alphabetically.

Iva · #790, 23y
Ivaan · #430, 11y
Ivana · #252, 52y
Ivanna · #677, 21y

A comparable record

Records held by the same 6 registrars, over a similar number of ranked years, whose highest position is closest to this one. A similar body of evidence — never a claim that the names themselves are alike.

Carlos · #83, 76y
Valentina · #85, 77y
Axel · #87, 79y
Esther · #79, 81y

Also first recorded in the 1940s

Records whose earliest ranking in Namewise's registrar data also falls between 1940 and 1949.

Bent · #83, 56y
Bernt · #83, 61y
Carlos · #83, 76y
Edith · #83, 78y

Ivan and the names beside it

Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale, in the same year, by the same registrar — so these are positions that genuinely passed each other, not a similarity judgement. Drawn from the 2,577 names with a recorded popularity standing (common, familiar, uncommon), so a name outside that set could have passed Ivan without appearing here.

Ivan moved ahead of

Dag
In 2010 they stood at #368 and #323 in Norway · Boys; by 2011 that had become #220 and #460.
Gary
In 2004 they stood at #398 and #394 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2005 that had become #365 and #574.
Barry
In 1998 they stood at #544 and #544 in England and Wales · Boys; by 1999 that had become #603 and #809.
Terje
In 2001 they stood at #282 and #268 in Norway · Boys; by 2002 that had become #220 and #424.

Moved ahead of Ivan

Finley
In 1997 they stood at #427 and #484 in England and Wales · Boys; by 1998 that had become #544 and #182.
Roman
In 2002 they stood at #400 and #411 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2003 that had become #499 and #241.
Theodore
In 2015 they stood at #263 and #299 in Northern Ireland · Boys; by 2016 that had become #421 and #166.
Riley
In 1997 they stood at #427 and #462 in England and Wales · Boys; by 1998 that had become #544 and #340.

Moved the opposite way to Ivan

Alexander
Between 1964 and 2025 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ivan went from #147 to #348 while Alexander went from #116 to #55.
Arthur
Between 1964 and 2025 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ivan went from #147 to #348 while Arthur went from #98 to #57.
Benjamin
Between 1964 and 2025 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ivan went from #147 to #348 while Benjamin went from #139 to #83.
Conor
Between 1964 and 2025 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ivan went from #147 to #348 while Conor went from #56 to #16.

Moved the same way as Ivan

Kjetil
Between 1945 and 2022 in Norway · Boys, Ivan went from #192 to #292 and Kjetil from #200 to #420.
Roger
Between 1945 and 2013 in Norway · Boys, Ivan went from #192 to #328 and Roger from #86 to #514.
Adrian
Between 1964 and 2025 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ivan went from #147 to #348 and Adrian from #65 to #348.
Alan
Between 1964 and 2025 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ivan went from #147 to #348 and Alan from #29 to #232.

Meaning & Origin

The Slavic form of John, commonly interpreted as 'God is gracious'.

VerifiedSource: Behind the Name.Confidence: medium.

Old Church Slavic, via Greek Ioannes

VerifiedSource: Behind the Name.Confidence: medium.

Other names with a researched meaning and origin →

Where Ivan is officially recorded

6 official registrars have recorded Ivan, between 1945 and 2025, in 80 of those 81 years. Each registrar publishes for its own population on its own methodology, so the positions below are each one country's own ranking and are not comparable with one another.

Registrar	Recorded	Years	Its own highest position
Norway	1945–2025	80	#138 in 1984
New Zealand	1954–1959	4	#83 in 1954
Republic of Ireland	1964–2025	62	#91 in 1969
England and Wales	1996–2025	30	#248 in 2022
Northern Ireland	2003–2023	8	#263 in 2003
Scotland	2024	1	#268 in 2024

Its high point came 70 years earlier in New Zealand (1954) than in Scotland (2024).

Variants

No spelling variants or nicknames recorded yet.

Similar Names

No similar names recorded yet for this name.

Similarity is a demonstration score — see methodology.

Spelling

Spelling simplicity

Calculated directly from the name's spelling — see Name Characteristics above.

No commonly used alternate spellings recorded.

Pronunciation

EYE-vun/ˈaɪvən/

Syllables: 2
Ease: easy

VerifiedSource: Behind the Name.Confidence: medium.

Where Ivan Is Recorded

National statistical agencies have recorded Ivan in these places. This shows where the name is used — not where it comes from, and not that it carries particular cultural significance there.

England and WalesNorthern IrelandScotlandRepublic of IrelandNorwayNew Zealand

Notable Usage

No safely-sourced notable usage recorded for this name yet.

Sibling & Surname Compatibility

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Ivan

Ivan at a glance

What stands out in Ivan's record

Overview

Popularity

What the data shows

Popularity journey

Ivan across 5 official records

Ivan by decade in Norway · Boys

Ivan appears in

What the record shows

Names published alongside Ivan

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1940s

Ivan and the names beside it

Ivan moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Ivan

Moved the opposite way to Ivan

Moved the same way as Ivan

Meaning & Origin

Where Ivan is officially recorded

Variants

Similar Names

Spelling

Pronunciation

Where Ivan Is Recorded

Notable Usage

Sibling & Surname Compatibility

Ivan at a glance

What stands out in Ivan's record

Ivan across 5 official records

Ivan by decade in Norway · Boys

Ivan appears in

What the record shows

Names published alongside Ivan

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1940s

Ivan and the names beside it

Ivan moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Ivan

Moved the opposite way to Ivan

Moved the same way as Ivan