Name Oliver Origin, meaning, pronunciation & popularity of the name Oliver

Oliver is a ♂ boy’s name.

What is the origin of the name Oliver?

There is no clear origin of the name Oliver. Oliver could be a Scandinavian name as a derivation of Olaf. It is also a form of the Icelandic names Ólafur and Óleifr. But there is also an Old High German origin: Alfhari/Althir, and a Latin one: Olivarius.

What does the name Oliver mean?

Oliver means “olive tree”, “olive” or “olive tree planter” (from Latin “oliva”), “ancestor’s descendant” (from Olaf) or “warlike elf” (from Old High German “alb” = elf + “heri” = army/warrior).

Variants of the name Oliver

In other languages there are other variants of Oliver. In French it’s Olivier, in Italian, it is Oliviero, In Spanish, it’s Oliverio and in Hungary, it Olivér. Female variant are Oliva, Olivera or Olivia.

Nicknames for Oliver

The most common nickname for Oliver is Ollie, however, there are also Ol, Olly, Lolly, Ole and Oggy.

Middle names for Oliver

Popular middle names for Oliver are James, Michael, Philip, Alexander, Scott, Graham, Robert, William John, Henry, Milo, Leo, Elliot, Felix, Miles, Oscar, Sebastian, Finn and Theodore.

Famous people named Oliver

• The British singer Oliver “Olly” Murs (born 1984) won second place at the British singing competition “X-Factor”. He became more famous than the winner and released songs such as “Up”, “Dear Darlin”, “Troublemaker” and “Dance with me tonight”.
• Oliver James Platt (born 1960) is a Canadian actor known for roles in movies such as “Love and other drugs”, “Flatliners”, “Shut In” and “Year One”.
• British actor Oliver Martyn John Phelps (born 1986) is best known for portraying one of the Weasley twins in the “Harry Potter” movies. Oliver has played George Weasley, whereas his twin brother James Andrew Eric Phelps played Fred Weasley.
• The “Lord Protector of Britain”, Oliver Cromwell (1599 - 1658), was the first Lord Protector named in the British Constitution. He was the driving force behind the execution of Charles I.

Fictional characters named Oliver

• The protagonist of Charles Dickens’ (1812 - 1870) world famous novel “Oliver Twist” (1839) is the orphan boy Oliver Twist. Even today it is one of the most popular children’s books.
• In the “Harry Potter” series, Oliver Wood is a student in House Gryffindor as well as the Quidditch team captain. He teaches Harry how to play Quidditch.
• As his alter ego “Green Arrow”, millionaire Oliver Queen fights evil in the “Green Arrow” comics. In the TV show “Arrow”, Oliver Queen is played by Stephen Amell (born 1981) and in the TV show “Smallville”, he is portrayed by Justin Hartley (born 1977).
• In the Oscar winning movie “Call me by your name”, Armand Douglas “Armie” Hammer (born 1986) plays the role of the second lead, the 24-year-old American Oliver.

Oliver as weather phenomenon

Oliver has been the name sake for two high pressure and four low pressure zones in Europe. Oliver was also the name of a tropical cyclone on the Australian east coast in 1993. The cyclone never hit land.

Pronunciation of Oliver

Variants of the name Oliver

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