Girl's name
Olive
Say it OL-iv
Roots in Latin and English olive
2 syllables
Where Olive is loved, common and rare
Common across England and Wales, British Columbia and four more places. Rare in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ontario and seven more places.
1 in 284 girls born in England and Wales in 2025
England and Wales 47thBritish Columbia 93rdScotland 129th
LovedCommonRare
Every place
In 16 of the 40 official lists, among them England and Wales (47th), British Columbia (93rd) and Scotland (129th).
Show all 16 placesShow less
| Place | Rank | Girls | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 29th 2025 | 91 | rank only |
| Queensland state | 46th 2025 | 98 | rank only |
| England and Wales | 47th 2025 | 892 | 1 in 284 |
| South Australia state | 67th 2025 | 25 | rank only |
| New South Wales state | 68th 2025 | 105 | rank only |
| British Columbia province | 93rd 2023 | 30 | about 1 in 399 |
| Scotland | 129th 2025 | 35 | 1 in 511 |
| Northern Ireland | 146th 2025 | 13 | 1 in 560 |
| Ontario province | 168th 2024 | 65 | about 1 in 838 |
| Ireland | 247th 2025 | 17 | 1 in 1,243 |
| Quebec province | 312th 2025 | 17 | about 1 in 1,530 |
| Cologne city | 630th 2023 | 1 | about 1 in 6,143 |
| The Netherlands | 767th 2025 | 14 | about 1 in 4,358 |
| France | 1275th 2025 | 25 | 1 in 11,472 |
| Switzerland | 1792nd 2025 | 2 | 1 in 16,997 |
| Italy | 4773rd 2024 | 1 | 1 in 179,169 |
Rare, below the listed names: Victoria, Austria, Berlin, Munich, Bonn, Leipzig, Rostock, Norway, Sweden, Spain, Catalonia, Poland, Hungary, Slovenia and Israel.
Not in a short top list, so no figure: Nova Scotia (top 21), Denmark (top 50), Finland (top 50), Iceland (top 10), Estonia (top 25), Moscow (top 61), Turkey (top 30), Argentina (top 20) and Croatia (top 50).
Germany publishes no national statistics on first names. German figures here are city lists (Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Bonn, Leipzig, Rostock), never the country.
Sources: Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), SmartStart (New Zealand); Queensland Registry of BDM (Qld Open Data Portal) (Queensland); Office for National Statistics (England and Wales); SA Attorney-General's Department, Births, Deaths and Marriages (data.sa.gov.au) (South Australia); NSW Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages (Data.NSW) (New South Wales); BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (British Columbia); National Records of Scotland (Scotland); NISRA (Northern Ireland); Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (Ontario); Central Statistics Office (CSO) (Ireland); Retraite Québec (Banque de prénoms, Données Québec) (Quebec); Stadt Köln, Standesamt (offenedaten-koeln.de) (Cologne); Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB) (the Netherlands); INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (France); Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS) / Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS) (Switzerland); ISTAT, Contanomi (Italy). How we count, and every source
About the name
Olive is the medieval form of Oliva, a Latin saint's name meaning 'olive'. It was revived in the nineteenth century, when names drawn from flowers and plants became fashionable, and it has kept that gentle, natural feel.
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OL-iv is two short syllables. Olivia and Oliva are related names, and Oliwia is the Polish form of Olivia, so Olive is the shortest and plainest member of its family.
Olive is enjoying a revival in English-speaking countries: in the top thirty in New Zealand, and ranked in Queensland and in England and Wales. It is rising in nine countries and falling in none. In Canada it was at its most popular in the 1920s, so it is a great-grandmother's name coming back into use.
Meaning, origin, pronunciation
- Pronounced
- OL-iv, 2 syllables
- Meaning
olive
- Origin
- Latin and English
- Other spellings
- Oliwia
- Olivia
- Oliva
Etymology
Medieval form of the Latin saint's name Oliva "olive"; revived in the 19th century when flower and plant names became fashionable.
From the Wiktionary entry, CC BY-SA 4.0, shortened.
Over time
Over five years: rising in 9 of 13 regions, falling in none.
Show the yearsShow less
Rank in each place since 1996; higher on the chart is more popular.
Ten years of ranks
Her rank each year, English-speaking regions first. A blank means no published rank for her that year.
| Region | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England and Wales | 148 | 151 | 120 | 109 | 99 | 74 | 74 | 57 | 53 | 47 |
| Scotland | 336 | 304 | 348 | 182 | 341 | 153 | 151 | 136 | 106 | 129 |
| Northern Ireland | 440 | 263 | 273 | 298 | 397 | 190 | 162 | 209 | 119 | 146 |
| Ireland | 390 | 272 | 361 | 421 | 444 | 322 | 458 | 316 | 243 | 247 |
| Ontario | 206 | 169 | 202 | 211 | 172 | 195 | 135 | 148 | 168 | |
| British Columbia | 137 | 134 | 74 | 81 | 75 | 63 | 124 | 93 | ||
| New South Wales | 92 | 86 | 75 | 76 | 78 | 61 | 55 | 61 | 68 | 68 |
| Victoria | 80 | 84 | 77 | 86 | 76 | 66 | 67 | 61 | ||
| Queensland | 94 | 80 | 79 | 78 | 75 | 62 | 55 | 61 | 46 | |
| South Australia | 73 | 78 | 90 | 81 | 69 | 57 | 86 | 66 | 49 | 67 |
| New Zealand | 57 | 59 | 50 | 43 | 23 | 26 | 20 | 33 | 33 | 29 |
| Quebec | 655 | 379 | 601 | 593 | 357 | 312 | 459 | 403 | 287 | 312 |
| France | 2023 | 2565 | 2516 | 1227 | 1633 | 1640 | 1634 | 1521 | 1523 | 1275 |
| The Netherlands | 947 | 913 | 767 | |||||||
| Switzerland | 1279 | 1292 | 1296 | 1785 | 598 | 737 | 1008 | 794 | 1540 | 1792 |
England and Wales, 1996 to 2025
| Year | Rank | Girls | per 100,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 47 | 892 | 352.2 |
| 2024 | 53 | 834 | 323.3 |
| 2023 | 57 | 776 | 302.5 |
| 2022 | 74 | 648 | 245.9 |
| 2021 | 74 | 691 | 252.1 |
| 2020 | 99 | 510 | 190.0 |
| 2019 | 109 | 469 | 167.5 |
| 2018 | 120 | 457 | 158.5 |
| 2017 | 151 | 362 | 121.0 |
| 2016 | 148 | 368 | 119.8 |
| 2015 | 176 | 312 | 101.3 |
| 2014 | 210 | 255 | 83.2 |
| 2013 | 233 | 216 | 70.0 |
| 2012 | 260 | 191 | 59.3 |
| 2011 | 343 | 139 | 43.3 |
| 2010 | 337 | 139 | 43.3 |
| 2009 | 428 | 97 | 31.0 |
| 2008 | 445 | 95 | 30.1 |
| 2007 | 623 | 56 | 18.3 |
| 2006 | 816 | 37 | 12.4 |
| 2005 | 1012 | 25 | 8.7 |
| 2004 | 1043 | 23 | 8.0 |
| 2003 | 965 | 25 | 9.0 |
| 2002 | 1104 | 19 | 7.1 |
| 2001 | 1520 | 12 | 4.5 |
| 2000 | 1313 | 14 | 5.1 |
| 1999 | 2444 | 6 | 2.1 |
| 1998 | 1259 | 15 | 5.2 |
| 1997 | 1287 | 14 | 4.8 |
| 1996 | 1646 | 10 | 3.4 |
Sources: Office for National Statistics (1996-2025), OGL v3.
Ontario and British Columbia since 1925
Half of the babies named Olive in Ontario and British Columbia since 1925 were born in or after 1943. First recorded in 1925. Her peak year there: 1925, at 495.1 per 100,000 girls.
Babies named Olive per 100,000 girls born in Ontario and British Columbia, by five-year period. Her 1925 peak is averaged into its five-year period, so the line sits below it.
Sources: Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (1917-2024), OGL-Ontario; BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (1924-2023), OGL-BC.
Sister names for Olive
1 in 166 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Olive.
1 in 335 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Olive.
1 in 326 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Olive.
1 in 132 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Olive.
1 in 293 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Olive.
1 in 459 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Olive.
1 in 142 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Olive.
1 in 82 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Olive.
1 in 239 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Olive.
1 in 142 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Olive.
Middle names for Olive
1 in 78 in Northern Ireland
Olive Emily
2-3 beats · initials OE
Changes the beat after Olive: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 57 in Northern Ireland
Olive Grace
2-1 beats · initials OG
Changes the beat after Olive: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 99 in Scotland
Olive Sophia
2-3 beats · initials OS
Changes the beat after Olive: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 311 in Ireland
Olive Maria
2-3 beats · initials OM
Changes the beat after Olive: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 88 in Scotland
Olive Amelia
2-4 beats · initials OA
Changes the beat after Olive: 2 syllables, then 4 syllables.
1 in 162 in England and Wales
Olive Evelyn
2-3 beats · initials OE
Changes the beat after Olive: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 214 in Northern Ireland
Olive Rose
2-1 beats · initials OR
Changes the beat after Olive: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 325 in Ireland
Olive Elizabeth
2-4 beats · initials OE
Changes the beat after Olive: 2 syllables, then 4 syllables.
Same style as Olive
Names whose popularity rose and fell with hers across regions and decades.
1 in 240 in Ireland
95% alike: moves with Olive across countries and decades.
1 in 239 in England and Wales
95% alike: moves with Olive across countries and decades.
1 in 124 in Scotland
94% alike: moves with Olive across countries and decades.
1 in 132 in Northern Ireland
94% alike: moves with Olive across countries and decades.
1 in 138 in Scotland
93% alike: moves with Olive across countries and decades.
1 in 132 in Northern Ireland
93% alike: moves with Olive across countries and decades.
1 in 326 in England and Wales
93% alike: moves with Olive across countries and decades.
1 in 184 in Scotland
93% alike: moves with Olive across countries and decades.
Famous people named Olive
Olive Schreiner, Olive Thomas, Olive Borden, Olive Loughnane, Olive Deering and Olive Tell.
Show all 6Show less
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South African author and pacifist (1855-1920)
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American silent film actress, model (1894–1920)
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American actress (1906–1947)
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Irish race walking athlete born 1976
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American actress (1918–1986)
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American actress (1894-1951)
People: Wikidata (CC0), linked to Wikipedia in this page's language when an article exists.
Questions about Olive
5 questions, on how popular she is, what it means, how to say it, whether she is rising and sister names.
Show all 5 questionsShow less
How popular is Olive?
Her best rank is No. 29 in New Zealand in 2025. She is in the published lists of 16 of our 40 regions.
What does Olive mean?
Wiktionary glosses Olive as "olive".
How do you pronounce Olive?
OL-iv, with 2 syllables.
Is Olive getting more popular?
Over five years: rising in 9 of 13 regions, falling in none.
Which sister names go with Olive?
The deck's top five sisters for Olive: Mabel, Harriet, Eleanor, Elsie and Summer. Each is scored on style, era, popularity and origin, with sound clashes flagged.