River

Used for both boys and girlsStatistical record

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

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

River: Recorded every year since 1996, it reached #59 in 2022, and it was still inside the top 100 in 2025.

6registrars recorded it
95times a registrar ranked it
30years from first to last
#59highest recorded position
12groupings it qualifies for

What stands out in River's record

3 registrars publish it in more than one category list — an observation about those lists, not about the name. Names published across category lists

Region

Rising

among girls in England and Wales · 1996–2024

View as table

England and Wales · Girls rank by year
Year	Rank
1996	#3795
1997	#3174
1998	#2701
2003	#2727
2004	#2278
2005	#2438
2006	#1748
2007	#1337
2008	#1176
2009	#1325
2010	#1218
2011	#738
2012	#768
2013	#684
2014	#383
2015	#410
2016	#343
2017	#298
2018	#187
2019	#167
2020	#151
2021	#119
2022	#125
2023	#139
2024	#167

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 · Girls

Recorded in official data among boys in England and Wales in every year from 1996 to 2024.

In 2024: #135 among girls in Scotland, #167 among girls in England and Wales, #253 among girls in Northern Ireland, #631 among girls in Republic of Ireland.

Official data from 6 national registrars across 6 regions, 1996–2025 · Office for National Statistics. Data sources

Popularity journey

First recorded1996
First recorded at #3795 among girls in England and Wales in 1996 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
England and Wales · Girls
Highest recorded2020–2023
Highest recorded position: #59 among boys in New Zealand, in 2022 (recorded 2020–2023).
New Zealand · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #85 among boys in New South Wales, Australia, in 2025.
New South Wales, Australia · Boys

River appears in 8 of the published lists Namewise holds. The longest record is England and Wales · Boys, which has ranked it in 29 years beginning in 1996, and has registered 3,754 births with the name.

River across 8 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.

River'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
England and Wales · Boys	#976 (1996)	#117 (2024)	#117 (2024)	29 of 29	3,754 (1996–2024)	459 (2024)
England and Wales · Girls	#3795 (1996)	#119 (2021)	#167 (2024)	25 of 29	3,241 (1996–2024)	423 (2021)
Republic of Ireland · Boys	#698 (2008)	#302 (2024)	#372 (2025)	11 of 18	92 (2008–2025)	13 (2023)
Republic of Ireland · Girls	#661 (2016)	#444 (2020)	#885 (2025)	9 of 10	47 (2016–2025)	8 (2020)
Northern Ireland · Boys	#318 (2017)	#232 (2023)	#339 (2024)	5 of 8	29 (2017–2024)	8 (2023)
Northern Ireland · Girls	#432 (2017)	#171 (2021)	#253 (2024)	6 of 8	33 (2017–2024)	12 (2021)
New South Wales, Australia · Boys	#70 (2021)	#70 (2021)	#85 (2025)	4 of 5	444 (2021–2025)	133 (2021)
New Zealand · Boys	#78 (2020)	#59 (2022)	#82 (2023)	4 of 4	266 (2020–2023)	77 (2021)

River by decade in England and Wales · 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 River in England and Wales · Boys, by decade, with years covered and the average per year
Decade	Births registered	Years covered	A year
1990s	60	4 of 10	15
2000s	252	10 of 10	25
2010s	1,367	10 of 10	137
2020sbusiest	2,075	5 of 10	415

Across England and Wales · Boys, the 2020s were its busiest decade — the 5 years of it this list covers, averaging 415 births a year.

Its sharpest single-year move came between 2020 and 2021, when recorded births rose by 108, from 334 to 442.

See the names England and Waleshas recorded the most births with →

River 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 6 regions, from 1996 to 2025. Highest recorded position: #59 in New Zealand in 2022.

River'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	female	#167	302	High	Verified
2024	England and Wales	male	#117	459	High	Verified
2023	England and Wales	female	#139	352	High	Verified
2023	England and Wales	male	#131	410	High	Verified
2022	England and Wales	female	#125	408	High	Verified
2022	England and Wales	male	#132	430	High	Verified
2021	England and Wales	female	#119	423	High	Verified
2021	England and Wales	male	#131	442	High	Verified
2020	England and Wales	female	#151	339	High	Verified
2020	England and Wales	male	#159	334	High	Verified
2019	England and Wales	female	#167	304	High	Verified
2019	England and Wales	male	#194	267	High	Verified
2018	England and Wales	female	#187	281	High	Verified
2018	England and Wales	male	#181	292	High	Verified
2017	England and Wales	female	#298	164	High	Verified
2017	England and Wales	male	#260	205	High	Verified
2016	England and Wales	female	#343	141	High	Verified
2016	England and Wales	male	#326	145	High	Verified
2015	England and Wales	female	#410	110	High	Verified
2015	England and Wales	male	#393	108	High	Verified
2014	England and Wales	female	#383	116	High	Verified
2014	England and Wales	male	#566	63	High	Verified
2013	England and Wales	female	#684	58	High	Verified
2013	England and Wales	male	#479	80	High	Verified
2012	England and Wales	female	#768	51	High	Verified
2012	England and Wales	male	#498	76	High	Verified
2011	England and Wales	female	#738	52	High	Verified
2011	England and Wales	male	#501	72	High	Verified
2010	England and Wales	female	#1218	26	High	Verified
2010	England and Wales	male	#574	59	High	Verified
2009	England and Wales	female	#1325	22	High	Verified
2009	England and Wales	male	#654	48	High	Verified
2008	England and Wales	female	#1176	25	High	Verified
2008	England and Wales	male	#757	38	High	Verified
2007	England and Wales	female	#1337	20	High	Verified
2007	England and Wales	male	#782	34	High	Verified
2006	England and Wales	female	#1748	13	High	Verified
2006	England and Wales	male	#793	32	High	Verified
2005	England and Wales	female	#2438	8	High	Verified
2005	England and Wales	male	#891	25	High	Verified
2004	England and Wales	female	#2278	8	High	Verified
2004	England and Wales	male	#1038	19	High	Verified
2003	England and Wales	female	#2727	6	High	Verified
2003	England and Wales	male	#1011	18	High	Verified
2002	England and Wales	male	#1033	16	High	Verified
2001	England and Wales	male	#1135	13	High	Verified
2000	England and Wales	male	#1425	9	High	Verified
1999	England and Wales	male	#906	17	High	Verified
1998	England and Wales	female	#2701	5	High	Verified
1998	England and Wales	male	#1188	11	High	Verified
1997	England and Wales	female	#3174	4	High	Verified
1997	England and Wales	male	#845	18	High	Verified
1996	England and Wales	female	#3795	3	High	Verified
1996	England and Wales	male	#976	14	High	Verified
2025	New South Wales, Australia	male	#85	99	Insufficient	Not yet available
2023	New South Wales, Australia	male	#75	106	Insufficient	Not yet available
2022	New South Wales, Australia	male	#81	106	Insufficient	Not yet available
2021	New South Wales, Australia	male	#70	133	Insufficient	Not yet available
2023	New Zealand	male	#82	53	High	Verified
2022	New Zealand	male	#59	75	High	Verified
2021	New Zealand	male	#60	77	High	Verified
2020	New Zealand	male	#78	61	High	Verified
2024	Northern Ireland	female	#253	6	High	Verified
2024	Northern Ireland	male	#339	4	High	Verified
2023	Northern Ireland	female	#391	3	High	Verified
2023	Northern Ireland	male	#232	8	High	Verified
2022	Northern Ireland	female	#266	6	High	Verified
2022	Northern Ireland	male	#264	7	High	Verified
2021	Northern Ireland	female	#171	12	High	Verified
2021	Northern Ireland	male	#326	5	High	Verified
2019	Northern Ireland	female	#424	3	High	Verified
2017	Northern Ireland	female	#432	3	High	Verified
2017	Northern Ireland	male	#318	5	High	Verified
2025	Republic of Ireland	female	#885	3	High	Verified
2025	Republic of Ireland	male	#372	10	High	Verified
2024	Republic of Ireland	female	#631	5	High	Verified
2024	Republic of Ireland	male	#302	13	High	Verified
2023	Republic of Ireland	female	#555	6	High	Verified
2023	Republic of Ireland	male	#319	13	High	Verified
2022	Republic of Ireland	female	#458	8	High	Verified
2022	Republic of Ireland	male	#429	8	High	Verified
2021	Republic of Ireland	female	#586	6	High	Verified
2021	Republic of Ireland	male	#390	9	High	Verified
2020	Republic of Ireland	female	#444	8	High	Verified
2020	Republic of Ireland	male	#342	12	High	Verified
2019	Republic of Ireland	male	#402	9	High	Verified
2018	Republic of Ireland	female	#896	3	High	Verified
2017	Republic of Ireland	female	#873	3	High	Verified
2017	Republic of Ireland	male	#610	4	High	Verified
2016	Republic of Ireland	female	#661	5	High	Verified
2016	Republic of Ireland	male	#448	7	High	Verified
2011	Republic of Ireland	male	#623	4	High	Verified
2008	Republic of Ireland	male	#698	3	High	Verified
2024	Scotland	female	#135	33	High	Verified
2024	Scotland	male	#176	25	High	Verified

England and Wales hub — collected by Office for National Statistics
New South Wales, Australia hub — collected by NSW Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages
New Zealand hub — collected by NZ Department of Internal Affairs
Northern Ireland hub — collected by NISRA
Republic of Ireland hub — collected by CSO Ireland
Scotland hub — collected by National Records of Scotland

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

What the record shows

Recorded by 6 registrars between 1996 and 2025, ranked in 30 years of that period.

Its highest recorded position is #59, first reached in 2022.

It held a top-100 place in 5 years, 4 of them consecutive.

Its largest count from any one registrar is 459 births, registered in England and Wales in 2024.

3 registrars publish it in more than one category list, holding a place in each for at least five years — an observation about those lists rather than about the name.

A second registrar first ranked it in 2008, and 28 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.

Rivan · #1799, 13y
Riven · #1309, 13y
River-Mae · #1142, 11y
River-Rose · #1069, 10y

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.

Brayden · #59, 30y
Chase · #59, 29y
Phoenix · #57, 30y
Miles · #62, 30y

Also first recorded in the 1990s

Records whose earliest ranking in Namewise's registrar data also falls between 1990 and 1999.

Brayden · #59, 30y
Chase · #59, 29y
Angel · #60, 30y
Lochlan · #60, 29y

River was ranked #59 in New Zealand · Boys in 2022. 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.

River 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 River without appearing here.

River moved ahead of

Brittany Compare
In 2005 they stood at #2438 and #1500 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2006 that had become #1748 and #3548.
Evan Compare
In 2005 they stood at #2701 and #2407 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2006 that had become #1748 and #3548.
Freddie Compare
In 2005 they stood at #3174 and #2411 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2006 that had become #1748 and #3548.
Kristine Compare
In 2005 they stood at #2278 and #2278 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2006 that had become #1748 and #3548.

Moved ahead of River

Harper Compare
In 2011 they stood at #738 and #858 in England and Wales · Girls; by 2012 that had become #768 and #284.
Liv Compare
In 2024 they stood at #631 and #898 in Republic of Ireland · Girls; by 2025 that had become #885 and #608.
Ollie Compare
In 1997 they stood at #845 and #2022 in England and Wales · Boys; by 1998 that had become #1188 and #924.
Hudson Compare
In 2006 they stood at #793 and #885 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2007 that had become #782 and #538.

Moved the opposite way to River

Aaron Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Boys, River went from #976 to #117 while Aaron went from #33 to #154.
Abigail Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Girls, River went from #3795 to #167 while Abigail went from #21 to #154.
Adam Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Boys, River went from #976 to #117 while Adam went from #16 to #35.
Aimee Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Girls, River went from #3795 to #167 while Aimee went from #70 to #1603.

Moved the same way as River

Ada Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Girls, River went from #3795 to #167 and Ada from #2683 to #40.
Albie Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Boys, River went from #976 to #117 and Albie from #853 to #19.
Alfie Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Boys, River went from #976 to #117 and Alfie from #119 to #16.
Alfred Compare
Between 1996 and 2024 in England and Wales · Boys, River went from #976 to #117 and Alfred from #218 to #81.

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 6 regions, from 1996 to 2025. Highest recorded position: #59 in New Zealand in 2022. Source data last verified 2026-07-21.

River

River at a glance

What stands out in River's record

What the data shows

Popularity journey

River across 8 official records

River by decade in England and Wales · Boys

River appears in

Popularity data

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1990s

Names published alongside River

River and the names beside it

River moved ahead of

Moved ahead of River

Moved the opposite way to River

Moved the same way as River

River at a glance

What stands out in River's record

River across 8 official records

River by decade in England and Wales · Boys

River appears in

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1990s

Names published alongside River

River and the names beside it

River moved ahead of

Moved ahead of River

Moved the opposite way to River

Moved the same way as River