Girl's name
Ronja
Say it RON-yah
Swedish origin 2 syllables
Where Ronja is loved, common and rare
Common across Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and three more places. Rare in Slovenia, three German cities, Poland and two more places.
1 in 256 girls born in Norway in 2025
Norway 74thSweden 81stSwitzerland 85th
LovedCommonRare
Every place
In 13 of the 40 official lists, among them Norway (74th), Sweden (81st) and Switzerland (85th).
Show all 13 placesShow less
| Place | Rank | Girls | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Norway | 74th 2025 | 85 | 1 in 256 |
| Sweden | 81st 2025 | 125 | about 1 in 321 |
| Switzerland | 85th 2025 | 84 | 1 in 405 |
| Austria | 91st 2025 | 80 | 1 in 447 |
| Slovenia | 122nd 2025 | 13 | about 1 in 508 |
| Cologne city | 137th 2023 | 9 | about 1 in 683 |
| Berlin city | 200th 2023 | 15 | about 1 in 967 |
| Poland | 583rd 2025 | 3 | 1 in 39,929 |
| The Netherlands | 597th 2025 | 20 | about 1 in 3,051 |
| Italy | 2927th 2024 | 2 | 1 in 89,585 |
| Leipzig city | 77th 2025 | 7 | about 1 in 375 |
| Rostock city | 92nd 2025 | 2 | about 1 in 492 |
| Bonn city | 173rd 2025 | 3 | about 1 in 1,005 |
Rare, below the listed names: England and Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ireland, Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia, New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, New Zealand, France, Munich, Spain, Catalonia, Hungary 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: Statistics Norway (SSB) (Norway); Skatteverket (Swedish Tax Agency) (Sweden); Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS) / Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS) (Switzerland); Statistik Austria (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1) (Austria); Statistični urad Republike Slovenije (SURS), SiStat (Slovenia); Stadt Köln, Standesamt (offenedaten-koeln.de) (Cologne); BerlinOnline GmbH; Landesamt für Bürger- und Ordnungsangelegenheiten (LABO) / Standesämter (Berlin); Ministerstwo Cyfryzacji, rejestr PESEL (dane.gov.pl) (Poland); Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB) (the Netherlands); ISTAT, Contanomi (Italy); Stadt Leipzig, Standesamt (opendata.leipzig.de) (Leipzig); Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock (opendata-hro.de) (Rostock); Bundesstadt Bonn, Standesamt (opendata.bonn.de) (Bonn). How we count, and every source
About the name
Ronja was invented by Astrid Lindgren for the heroine of her children's book Ronja rövardotter. She took the middle letters of Juronjaure, the Sami name of a lake in northern Sweden, which is said to mean 'lake by a hill'. She evidently wanted a name that sounded familiar, like Sonja.
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Two syllables, said RON-yah, with the j sounding like an English y. Ronia and Ronya are phonetic spellings, and Rona is a similar name.
It is used across northern and central Europe, ranking among the top 90 in Norway, Sweden and Switzerland. The data show no English-speaking rankings for it. It is falling in more regions than it is rising, but it remains a well-loved literary name in Scandinavia.
Meaning, origin, pronunciation
- Pronounced
- RON-yah, 2 syllables
- Origin
- Swedish
- Other spellings
- Rona
- Ronia
- Ronya
- Ranja
Etymology
Coined by Astrid Lindgren for the heroine of the children's book Ronja rövardotter (1981) by taking the middle letters of Juronjaure, the Sami name of a lake in north Sweden, said to mean "lake by a hill". Lindgren was obviously looking for something that sounded familiar, like Sonja, a well established name in Sweden by 1981.
From the Wiktionary entry, CC BY-SA 4.0, shortened.
Over time
Over five years: rising in 2 of 11 regions, falling in 6.
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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 | 5765 | 4634 | 3970 | 4192 | ||||||
| The Netherlands | 485 | 503 | 562 | 591 | 662 | 714 | 736 | 714 | 597 | |
| Austria | 94 | 78 | 87 | 83 | 92 | 89 | 89 | 113 | 113 | 91 |
| Switzerland | 66 | 64 | 55 | 47 | 45 | 70 | 45 | 68 | 68 | 85 |
| Berlin | 156 | 95 | 89 | 95 | 77 | 91 | 106 | 200 | ||
| Munich | 113 | 97 | 142 | 126 | 80 | 87 | 124 | 126 | 148 | |
| Cologne | 116 | 132 | 211 | 114 | 94 | 132 | 104 | 137 | ||
| Bonn | 174 | 41 | 75 | 59 | 132 | 110 | 40 | 36 | 61 | 173 |
| Leipzig | 40 | 55 | 50 | 63 | 53 | 73 | 70 | 102 | 92 | 77 |
| Rostock | 92 | 66 | 64 | 53 | 62 | 43 | 82 | 18 | 92 | |
| Norway | 86 | 83 | 74 | 63 | 83 | 77 | 78 | 73 | 85 | 74 |
| Sweden | 73 | 78 | 63 | 74 | 53 | 91 | 50 | 72 | 63 | 81 |
| Finland | 45 | |||||||||
| Iceland | 57 | 38 | ||||||||
| Italy | 1556 | 2982 | 2927 | |||||||
| Poland | 569 | 658 | 456 | 516 | 600 | 583 | ||||
| Slovenia | 110 | 180 | 125 | 116 | 168 | 116 | 137 | 95 | 86 | 122 |
England and Wales, 2004 to 2024
| Year | Rank | Girls | per 100,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4192 | 5 | 1.9 |
| 2022 | 3970 | 5 | 1.9 |
| 2021 | 4634 | 4 | 1.5 |
| 2017 | 5765 | 3 | 1.0 |
| 2015 | 5730 | 3 | 1.0 |
| 2014 | 3514 | 6 | 2.0 |
| 2013 | 4739 | 4 | 1.3 |
| 2011 | 5785 | 3 | 0.9 |
| 2008 | 4524 | 4 | 1.3 |
| 2007 | 5201 | 3 | 1.0 |
| 2004 | 4598 | 3 | 1.0 |
Sources: Office for National Statistics (1996-2025), OGL v3.
Sister names for Ronja
1 in 4,473 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Ronja.
1 in 31,660 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Ronja.
1 in 6,332 in England and Wales
1 in 74 in Norway
Rose and fell with Ronja.
1 in 84,427 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Ronja.
Similar forms, not dealt separately: Lotta.
1 in 16,885 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Ronja.
1 in 117 in Norway
Rose and fell with Ronja.
1 in 3,567 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Ronja.
1 in 14,071 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Ronja.
1 in 161 in Norway
Rose and fell with Ronja.
Middle names for Ronja
1 in 57 in Northern Ireland
Ronja Grace
2-1 beats · initials RG
Changes the beat after Ronja: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 71 in Scotland
Ronja Olivia
2-4 beats · initials RO · Ronja slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Ronja: 2 syllables, then 4 syllables. Ronja slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 99 in Scotland
Ronja Sophia
2-3 beats · initials RS
Changes the beat after Ronja: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 311 in Ireland
Ronja Maria
2-3 beats · initials RM
Changes the beat after Ronja: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 78 in Northern Ireland
Ronja Emily
2-3 beats · initials RE · Ronja slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Ronja: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables. Ronja slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 491 in Ireland
Ronja Julia
2-3 beats · initials RJ
Changes the beat after Ronja: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 214 in Northern Ireland
Ronja Rose
2-1 beats · initials RR
Changes the beat after Ronja: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 1,286 in England and Wales
Ronja Miriam
2-3 beats · initials RM
Changes the beat after Ronja: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
Same style as Ronja
Names whose popularity rose and fell with hers across regions and decades.
1 in 50,656 in England and Wales
90% alike: moves with Ronja across countries and decades.
1 in 161 in Norway
87% alike: moves with Ronja across countries and decades.
1 in 84,427 in England and Wales
87% alike: moves with Ronja across countries and decades.
1 in 84,427 in England and Wales
85% alike: moves with Ronja across countries and decades.
1 in 7,042 in Ireland
84% alike: moves with Ronja across countries and decades.
1 in 63,320 in England and Wales
84% alike: moves with Ronja across countries and decades.
1 in 5,964 in Scotland
83% alike: moves with Ronja across countries and decades.
1 in 84,427 in England and Wales
80% alike: moves with Ronja across countries and decades.
Questions about Ronja
4 questions, on how popular she is, how to say it, whether she is rising and sister names.
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How popular is Ronja?
Her best rank is No. 74 in Norway in 2025, about 1 in 256 girls. She is in the published lists of 13 of our 40 regions.
How do you pronounce Ronja?
RON-yah, with 2 syllables.
Is Ronja getting more popular?
Over five years: rising in 2 of 11 regions, falling in 6.
Which sister names go with Ronja?
The deck's top five sisters for Ronja: Alva, Linnea, Elin, Hedda and Lotte. Each is scored on style, era, popularity and origin, with sound clashes flagged.