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 [ 3 syll. o-li-ver, ol-iv-er ] The boy name Oliver is pronounced as AALahVer KEY. Oliver is largely used in the English and German languages. It is derived from Germanic origins. The meaning of the name is elf warrior; olive tree. Alfheri (Germanic) and Olivier (Old French) are old forms of Oliver. The name is possibly derived via Norman from the Old German 'alfihar', itself from the elements 'alf' (elf, supernatural being) and 'heri' (army, warrior) and thus meaning 'elf warrior'; the spelling of the name could have been influenced by the Latin 'olivarius' (olive tree). It was first borne as the French form Olivier by one of the knight companions of Roland in the medieval French poem 'La Chanson de Roland' or 'The Song of Roland'. The other paladins in the poem clearly bear Germanic names; therefore the name Olivier could also have evolved from a Germanic name, possibly from the Scandinavian Olaf. Havelock (Welsh), Oilbhreis (Scottish), Olghar (Scottish), Olivier (French), Oliviero (Italian and Spanish), Olley (English), Olli (English), and Olly (English) are variant forms of Oliver. Other variants of Oliver include the short forms Ol (English) and Oli (English), and the pet forms Noll (English), Nollie (English), and Ollie (English). See also the related form, Olivia (English, German, and Italian). Oliver is popular as a baby boy name, and it is also viewed as trendy. The name's popularity has been rising since the 1960s. At the recent peak of its usage in 2008, 0.165% of baby boys were given the name Oliver. It was #118 in rank then. Out of all boy names in its family, Oliver was the most regularly used in 2008. Baby names that sound like Oliver include Albero (German), Alvaro (Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, and English), Álvaro (Portuguese and Spanish), Alvar (English and Scandinavian), and Allvar (English). Details of famous persons named Oliver: KEY: Pronunciation for Oliver: AA as in "odd (AA.D)" ; L as in "lee (L.IY)" ; AH as in "hut (HH.AH.T)" ; V as in "vee (V.IY)" ; ER as in "hurt (HH.ER.T)"   |
