Oliver Meaning

What does Oliver mean?

The name Oliver is of Latin origin.

The meaning of Oliver is "olive tree".

It is also of German origin, where its meaning is "elf army".

Oliver is generally used as a boy's name.

It consists of 6 letters and 3 syllables and is pronounced O-li-ver.

The Given Name Oliver

Popular in medieval times, the name is again popular in the U.S. and very popular in England. Oliver derives from Olivier a Norman French form of a Germanic name such as Alfher and has been influenced by the Latin Oliva meaning "olive tree".

The name may also possibly stem from the the German Alfihar meaning "elf army".

The name has been used in literature since the Middle Ages. It was the name of one of Charlemagne's knights in the French poem Chanson de Roland in the 12th century.

It was the name of the title character in Oliver, a film based on the book "Oliver Twist" by Charles Dickens.

Oliver falls into the name categories classic, song, tree.

Some famous bearers of this name include: Oliver Bozanic, and Oliver Cromwell.

Oliver Popularity

In the U.S. in 2018, it ranked 5 in baby name popularity for boys with 13,389 occurrences. It ranked 6,412 in baby name popularity for girls with 19 occurrences.

In contrast, the year before it ranked 9 in baby name popularity for boys with 13,193 occurrences. It ranked 7,725 in baby name popularity for girls with 15 occurrences.

Want to see how Oliver sizes up? How it compares to some other names? Then check out the Oliver Name Popularity Page.

Oliver Related Names

Oliver is a form of Olivier.

The name Olivier is a form of Oliver.

Oliver has the diminutives (nicknames) Oli, Ollie.

Famous Olivers

Oliver ~ Saint
Oliver Bozanic ~ Soccer Player
Oliver Cromwell ~ English King (1653-1658)
Oliver E. Williamson ~ Nobel Prize for Economics 2009
Oliver Goldsmith ~ Writer
Oliver Hardy ~ Actor
Oliver Platt ~ Actor
Oliver Plunkett ~ Saint
Oliver Seibert ~ Ice Hockey Player
Oliver Smithies ~ Nobel Prize for Medicine 2007
Oliver Twist ~ Oliver Twist character
Oliver Wood ~ Harry Potter character
Oliver Zelenika ~ Soccer Player

Oliver Numerology

What will your new littleOliver be like?

It may all be in the numbers.

The numbers that make up your child's name.

Numerology may give you some insight.

Children named Oliver are often old-fashioned and jittery but most of all they are read more >>

Oliver Name Fun

Would you like to fingerspell the name Oliver in American Sign Language?

Then just follow the diagram below.

Be creative with the name Oliver.

Just for fun, see the name Oliver in Hieroglyphics, learn about ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphics and write a Hieroglyphic message.

Learn about nautical flags and see your name or message written in nautical flags, on the Oliver in Nautical Flags page.