How popular is the baby name Oskar in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Oskar.

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Popularity of the baby name Oskar


Posts that mention the name Oskar

Popular baby names in Iceland, 2023

Flag of Iceland
Flag of Iceland

Last year, the island nation of Iceland welcomed over 4,200 babies.

What were the most popular names among these babies? Emilía and Birnir.

Below are Iceland’s top 50+ girl names and top 50+ boy names of 2023. (Please note that I created these two gendered sets of rankings from the single non-gendered set of rankings that Iceland released.)

Girl names

  1. Emilía, 23 baby girls
  2. Sara, 22
  3. Aþena, 21 (3-way tie)
  4. Embla, 21 (3-way tie)
  5. Sóley, 21 (3-way tie)
  6. Emma, 20
  7. Katla, 19
  8. Eva, 18 (4-way tie)
  9. Lilja, 18 (4-way tie)
  10. Una, 18 (4-way tie)
  11. Viktoría, 18 (4-way tie)
  12. Anna, 16 (3-way tie)
  13. Bríet, 16 (3-way tie)
  14. Hekla, 16 (3-way tie) – inspired by Hekla, the name of one of Iceland’s most active volcanoes.
  15. Matthildur, 15 (tie)
  16. Salka, 15 (tie)
  17. Birta, 14 (3-way tie)
  18. Hafdís, 14 (3-way tie)
  19. Katrín, 14 (3-way tie)
  20. Andrea, 13 (3-way tie)
  21. Freyja, 13 (3-way tie)
  22. Natalía, 13 (3-way tie)
  23. Íris, 12 (4-way tie)
  24. Iðunn, 12 (4-way tie)
  25. Kristín, 12 (4-way tie)
  26. Móeiður, 12 (4-way tie)
  27. Ástrós, 11 (5-way tie)
  28. Fanney, 11 (5-way tie) – modern coinage created from elements meaning “snowdrift” and “island.”
  29. Hrafntinna, 11 (5-way tie)
  30. Saga, 11 (5-way tie)
  31. Ylfa, 11 (5-way tie)
  32. Elín, 10 (5-way tie)
  33. Heiðdís, 10 (5-way tie)
  34. Hildur, 10 (5-way tie)
  35. Júlía, 10 (5-way tie)
  36. Laufey, 10 (5-way tie)
  37. Amelía, 9 (12-way tie)
  38. Aría, 9 (12-way tie)
  39. Dagbjört, 9 (12-way tie)
  40. Glódís, 9 (12-way tie) – modern coinage created from elements meaning “to shine” and “goddess.”
  41. Helena, 9 (12-way tie)
  42. Ísabella, 9 (12-way tie)
  43. Karítas, 9 (12-way tie)
  44. Klara, 9 (12-way tie)
  45. Máney, 9 (12-way tie)
  46. María, 9 (12-way tie)
  47. Sigrún, 9 (12-way tie)
  48. Sóldís, 9 (12-way tie)
  49. Alexandra, 8 (9-way tie)
  50. Edda, 8 (9-way tie)
  51. Eldey, 8 (9-way tie)
  52. Harpa, 8 (9-way tie)
  53. Írena, 8 (9-way tie)
  54. Margrét, 8 (9-way tie)
  55. Rakel, 8 (9-way tie)
  56. Ronja, 8 (9-way tie)
  57. Þórdís, 8 (9-way tie)

Boy names

  1. Birnir, 30 baby boys
  2. Emil, 28
  3. Elmar, 25 (tie)
  4. Jón, 25 (tie)
  5. Óliver 24
  6. Aron, 23
  7. Viktor, 22
  8. Jökull, 21
  9. Alexander, 20
  10. Atlas, 19
  11. Gunnar, 18
  12. Baldur, 17 (tie)
  13. Mikael, 17 (tie)
  14. Breki, 16 (3-way tie) – derived from an Old Norse word meaning “breaker.”
  15. Styrmir, 16 (3-way tie)
  16. Theodór, 16 (3-way tie)
  17. Arnar, 15 (3-way tie)
  18. Kári, 15 (3-way tie)
  19. Óðinn, 15 (3-way tie)
  20. Baltasar, 14 (3-way tie)
  21. Elías, 14 (3-way tie)
  22. Huginn, 14 (3-way tie)
  23. Daníel, 13 (4-way tie)
  24. Hilmir, 13 (4-way tie)
  25. Ísak, 13 (4-way tie)
  26. Úlfur, 13 (4-way tie)
  27. Gabríel, 12 (4-way tie)
  28. Guðmundur, 12 (4-way tie)
  29. Ólafur, 12 (4-way tie)
  30. Tómas, 12 (4-way tie)
  31. Ari, 11 (11-way tie)
  32. Benedikt, 11 (11-way tie)
  33. Benjamín, 11 (11-way tie)
  34. Björn, 11 (11-way tie)
  35. Brynjar, 11 (11-way tie)
  36. Dagur, 11 (11-way tie)
  37. Erik, 11 (11-way tie)
  38. Kristján, 11 (11-way tie)
  39. Kristófer, 11 (11-way tie)
  40. Matthías, 11 (11-way tie)
  41. Sigurður, 11 (11-way tie)
  42. Anton, 10 (7-way tie)
  43. Atli, 10 (7-way tie)
  44. Ágúst, 10 (7-way tie)
  45. Hinrik, 10 (7-way tie)
  46. Jóhann, 10 (7-way tie)
  47. Magnús, 10 (7-way tie)
  48. Stefán, 10 (7-way tie)
  49. Adam, 9 (8-way tie)
  50. Bergur, 9 (8-way tie)
  51. Birkir, 9 (8-way tie)
  52. Leó, 9 (8-way tie)
  53. Máni, 9 (8-way tie)
  54. Óskar, 9 (8-way tie)
  55. Stormur, 9 (8-way tie)
  56. Tristan, 9 (8-way tie)

Interesting names from outside the top 50 include…

  • Rökkvi (masculine name, given to 8 babies), which may mean “twilight.”
  • Kolbrá (fem., 5 babies), a modern coinage created from elements meaning “black, dark” and “eyelash.”
  • Hrafnkatla (fem., 3 babies), the feminine form of Hrafnkell, which is made up of elements meaning “raven” and “cauldron.”
  • Tindur (masc., 3 babies), derived from an Old Norse word meaning “spike,” “tooth,” “mountain peak.”
  • Þráinn (masc., 3 babies), based on an Old Norse word meaning “obstinacy.”
  • Krummi (masc., 2 babies), which could mean either “bent, crooked” or “raven.”

And what about the single-use names?

Over 980 names were bestowed just once in Iceland last year. Here’s a sampling of Iceland’s unique baby names of 2023:

Apolonia, Broteva, Dofri, Esjar, Friðþjófur, Gígja, Gíslason, Hlín, Indriði, Jóvin, Kjalar, Myrkár, Náttey, Ösp, Possible, Röskva, Spói, Torfi, Undína, Völundur, Yndís, Zebbý

Here are simplified definitions for a few of the above…

  • Friðþjófur (masc.), made up of elements meaning “peace” and “thief”
    • A name that means “peace thief” seems very appropriate for a newborn baby. :)
  • Gígja (fem.), meaning “fiddle.”
  • Ösp (fem.), meaning “aspen tree.”
  • Röskva (fem.), meaning “vigorous,” “brave.”
  • Spói (masc.), from the Icelandic word spói, which refers to the whimbrel (a type of bird).

Gíslason — a surname that was likely used as a masculine forename (given that -son ending) — may have been inspired by Icelandic soccer player Rúrik Gíslason.

I didn’t post about Iceland’s top baby names of 2022, but here are Iceland’s 2021 rankings.

Sources: Vinsælustu nöfnin 2023 – Þjóðskrá, Births – Statistics Iceland, Nordic Names, Wiktionary

Image: Adapted from Flag of Iceland (public domain)

How did Uta Hagen get her name?

Actress and acting teacher Uta Hagen (1919-2004)
Uta Hagen

Tony-award winning actress and drama instructor Uta (pronounced OO-ta) Hagen was born to parents Oskar and Thyra Hagen of Göttingen, Germany, in June of 1919.

Uta’s father Oskar, an art historian, named her after the statue of Uta von Ballenstedt at Naumburg Cathedral.

The statue is one of a dozen life-size sculptures that depict individuals who helped establish the church during the 11th century. These “donor figures,” created during the 13th century, have since become well-known examples of early Gothic sculpture in Germany. The statue of Uta von Ballenstedt is thought to have influenced the Walt Disney animators who created the Evil Queen in Snow White, in fact.

Uta von Ballenstedt statue
Uta von Ballenstedt statue

In 1924, Uta Hagen’s family — which included an older brother named Holger — emigrated to the U.S and settled in Madison, Wisconsin. The following year, Oskar Hagen founded the University of Wisconsin’s Art History department.

The feminine name Uta is related to the masculine name Otto, which was originally a short form of Germanic compound names containing the element od/ot, meaning “prosperity, wealth.”

Sources:

Images: Adapted from Robeson Hagen Othello (public domain); adapted from Naumburger Dom 240 by Thomas Hummel under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Popular baby names in Poland, 2023

Flag of Poland
Flag of Poland

Last year, the European country of Poland welcomed approximately 272,000 babies.

What were the most popular names among all these babies? Zofia and Nikodem.

Here are Poland’s top 50 girl names and top 50 boy names of 2023:

Girl names

  1. Zofia, 4,968 baby girls
  2. Zuzanna, 4,800
  3. Laura, 4,602
  4. Hanna, 4,565
  5. Maja, 4,461
  6. Julia, 4,254
  7. Oliwia, 3,846
  8. Pola, 3,692
  9. Alicja, 3,593
  10. Maria, 3,137
  11. Lena, 2,966
  12. Antonina, 2,912
  13. Emilia, 2,785
  14. Amelia, 2,759
  15. Klara, 2,660
  16. Michalina, 2,644
  17. Iga, 2,563
  18. Liliana, 2,561
  19. Wiktoria, 2,531
  20. Helena, 2,511
  21. Marcelina, 2,351
  22. Gabriela, 1,883
  23. Aleksandra, 1,878
  24. Nela, 1,768
  25. Kornelia, 1,761
  26. Lucja, 1,732
  27. Blanka, 1,636
  28. Anna, 1,581
  29. Nadia, 1,565
  30. Natalia, 1,441
  31. Lilianna, 1,422
  32. Jagoda, 1,410
  33. Mia, 1,232
  34. Milena, 1,148
  35. Róza, 1,132
  36. Kaja, 1,127
  37. Rozalia, 1,103
  38. Anastazja, 1,063
  39. Nina, 1,001
  40. Aniela, 984
  41. Weronika, 959
  42. Sara, 937
  43. Nikola, 917
  44. Barbara, 892
  45. Aurelia, 880
  46. Matylda, 845
  47. Liwia, 779
  48. Karolina, 752
  49. Martyna, 712
  50. Agata, 656

Boy names

  1. Nikodem, 6,532 baby boys
  2. Antoni, 5,663
  3. Jan, 5,638
  4. Aleksander, 5,625
  5. Franciszek, 4,965
  6. Leon, 4,916
  7. Jakub, 4,474
  8. Ignacy, 4,166
  9. Mikolaj, 4,081
  10. Stanislaw, 3,874
  11. Filip, 3,506
  12. Szymon, 3,269
  13. Wojciech, 3,078
  14. Adam, 2,889
  15. Tymon, 2,782
  16. Marcel, 2,759
  17. Kacper, 2,684
  18. Maksymilian, 2,655
  19. Oliwier, 2,578
  20. Wiktor, 2,347
  21. Michal, 2,183
  22. Igor, 1,899
  23. Julian, 1,855 (tie)
  24. Milosz, 1,855 (tie)
  25. Tymoteusz, 1,724 (tie)
  26. Gabriel, 1,724 (tie)
  27. Oskar, 1,683
  28. Piotr, 1,630
  29. Dawid, 1,276
  30. Bruno, 1,186
  31. Hubert, 1,159
  32. Krzysztof, 1,069
  33. Natan, 1,065
  34. Bartosz, 1,053
  35. Dominik, 1,022
  36. Mateusz, 900
  37. Cezary, 886
  38. Henryk, 880
  39. Alan, 869
  40. Karol, 866
  41. Tadeusz, 861
  42. Fabian, 837
  43. Tomasz, 830
  44. Maciej, 783
  45. Teodor, 761
  46. Ksawery, 752
  47. Milan, 733
  48. Artur, 722
  49. Leo, 669
  50. Pawel, 640

(Because L-with-a-stroke and Z-with-an-overdot don’t render properly on my site, you’ll have to imagine they exist in several of the above: the girl names Lucja and Róza, and the boy names Mikolaj, Stanislaw, Michal, Milosz, and Pawel.)

Poland’s data goes all the way down to names with just two instances of usage, so here’s a sampling of the rare baby names at the opposite end of the spectrum:

Rare girl namesRare boy names
Aryna, Burla, Christine, Dziyana, Esti, Flavia, Goja, Hafsa, Iwanna, Jutrzenka, Kleopatra, Latika, Miszel, Nasturcja, Oryslava, Polianna, Raya, Svitlana, Tinatin, Ursula, Vienna, Wiera, Yevahelina, ZoryanaArseniusz, Bozydar, Czarek, Dachi, Ege, Ferdinand, Gabrielius, Hleb, Ioannis, Joszko, Kerem, Lotar, Maciek, Nicolai, Oktawiusz, Przemek, Reece, Szarbel, Tymek, Umut, Vitali, Wolfgang, Yanis, Zawisza

On the girls’ side: Jutrzenka means “dawn” in Polish, and Nasturcja is the Polish word for nasturtium (a type of flower).

On the boys’ side: Hleb (Belarusian) comes from Gleb (Russian), which comes from Guðleifr (Old Norse: “god” + “heir”), and Zawisza can be traced back to a Slavic word meaning “envy.”

Finally, here are Poland’s 2022 rankings, if you’d like to compare last year to the year before.

Sources: Imiona nadawane dzieciom w Polsce – Otwarte Dane, Births drop to new postwar low in Poland as population falls almost 1 million in a decade – Notes from Poland, Behind the Name

Image: Adapted from Flag of Poland (public domain)

Popular baby names in Norway, 2022

Flag of Norway
Flag of Norway

Last year, the Scandinavian country of Norway (which shares a border with three other countries: Sweden, Finland, and Russia) welcomed 51,480 babies — over 25,000 girls and nearly 26,500 boys.

What were the most popular names among these babies? Nora for girls, and tie between Jakob and Noah for boys.

Here are Norway’s top 50 girl names and top 50 boy names of 2022:

Girl Names

  1. Nora/Norah/Noora, 359 baby girls
  2. Emma, 337
  3. Olivia, 331
  4. Ella, 326
  5. Sofie/Sophie, 315
  6. Leah/Lea, 288
  7. Frida, 269
  8. Iben, 266 (tie)
  9. Sofia/Sophia, 266 (tie)
  10. Sara/Sarah/Zara, 262
  11. Maja/Maya/Maia, 258
  12. Ingrid, 253
  13. Alma, 249
  14. Selma, 247
  15. Emilie, 243
  16. Ada, 242
  17. Astrid/Astri, 235
  18. Hedda, 233
  19. Anna, 218
  20. Amalie, 211
  21. Ellinor, 210
  22. Aurora, 208
  23. Hedvig, 205
  24. Tiril/Tirill, 203
  25. Hanna/Hannah, 198
  26. Eva, 195
  27. Jenny, 186
  28. Mia, 184
  29. Vilde, 180
  30. Mathilde/Matilde, 177
  31. Ida, 176
  32. Lilly/Lily, 172
  33. Linnea/Linea/Linnéa, 163 (tie)
  34. Live, 163 (tie)
  35. Marie, 151
  36. Ellie, 150
  37. Sigrid, 149
  38. Thea, 145
  39. Julie, 143
  40. Amelia, 142 (tie)
  41. Luna, 142 (tie)
  42. Amanda, 141 (tie)
  43. Solveig, 141 (tie)
  44. Tuva, 139
  45. Mie, 133
  46. Agnes, 131
  47. Josefine/Josephine, 129
  48. Hermine, 121 (3-way tie)
  49. Signe, 121 (3-way tie)
  50. Ylva, 121 (3-way tie) – based on the Old Norse word ulfr, meaning “wolf.”

Boy Names

  1. Jakob/Jacob, 414 baby boys (tie)
  2. Noah/Noa, 414 (tie)
  3. Emil, 405 (tie)
  4. Lucas/Lukas, 405 (tie)
  5. Oliver, 382
  6. Isak/Isac/Isaac, 381
  7. William, 348
  8. Filip/Philip/Fillip/Phillip, 343
  9. Aksel/Axel, 321 (tie)
  10. Theodor/Teodor, 321 (tie)
  11. Ludvig/Ludvik, 310
  12. Oskar/Oscar, 300
  13. Liam, 282
  14. Johannes, 280
  15. Elias, 277
  16. Kasper/Casper/Kacper, 276
  17. Magnus, 270 (tie)
  18. Tobias, 270 (tie)
  19. Henrik, 263
  20. Mathias/Matias, 247 (tie)
  21. Olav, 247 (tie)
  22. Viktor/Victor/Wiktor, 235
  23. Ulrik, 230
  24. Matheo, 223
  25. Adam, 215
  26. Gustav, 208
  27. Muhammad/Mohammad/Mohammed/Mohamed/Muhammed, 206
  28. Sander, 205
  29. Alfred, 203
  30. Håkon/Haakon, 201 (tie)
  31. Theo/Teo, 201 (tie)
  32. Herman/Hermann, 185
  33. Benjamin, 179
  34. Jonas, 178
  35. Mikkel, 174
  36. Odin, 165
  37. Birk, 164
  38. Johan, 163 (tie)
  39. Leon, 163 (tie)
  40. Felix, 162
  41. Even, 157 (tie)
  42. Sebastian, 157 (tie)
  43. Vetle, 156 – based on the Old Norse word vetrliði, meaning “winter-farer,” and, by extension, “bear cub” (i.e., a bear that has lived one winter).
  44. Iver, 155
  45. Leo, 150
  46. Jens, 144 (tie)
  47. Markus/Marcus, 144 (tie)
  48. Alexander/Aleksander, 140
  49. Kristian/Christian, 133
  50. Sverre, 132 – based on the Old Norse verb sverra, meaning “to spin or swirl about,” and, by extension, “troublemaker.”

The two fastest-climbing names were Birk, which rose from 70th to 37th on the boys’ list, and Hedvig, which rose from 38th to 23rd on the girls’ list.

Home to more than 5.4 million people, Norway is — at the moment — divided into 11 administrative regions, or “counties.” (The original 19 counties were reduced to 11 in 2020; the current 11 counties will be expanded to 15 in 2024.)

Map of the 11 administrative regions of Norway
Norway’s 11 administrative regions

The top baby names within each of Norway’s 11 counties last year were…

Girl namesBoy names
Viken1. Olivia, 85
2. Leah, 76
3. Ella, 75
4. Emma, 71
5. Ingrid, 67		1. Noah, 102
2. Oliver, 97
3. Jakob, 95
4. Theodor, 88
5. Filip/Lucas/Oskar, 81 each (3-way tie)
Oslo1. Sofia, 63
2. Hedvig, 56
3. Nora, 50
4. Sofie, 48
5. Ada/Anna, 47 each (tie)		1. Mohammad, 77
2. Jakob, 65
3. Olav, 59
4. Noah, 57 (tie)
5. William, 57 (tie)
Vestland1. Ella, 52
2. Nora, 51
3. Emma, 50
4. Sara, 43
5. Sofie, 41		1. Emil, 61
2. Jakob, 53
3. Oliver, 48
4. Ulrik, 47
5. Lucas, 44
Rogaland1. Sara, 37
2. Frida, 36
3. Maja, 32 (3-way tie)
4. Nora, 32 (3-way tie)
5. Sofie, 32 (3-way tie)		1. Emil, 43
2. Noah, 42
3. Filip, 38 (tie)
4. Oliver, 38 (tie)
5. Lucas, 35
Trøndelag1. Selma, 33
2. Ada, 32 (4-way tie)
3. Emma, 32 (4-way tie)
4. Leah, 32 (4-way tie)
5. Nora, 32 (4-way tie)		1. Emil, 50
2. Oliver, 47
3. Aksel, 46 (tie)
4. Isak, 46 (tie)
5. Magnus, 38
Vestfold og Telemark1. Nora, 30
2. Olivia, 28
3. Ella, 23
4. Iben, 21
5. Emma/Sofie, 20 each (tie)		1. Emil, 34 (tie)
2. Noah, 34 (tie)
3. Lucas, 33
4. William, 31
5. Jakob, 29
Innlandet1. Aurora, 25 (tie)
2. Sofie, 25 (tie)
3. Ella, 24
4. Emma/Ingrid/Nora/Olivia, 22 each (4-way tie)		1. Emil, 35
2. Lucas, 31
3. Magnus, 29
4. Filip, 28
5. Oliver, 25
Agder1. Emma, 31 (tie)
2. Olivia, 31 (tie)
3. Nora, 27
4. Ella, 26
5. Leah, 24		1. Lucas, 40
2. Isak, 27 (tie)
3. Theodor, 27 (tie)
4. Henrik, 26 (tie)
5. Noah, 26 (tie)
Møre og Romsdal1. Anna, 18 (tie)
2. Nora, 18 (tie)
3. Olivia, 17 (tie)
4. Selma, 17 (tie)
5. Alma/Aurora/Emma, 16 each (3-way tie)		1. Noah, 26
2. Kasper, 22
3. Emil, 20 (tie)
4. Isak, 20 (tie)
5. Lucas, 19
Troms og Finnmark1. Ella, 18
2. Anna, 16
3. Amalie/Astrid/Emilie/Maja/Olivia/Sigrid, 14 each (6-way tie)		1. Jakob, 27
2. Isak, 25
3. Emil, 23
4. Johannes, 22
5. Elias, 19
Nordland1. Nora, 21
2. Ella, 15 (tie)
3. Iben, 15 (tie)
4. Emma/Frida/Ingrid/Signe, 12 each (4-way tie)		1. Isak, 29
2. Jakob, 24
3. Filip/Henrik/William, 17 each (3-way tie)

And what about the names at the other end of the spectrum?

Single-use names were given to nearly 8% of the baby girls and 7% of the baby boys born in Norway last year. We don’t have access to these unique names — the country doesn’t release names given to three or fewer babies per year (due to privacy concerns) — but here’s a selection of the names given to four babies:

Rare girl namesRare boy names
Aase, Agathe, Annabelle, Anneli, Anny, Aud, Azra, Bjørg, Borghild, Cassandra, Cecilia, Daria, Eden, Elizabeth, Emely, Felicia, Gabrielle, Grete, Helen, Helin, Henrikke, Irina, Kamila, Kate, Kaya, Leni, Lidia, Marita, Martyna, Nadine, Norunn, Ragne, Ruby, Savannah, Signy, Silvia, Solvår, SylviaAbbas, Abdul, Adem, Ahmet, Ammar, Ansgar, Are, Arvid, Bogdan, Brynjar, Christer, Dani, Denis, Evald, Fred, Haris, Hassan, Hauk, Hubert, Hussain, Idar, Ingmar, Jamal, Jaran, Jarl, Kenan, Mahad, Mattias, Mehdi, Morgan, Niclas, Nikola, Oddvar, Olivier, Ove, Ravn, Roald, Rolf, Rune, Sean, Sigvald, Stanislaw, Steinar, Svein, Søren, Tønnes, Viggo, Wojciech, Yasin, Yosef, Youssef

Finally, here’s a link to Norway’s 2021 rankings, if you’d like to compare last year to the year before.

Sources: Navn – Statistics Norway, Sjekk listen over de mest populære navnene i 2022 – Statistics Norway, Uvanlige navn – før og nå – Statistics Norway, Births – Statistics Norway, Regions of Norway – Wikipedia, Counties of Norway – Wikipedia, Behind the Name, Nordic Names

Image: Adapted from Flag of Norway (public domain)
Map: Nye fylker by Furfur (public domain)