Oliver

Meaning: Uncertain; possibly ancestor's heir
Origin: French — From Olivier, later linked with the olive tree

Nicknames: Ollie, Oli, Olly

Boy's name · #3 in the US (2025) · Comeback

Popularity over time

Oliver was #67 in 1881, slipped to #472 by 1986, and reached #3 in 2019 and has held it for 7 straight years since. Roughly 270,000 boys have been named Oliver since 1880. In all that time it has never once missed a year of the national records.

Across the states

See where Oliver is more common.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 51 states, the #1 boy's name in 17 of them. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Around the world

Oliver is especially popular in Australia (QLD), Hungary, and Australia (NSW).

#1 in Australia (QLD) (2025) · #2 in Hungary (2025) · #2 in Australia (NSW) (2025) · #2 in Australia (VIC) (2025) · #2 in Estonia (2025) · #3 in Slovakia (2025, through 10 Dec 2025) · #3 in New Zealand (2025) · #4 in Finland (Swedish-sp.) (2025) · #5 in Norway (2025) · #5 in Finland (Finnish-sp.) (2025) · #5 in Scotland (2025) · #5 in Slovenia (2025) and 20 more.

Famous Olivers

Oliver Cromwell — English military and political leader (1599–1658)
Oliver Stone — American filmmaker (born 1946)
Oliver Kahn — German footballer (born 1969)
Oliver Goldsmith — Anglo-Irish writer, poet, and physician (1728–1774)
Oliver Heaviside — British mathematician and electrical engineer (1850–1925)
Oliver Tree — American singer, record producer, and comedian (1993–2026)
Oliver Reed — British actor (1938–1999)
Oliver Platt — American actor (born 1960)
Oliver Hardy — American actor (1892–1957)
Oliver Glasner — Austrian football manager (born 1974)

In stories & tradition

Oliver (Green Arrow) — DC Comics superhero
Oliver Wood — Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
Oliver — Knight in the Matter of France

What Olivers become

Among 5,982 notable people named Oliver:

Medical professionals appear 1.55× more often than among typical names — e.g. Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., American physician, poet and medical reformer (1809–1894).

Twin names

A popular twin pairing with Oliver is Olivia for a girl.

Spellings & nicknames

About 210 boys a year are given Ollie as their full name.

Similar names: Theodore · Henry · Jack · Leo · Sebastian · Everett

Browse more boy names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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