Fun Facts About the Name Ivor
- 910 babies named Ivor: U.S. records list 910 babies given the name Ivor from 1880 through 2025. Even 46 girls received the name Ivor - about 1 girl for every 19 boys.
What Does the Name Ivor Mean?
Ivor is an English form of the Old Norse personal name Ívarr, and it is customarily translated as "yew warrior." The second part of Ívarr comes from the Germanic element *harja-, meaning "army" or "warrior," which is also the source of Old Norse herr, "army." The first part is disputed. One explanation takes it from ýr, "yew tree," the wood traditionally used for bows, so the sense would be "yew warrior" or "bow warrior." Another explanation connects it to the god-name Ing (Ing/Freyr) and reads the name as "Ing's warrior." Because the first element cannot be settled, the literal meaning is uncertain; "yew warrior" is the customary interpretation rather than a proven one.
The Welsh form of the name is Ifor, and Ivor is best understood as the anglicized spelling of that Welsh form rather than as a separate coinage.
Ivor Name History & Origins
The name came to Britain during the Viking Age. Norse settlers and raiders brought Ívarr to the British Isles, and it entered Welsh as Ifor and English as Ivor. In Gaelic it appears as Ímar, a form borne by Norse rulers of Dublin, whose dynasty was known as the Uí Ímair, "descendants of Ímar."
In Norse tradition the best-known bearer is Ivar the Boneless (Ívarr inn beinlausi), remembered in the sagas as a son of Ragnar Lodbrok, and the legendary Danish king Ivar Vidfamne is another early figure. Old English sources render the same name in forms beginning with Ing-, such as Ingware. These are traditional and literary accounts, not contemporary records of the name's first use.
In Wales the form Ifor was used in the Middle Ages; the twelfth-century lord Ifor Bach (Ifor ap Meurig) of Senghenydd is a documented bearer. In later centuries Ivor remained a familiar given name in Wales and England, and the Welsh composer and actor Ivor Novello (1893 - 1951) is among its notable modern bearers.
The similar-looking name Ivo is a separate Germanic name, and its relationship to Ivor is not clearly established.
How Popular is the Name Ivor?
Ivor recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 1918. Its best rank was #977 in 1902.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1929 | #4,902 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1925 | #5,353 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1923 | #5,302 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1921 | #3,532 | 9 | 0.0007% |
| 1920 | #5,323 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1918 | #4,059 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1916 | #4,757 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1901 | #1,801 | 5 | 0.0021% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #7,884 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2024 | #6,268 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2023 | #8,501 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2022 | #6,278 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2021 | #7,813 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2020 | #8,319 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2018 | #7,824 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2017 | #5,906 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2016 | #11,260 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2015 | #9,967 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2014 | #9,107 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2013 | #10,067 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2010 | #10,084 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2009 | #10,272 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2008 | #13,307 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 2007 | #11,470 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2005 | #12,123 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2004 | #10,480 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2003 | #11,573 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2002 | #6,255 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2001 | #9,743 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1997 | #8,585 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1996 | #9,591 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1990 | #6,720 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1989 | #8,406 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1986 | #3,527 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1984 | #6,735 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1981 | #6,687 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1980 | #5,828 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1979 | #6,450 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1975 | #5,066 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1974 | #4,354 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1973 | #3,104 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 1972 | #4,666 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1971 | #5,242 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1970 | #5,037 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1969 | #3,175 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1968 | #2,985 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1966 | #3,363 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1964 | #2,948 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1963 | #3,815 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1962 | #2,231 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 1960 | #3,201 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1959 | #2,921 | 9 | 0.0004% |
| 1958 | #3,708 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1957 | #3,746 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1956 | #3,347 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1954 | #2,657 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1953 | #2,799 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1952 | #2,771 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1951 | #3,953 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1950 | #2,150 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1949 | #2,697 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1948 | #2,691 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1947 | #3,987 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1946 | #3,027 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1945 | #2,318 | 10 | 0.0007% |
| 1944 | #2,539 | 9 | 0.0007% |
| 1943 | #2,223 | 12 | 0.0008% |
| 1942 | #2,090 | 13 | 0.0009% |
| 1941 | #2,562 | 9 | 0.0007% |
| 1940 | #2,400 | 10 | 0.0009% |
| 1939 | #2,004 | 13 | 0.0012% |
| 1938 | #3,337 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1936 | #2,122 | 12 | 0.0012% |
| 1935 | #2,453 | 10 | 0.0010% |
| 1934 | #2,472 | 10 | 0.0010% |
| 1933 | #1,957 | 14 | 0.0014% |
| 1932 | #2,148 | 13 | 0.0012% |
| 1931 | #2,157 | 13 | 0.0013% |
| 1930 | #2,881 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1929 | #2,256 | 13 | 0.0012% |
| 1928 | #2,572 | 11 | 0.0010% |
| 1927 | #2,465 | 12 | 0.0011% |
| 1926 | #2,250 | 14 | 0.0013% |
| 1925 | #2,842 | 10 | 0.0009% |
| 1924 | #1,867 | 19 | 0.0017% |
| 1923 | #2,278 | 14 | 0.0013% |
| 1922 | #2,407 | 13 | 0.0012% |
| 1921 | #1,944 | 18 | 0.0016% |
| 1920 | #2,674 | 11 | 0.0010% |
| 1919 | #1,666 | 21 | 0.0021% |
| 1918 | #1,628 | 22 | 0.0022% |
| 1917 | #1,864 | 17 | 0.0018% |
| 1916 | #1,894 | 16 | 0.0018% |
| 1915 | #2,240 | 12 | 0.0014% |
| 1914 | #2,537 | 8 | 0.0012% |
| 1913 | #3,041 | 5 | 0.0010% |
| 1912 | #2,142 | 7 | 0.0016% |
| 1910 | #1,502 | 6 | 0.0031% |
| 1902 | #977 | 7 | 0.0057% |
| 1896 | #1,178 | 5 | 0.0042% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Ivor Shapes Your Personality and Life?
Your tendency is to finish whatever you start. You like to use the pen or the needle (writing, fashion design etc). You are loving, compassionate, intuitive and humanitarian. Runs of luck, either good or bad, follow you. You are sympathetic, but at times might be touchy and oversensitive. You may have a gift for writing. You are intuitive and might be interested in the arts, drama or science.
You are always looking for a chance to do your own thing, to be your own person, and to have things done your own way.
✦ Ivor's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Ivor's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.