Most popular Croatian names over the last 100 years
- by croatiaweek
- in News
The most popular names in Croatia, according to data from the Central Bureau of Statistics, have not deviated too much over the last 100 years.
A number of male names which were in the TOP 10 in the 1920s are still popular today nearly 100 years later. There has been more of a change with female names.
One interesting fact is that in Croatia from 1920 until 1959, the same three names were the most popular and in the same sequence: Ivan, Josip and Stjepan.
The 1960s saw some change, with Željko, Ivan, Ivica the most popular names in the country.
The 70s saw Mario, Ivica and Tomislav take the top 3 spots. Ivan or Ivica has featured in all of the most popular lists since the 1920s.
Ivan is the most popular male name overall over the last 100 years in Croatia, followed by Marko and Stjepan. Marija was the most popular female name overall for girls, followed by Ana and Ivana.
Most Popular Male Names Over the Decades
1920s-50s – Ivan, Josip, Stjepan
1960s – Željko, Ivan, Ivica
1970s – Mario, Ivica, Tomislav
1980s – Ivan, Marko, Tomislav
1990s – Ivan, Marko, Josip
2000s – Luka, Ivan, Marko
2018 – Luka, David, Ivan
Top 10 over the last 100 years
1. Ivan
2. Josip
3. Marko
4. Stjepan
5. Tomislav
6. Željko
7. Ivica
8. Ante
9. Mario
10. Nikola
When it came to female names there was more variety than with the male names, but one name has stood out over a long period of time as being the most popular and that is Marija.
Most Popular Female Names Over the Decades
1920s-40s – Marija, Ana, Kata
1940s – Marija, Ana, Dragica
1950s – Marija, Nada, Ana
1960s – Marija, Vesna, Mirjana
1970s – Ivana, Marija, Sanja
1980s – Ivana, Ana, Martina
1990s – Ivana, Ana, Marija
2000s – Lucija, Ana, Lana
2018 – Mia, Sara, Lucija
Top 10 over the last 100 years
1. Marija
2. Ana
3. Ivana
4. Mirjana
5. Katarina
6. Nada
7. Dragica
8. Ljubica
9. Vesna
10. Marina
You can see the table of names over the last 100 years here.
(Source: Journal.hr/DZS)
