Olyver
A masculine name of Latin origin meaning "olive tree planter".
Name Census estimates that about 290 living Americans carry the first name Olyver. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Olyver today is around 9 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Olyver births was 2022 (33 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Olyver. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
290
~ 1 in 1,181,912 Americans
Peak year
2022
33 babies that year
Average age
9
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,374
Tracked since 2007
Popularity
Olyver: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Olyver from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 166 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Olyver remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Olyver by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Olyver during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Olyvers live
Origin
Meaning and history of Olyver
The name Olyver has its origins in the ancient Germanic languages, specifically deriving from the Old Norse name Áleifr. This name is a compound of the elements "anu" meaning "ancestor" and "leifr" meaning "descendant" or "heir." The Anglicized form Olyver emerged during the Middle Ages, likely influenced by the Norman French spelling Olivier.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Olyver can be found in the Domesday Book, a great survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This historical record lists several individuals bearing the name, indicating its presence in medieval England.
Throughout history, the name Olyver has been associated with various notable figures. One such figure is Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658), the English military and political leader who played a crucial role in the English Civil War and served as Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland, and Ireland.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr. (1809-1894), an American physician, poet, and professor at Harvard University. He is best known for his literary works, including the poem "Old Ironsides" and the essay collection "The Autocrat of the Breakfast-Table."
In the realm of literature, Oliver Twist is the famous protagonist of the novel by Charles Dickens, published in 1838. The character's name has become a symbol of the poor and oppressed in Victorian England, highlighting the social issues of the time.
Oliver Hazard Perry (1785-1819) was an American naval officer who achieved a significant victory in the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812. His famous phrase "We have met the enemy, and they are ours" became a rallying cry for American forces.
Oliver Stone (born 1946) is a renowned American filmmaker and writer, known for his controversial and thought-provoking films such as "Platoon," "Born on the Fourth of July," and "JFK." His works often explore political and social themes, making him a influential figure in contemporary cinema.
People
Olyver + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Olyver as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with O
Other first names starting with O with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Olyver: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Olyver?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 290 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Olyver going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,181,912 US residents.
Is Olyver a common name?
We classify Olyver as "Very Rare". It ranks above 78.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 292 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Olyver most popular?
The single biggest year for Olyver was 2022, when 33 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Olyver is about 9 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Olyver in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Olyver a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Olyver in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Olyver still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Olyver in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Olyver can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are called Olyver?
You can see how many people have the name Olyver on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.