Alf

maleStatistical record

What official birth registration shows about Alf: which national registrars published it, in which years, and how its recorded position changed.

No researched meaning, origin or pronunciation yet — what that means.

Alf: Recorded every year since 1945, its highest recorded position is #29, and it stood at #260 in 2025.

2registrars recorded it
101times a registrar ranked it
81years from first to last
#29highest recorded position
19groupings it qualifies for

What stands out in Alf's record

Ranked every year since 1945, without a single year missing. Names by continuity of record
Held a top-100 place for 29 years running. Names by top-100 run
Moved 131 places between two consecutive years — its largest recorded change. Names by largest single-year move

Region

Falling

among boys in England and Wales · 1996–2024

View as table

England and Wales · Boys rank by year
Year	Rank
1996	#2357
1998	#2901
2000	#1889
2001	#2220
2004	#3009
2006	#3385
2007	#2211
2009	#3227
2010	#3865
2013	#3822
2015	#3908
2016	#4810
2017	#4812
2018	#3959
2019	#4702
2020	#3334
2021	#3451
2022	#2755
2023	#3523
2024	#4270

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

FallingEngland and Wales · Boys

Recorded in official data among boys in Norway in every year from 1945 to 2025.

In 2024: #246 among boys in Norway, #4270 among boys in England and Wales.

Official data from 2 national registrars across 2 regions, 1945–2025 · Office for National Statistics. Data sources

Popularity journey

First recorded1945
First recorded at #29 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: #29 among boys in Norway, in 1945 (recorded 1945–2025).
Norway · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #260 among boys in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Boys

Alf appears in 2 of the published lists Namewise holds. The longest record is Norway · Boys, which has ranked it in 81 years beginning in 1945, and has registered 6,579 births with the name.

Alf across 2 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.

Alf'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	#29 (1945)	#29 (1945)	#260 (2025)	81 of 81	6,579 (1945–2025)	258 (1945)
England and Wales · Boys	#2357 (1996)	#1889 (2000)	#4270 (2024)	20 of 29	90 (1996–2024)	8 (2007)

Alf 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 Alf in Norway · Boys, by decade, with years covered and the average per year
Decade	Births registered	Years covered	A year
1940sbusiest	1,222	5 of 10	244
1950s	1,944	10 of 10	194
1960s	1,493	10 of 10	149
1970s	826	10 of 10	83
1980s	468	10 of 10	47
1990s	270	10 of 10	27
2000s	121	10 of 10	12
2010s	133	10 of 10	13
2020s	102	6 of 10	17

Across Norway · Boys, the 1940s were its busiest decade — the 5 years of it this list covers, averaging 244 births a year.

Its sharpest single-year move came between 1966 and 1967, when recorded births fell by 36, from 160 to 124.

See the names Norwayhas recorded the most births with →

Alf appears in

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

Popularity data

Official popularity data is available for 2 regions, from 1945 to 2025. Highest recorded position: #29 in Norway in 1945.

Alf's recorded popularity observations by year, region and administrative category, including rank, registered births, source confidence and when each region's data was last reviewed.
Year	Region	Category	Rank	Births registered	Confidence	Status
2024	England and Wales	male	#4270	4	High	Verified
2023	England and Wales	male	#3523	5	High	Verified
2022	England and Wales	male	#2755	7	High	Verified
2021	England and Wales	male	#3451	5	High	Verified
2020	England and Wales	male	#3334	5	High	Verified
2019	England and Wales	male	#4702	3	High	Verified
2018	England and Wales	male	#3959	4	High	Verified
2017	England and Wales	male	#4812	3	High	Verified
2016	England and Wales	male	#4810	3	High	Verified
2015	England and Wales	male	#3908	4	High	Verified
2013	England and Wales	male	#3822	4	High	Verified
2010	England and Wales	male	#3865	4	High	Verified
2009	England and Wales	male	#3227	5	High	Verified
2007	England and Wales	male	#2211	8	High	Verified
2006	England and Wales	male	#3385	4	High	Verified
2004	England and Wales	male	#3009	4	High	Verified
2001	England and Wales	male	#2220	5	High	Verified
2000	England and Wales	male	#1889	6	High	Verified
1998	England and Wales	male	#2901	3	High	Verified
1996	England and Wales	male	#2357	4	High	Verified
2025	Norway	male	#260	15	High	Verified
2024	Norway	male	#246	17	High	Verified
2023	Norway	male	#258	16	High	Verified
2022	Norway	male	#214	20	High	Verified
2021	Norway	male	#224	19	High	Verified
2020	Norway	male	#248	15	High	Verified
2019	Norway	male	#280	15	High	Verified
2018	Norway	male	#268	16	High	Verified
2017	Norway	male	#289	15	High	Verified
2016	Norway	male	#308	14	High	Verified
2015	Norway	male	#306	14	High	Verified
2014	Norway	male	#274	17	High	Verified
2013	Norway	male	#405	8	High	Verified
2012	Norway	male	#337	11	High	Verified
2011	Norway	male	#311	13	High	Verified
2010	Norway	male	#359	10	High	Verified
2009	Norway	male	#337	12	High	Verified
2008	Norway	male	#396	9	High	Verified
2007	Norway	male	#382	9	High	Verified
2006	Norway	male	#390	8	High	Verified
2005	Norway	male	#412	7	High	Verified
2004	Norway	male	#285	13	High	Verified
2003	Norway	male	#245	18	High	Verified
2002	Norway	male	#285	13	High	Verified
2001	Norway	male	#269	15	High	Verified
2000	Norway	male	#265	17	High	Verified
1999	Norway	male	#191	29	High	Verified
1998	Norway	male	#238	21	High	Verified
1997	Norway	male	#241	20	High	Verified
1996	Norway	male	#175	34	High	Verified
1995	Norway	male	#212	26	High	Verified
1994	Norway	male	#236	23	High	Verified
1993	Norway	male	#199	31	High	Verified
1992	Norway	male	#211	30	High	Verified
1991	Norway	male	#221	27	High	Verified
1990	Norway	male	#202	29	High	Verified
1989	Norway	male	#208	31	High	Verified
1988	Norway	male	#168	41	High	Verified
1987	Norway	male	#184	34	High	Verified
1986	Norway	male	#195	34	High	Verified
1985	Norway	male	#151	46	High	Verified
1984	Norway	male	#135	53	High	Verified
1983	Norway	male	#139	53	High	Verified
1982	Norway	male	#123	65	High	Verified
1981	Norway	male	#121	63	High	Verified
1980	Norway	male	#148	48	High	Verified
1979	Norway	male	#127	60	High	Verified
1978	Norway	male	#135	54	High	Verified
1977	Norway	male	#104	69	High	Verified
1976	Norway	male	#135	54	High	Verified
1975	Norway	male	#111	79	High	Verified
1974	Norway	male	#128	65	High	Verified
1973	Norway	male	#98	87	High	Verified
1972	Norway	male	#78	119	High	Verified
1971	Norway	male	#74	120	High	Verified
1970	Norway	male	#74	119	High	Verified
1969	Norway	male	#79	117	High	Verified
1968	Norway	male	#62	135	High	Verified
1967	Norway	male	#70	124	High	Verified
1966	Norway	male	#56	160	High	Verified
1965	Norway	male	#57	150	High	Verified
1964	Norway	male	#57	157	High	Verified
1963	Norway	male	#57	142	High	Verified
1962	Norway	male	#48	177	High	Verified
1961	Norway	male	#51	164	High	Verified
1960	Norway	male	#47	167	High	Verified
1959	Norway	male	#49	179	High	Verified
1958	Norway	male	#50	160	High	Verified
1957	Norway	male	#45	183	High	Verified
1956	Norway	male	#47	184	High	Verified
1955	Norway	male	#45	198	High	Verified
1954	Norway	male	#43	190	High	Verified
1953	Norway	male	#40	204	High	Verified
1952	Norway	male	#37	224	High	Verified
1951	Norway	male	#39	202	High	Verified
1950	Norway	male	#35	220	High	Verified
1949	Norway	male	#39	224	High	Verified
1948	Norway	male	#32	256	High	Verified
1947	Norway	male	#37	228	High	Verified
1946	Norway	male	#34	256	High	Verified
1945	Norway	male	#29	258	High	Verified

England and Wales hub — collected by Office for National Statistics
Norway hub — collected by Statistics Norway (SSB)

See methodology and data sources for how popularity data is collected and what "confidence" means.

What the record shows

Recorded by 2 registrars between 1945 and 2025, ranked in 81 years of that period.

Its highest recorded position is #29, first reached in 1945.

It held a top-100 place in 29 years, 29 of them consecutive.

Its largest count from any one registrar is 258 births, registered in Norway in 1945.

A second registrar first ranked it in 1996, and 51 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.

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.

Aleyah · #1618, 23y
Aleyna · #440, 29y
Alfhild · #153, 24y
Alfie · #4, 30y

A comparable record

Records held by the same 2 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.

Sigrid · #29, 81y
Jens · #30, 81y
Siri · #26, 81y
Even · #25, 81y

Also first recorded in the 1940s

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

Roy · #29, 81y
Sigrid · #29, 81y
Sverre · #29, 81y
Britt · #28, 55y

Alf was ranked #29 in Norway · Boys in 1945. 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.

Alf 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 2,573 names with a recorded popularity standing (common, familiar, uncommon), so a name outside that set could have passed Alf without appearing here.

Alf moved ahead of

Maddison Compare
In 2006 they stood at #3385 and #3385 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2007 that had become #2211 and #4333.
Ole Compare
In 2021 they stood at #3451 and #3017 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2022 that had become #2755 and #4789.
Glenn Compare
In 2022 they stood at #3451 and #2730 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2023 that had become #3523 and #4991.
Kerry Compare
In 2006 they stood at #3009 and #2578 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2007 that had become #2211 and #3589.

Moved ahead of Alf

Rune Compare
In 2018 they stood at #3959 and #4749 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2019 that had become #4702 and #2104.
Malin Compare
In 2018 they stood at #3959 and #4749 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2019 that had become #4702 and #2728.
Arne Compare
In 2022 they stood at #2755 and #3048 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2023 that had become #3523 and #2160.
Matheo Compare
In 2009 they stood at #2211 and #4333 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2010 that had become #3865 and #2629.

Moved the opposite way to Alf

Aksel Compare
Between 1945 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Alf went from #29 to #260 while Aksel went from #174 to #25.
Daniel Compare
Between 1945 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Alf went from #29 to #260 while Daniel went from #280 to #66.
David Compare
Between 1945 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Alf went from #29 to #260 while David went from #167 to #88.
Emil Compare
Between 1945 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Alf went from #29 to #260 while Emil went from #271 to #2.

Moved the same way as Alf

Arild Compare
Between 1945 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Alf went from #29 to #260 and Arild from #32 to #489.
Bjørn Compare
Between 1945 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Alf went from #29 to #260 and Bjørn from #3 to #56.
Dag Compare
Between 1945 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Alf went from #29 to #260 and Dag from #48 to #426.
Egil Compare
Between 1945 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Alf went from #29 to #260 and Egil from #25 to #312.

What's not yet available

Meaning
Origin
Pronunciation
Nicknames and spelling variants

Absence from this list does not mean the name isn't genuinely meaningful or widely used — only that Namewise hasn't sourced and reviewed that content yet. Absence from a specific year or geography above does not prove zero use there either; official statistics only publish names above a minimum threshold.

Official popularity data is available for 2 regions, from 1945 to 2025. Highest recorded position: #29 in Norway in 1945. Source data last verified 2026-07-21.

Alf

Alf at a glance

What stands out in Alf's record

What the data shows

Popularity journey

Alf across 2 official records

Alf by decade in Norway · Boys

Alf appears in

Popularity data

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1940s

Names published alongside Alf

Alf and the names beside it

Alf moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Alf

Moved the opposite way to Alf

Moved the same way as Alf

Alf at a glance

What stands out in Alf's record

Alf across 2 official records

Alf by decade in Norway · Boys

Alf appears in

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1940s

Names published alongside Alf

Alf and the names beside it

Alf moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Alf

Moved the opposite way to Alf

Moved the same way as Alf