Olive (given name)

Olive is a feminine given name of English origin meaning olive tree. [1] The name is associated with peace because of the symbolism of the olive branch. An olive wreath has traditionally been worn by champions as a symbol of victory.[2] It has also been seen as a symbol of fruitfulness.[3]

Olive
Ancient Roman woman wearing a garland of olives in a fresco from Herculaneum.
GenderFeminine
Origin
Word/nameEnglish
Meaningolive tree
Other names
Related namesOliver, Olivia

Popularity

Olive came into fashion in English-speaking countries in the 1800s along with other tree, plant and flower names for girls[3] and was a more popular name during that era than the related Olivia, which has been among the most popular names for girls in recent years. Olive was among the top hundred names for girls in the United States in the late 1800s and early 1900s and remained among the top one thousand names through 1950. The name declined in popularity in the latter half of the twentieth century.

Its increase in usage in the early twenty-first century has coincided with the popularity of Olivia. It also increased in popularity after the release of the 2006 film Little Miss Sunshine and the 2010 film Easy A, both of which featured a lead character named Olive.[4] In the film Easy A, Olive is said to be an anagram of the words “I love.” [5] Author Laura Wattenberg notes that the name is “aggressively contrarian” and atypical of the style of names that have been popular in recent years but its counterculture style might explain its increase in usage.[6]

Olive has again been among the top one thousand names for newborn American girls since 2007, among the top three hundred names for girls since 2012 and among the top two hundred most popular names for American girls since 2020.

Olive has been similarly popular in England and Wales, where it has been among the top five hundred names for girls since 2008 and was among the hundred most popular names for girls in 2020.[7] [8]

Olive Oyl has been a popular cartoon character.

People

With the given name Olive

With the surname Olive

Arts, entertainment, and media

Fictional characters

Notes

  1. "Meaning, origin and history of the name Olive".
  2. "Olive - Baby Name Meaning, Origin, and Popularity".
  3. Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006). Oxford Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. p. 210. ISBN 0-19-861060-2.
  4. Sandel, Abby (8 October 2012). "Olive: Baby Name of the Day". appellationmountain.net. Appellation Mountain (blog). Retrieved 21 May 2022.
  5. "20 things you probably didn't know about 'Easy A'". Insider.com.
  6. Wattenberg, Laura (2018). The Baby Name Wizard, 2019 Revised 4th Edition: A Magical Method for Finding the Perfect Name for Your Baby. Harmony Books. p. 156. ISBN 978-0-7704-3647-6.
  7. "Popularity for the name Olive - Behind the Name". www.behindthename.com.
  8. "Popular Baby Names".
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