Male name
Oscar
70,293 births (England and Wales, 1996–2025), peaking in 2013. Expression number: 2.
Origin
Exact origin uncertain. Resuscitated by James Mcpherson in The Works of Ossian (1765). Napoleon, an admirer of the Ossianic poems, chose it for his godson Oscar Bernadotte, who became a king of Sweden. The modern given name is a conflation of two unrelated names: first, Middle Irish Oscar (the name of Fionn Mac Cumhaill's grandson in Irish mythology), from Middle Irish os (“deer”) + cara (“friend”); and second, Old English Ōscār, Ōsgār (personal name, literally “spear of the gods/spear of God”), from Old English ōs (“god”) and gār (“spear”) (see Oswald). Compare German Ansgar (personal name), Danish Asker, Asger (personal name), Norwegian Asgeir (personal name), Icelandic Ásgeir (personal name). (Academy Award): Disputed. Said to have been named by actress Bette Davis after her first husband, Harmon Oscar Nelson, or by secretary Margaret Herrick after her cousin Oscar Pierce.From Wiktionary, entry “Oscar”, text under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Do you know a Oscar?
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How many babies received it
From the official birth registers.
In England and Wales
Peak in 2013: 4,511 births. 70,293 births from 1996 to 2025. A name given mostly in the 2010s and 2020s. At its peak, it ranked 7th among boys' names in 2013. It is still given: 14,131 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, Open Government Licence v3.0.
In the United States
Peak in 2006: 3,607 births. 214,168 births from 1880 to 2025. A name given steadily, decade after decade, from the 1910s to the 2020s. At its peak, it ranked 26th among boys' names in 1883. It is still given: 8,580 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names, public domain.
In Ireland
Peak in 2021: 189 births. 3,415 births from 1964 to 2025. A name given mostly in the 2000s, 2010s and 2020s. At its peak, it ranked 30th among boys' names in 2021. It really came into use around 1998. It is still given: 807 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Central Statistics Office, Irish Babies' Names, CC BY 4.0.
Elsewhere in the world
The name in the birth records of the 10 countries we track. The period covered varies from country to country.
| Country | Births | Period | Best rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| France | 28,150 | 1900–2025 | 50th in 2025 |
| Argentina | 10,738 | 2012–2023 | — |
| Switzerland | 3,138* | 1915–2025 | — |
| Belgium | 2,063 | 2014–2023 | — |
| Quebec | 835 | 1980–2025 | — |
| Austria | 696 | 1984–2025 | — |
| Berlin | 677 | 2012–2023 | 82nd in 2023 |
* These are the people living in the country, counted by year of birth, not the number of births.
Source: INSEE, Fichier des prénoms, Etalab Open Licence 2.0; RENAPER, Nombres propios en Argentina, CC BY 4.0 (the registry doesn't record sex); Federal Statistical Office, First names of the population by year of birth, free use with attribution; Statbel, first names of newborns, CC BY 4.0 (one total for the whole period, no yearly breakdown); Retraite Québec, Banque de prénoms, CC BY 4.0; Statistik Austria, Vornamen, CC BY 4.0; Open Data Berlin, Häufige Vornamen, CC BY 3.0 DE (every name a child carries, not only the first).
The numbers of the name
Each letter has a value: A = 1, B = 2… I = 9, then J = 1 again (Pythagorean method). We add them up, then reduce to a single digit, except 11, 22 and 33.
■ vowel · ■ consonant
Expression
All the letters: talents, the way you act.
2
cooperation, sensitivity, connection
6 + 1 + 3 + 1 + 9 = 20 → 2
Soul
The vowels: what drives you deep down.
7
reflection, inner life, seeking
6 + 1 = 7
Personality
The consonants: what others notice first.
4
work, structure, stability
1 + 3 + 9 = 13 → 4
- Digits missing from the name
- 2, 4, 5, 7, 8
- Most frequent digit
- 1 · initiative, independence, beginnings
The meaning of the numbers comes from numerological tradition; it isn't a measure of your personality. A full portrait needs your first and middle names, your last name at birth, and your date of birth. How we calculate
Your name and theirs
The number of each name, and the number of the bond, which comes from adding them together. A symbolic game: what your two names say together, to be read as a metaphor, not as a verdict on your relationship.