Oliver (given name)


Oliver is a masculine given name of Old French and Medieval British origin;
Oliver is one of Charlemagne's retainers in the eleventh-century Song of Roland.
The name was generally associated with the Latin term/name olivarius "olive tree planter", but may have been connected with the Germanic names *wulfa- "wolf" and *χarja- "army", or the Old Norse Óleifr ; or a genuinely West Germanic name, perhaps from ala- "all" and wēra "true", or from alf "elf" and hari "army, warrior" the Anglo-Saxon Alfhere and the Greek name Eleutherios.
Modern variants include French Olivier, Hungarian Olivér, Irish Oilibhéar or Oilibhéir, Scottish Gaelic Oilvreis, Portuguese Olívio, Italian Oliviero, Spanish Óliver.
The name was introduced to England by the Normans where its form was possibly influenced again by its Anglo-Saxon cognate Alfhere. It was commonly used in medieval England, but became rare after the Restoration, because of the unpopularity of Oliver Cromwell. The name was revived in the nineteenth century, possibly inspired by the title character of Dickens' Oliver Twist. Pet forms of the English given name include Ollie.
In 2015, Oliver was the most popular name for boys in Australia.

Persons with the given name