Head to head · Boys' names
Ace vs Ivan
#164 vs #162 in 2025
Ivan is a whisker ahead (#162 vs #164 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Ivan is holding its place on the charts, Ace is climbing the charts fast. On momentum, Ace has the edge.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Ivan leads 5 measures of 6; Ace leads 1.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Ace #725, Ivan #321 — Ivan higher
- 1890s: Ace #871, Ivan #231 — Ivan higher
- 1900s: Ace #991, Ivan #211 — Ivan higher
- 1910s: Ace #1563, Ivan #188 — Ivan higher
- 1920s: Ace #1815, Ivan #185 — Ivan higher
- 1930s: Ace #1725, Ivan #213 — Ivan higher
- 1940s: Ace #1605, Ivan #281 — Ivan higher
- 1950s: Ace #1891, Ivan #316 — Ivan higher
- 1960s: Ace #2225, Ivan #302 — Ivan higher
- 1970s: Ace #2142, Ivan #279 — Ivan higher
- 1980s: Ace #1840, Ivan #218 — Ivan higher
- 1990s: Ace #2203, Ivan #162 — Ivan higher
- 2000s: Ace #1344, Ivan #132 — Ivan higher
- 2010s: Ace #411, Ivan #133 — Ivan higher
- 2020s: Ace #166, Ivan #158 — Ivan higher
Ivan stood higher in every recorded decade — 15 of 15.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Ace | Ivan |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #725 | #321 |
| 1890s | #871 | #231 |
| 1900s | #991 | #211 |
| 1910s | #1563 | #188 |
| 1920s | #1815 | #185 |
| 1930s | #1725 | #213 |
| 1940s | #1605 | #281 |
| 1950s | #1891 | #316 |
| 1960s | #2225 | #302 |
| 1970s | #2142 | #279 |
| 1980s | #1840 | #218 |
| 1990s | #2203 | #162 |
| 2000s | #1344 | #132 |
| 2010s | #411 | #133 |
| 2020s | #166 | #158 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Ace
the one on dice or cards; by extension, an expert
The English word comes through Old French from Latin 'as', a Roman coin and unit of one. A separate, much older road exists: Ace also appears as a medieval English given name of Norman origin, unrelated to the card sense.
as (Latin) → as (Old French) → ace (Middle English) → Ace
How it traveled
The word traveled from Latin 'as' — a single unit, a small Roman coin — into Old French as 'as', the one-spot on a die, and from there into Middle English. In card play its fortunes reversed: the lowest card came to outrank the king in game after game, which is roughly how 'ace' picked up its second life as a word for the best of something.
Ivan
God is gracious
From the Hebrew name meaning God has been gracious, through Greek and Church Slavonic. The Slavic languages took it from the Byzantine form rather than the Latin one, which is why it begins with a vowel where the western forms begin with a consonant.
Yohanan → Ioannes → Ivan
How it traveled
Russian folk tales keep giving the kingdom to the youngest of three brothers, and they call him the fool. Ivan the Fool lies on the stove, does no work, is despised by his clever brothers, and then succeeds at the impossible task because he is kind to an animal or an old woman the others ignored.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Ace
AYSS
One syllable, rhyming with face. No regional variation to worry about, and almost no one needs to hear it twice.
- Acey — Informal extension used by family and friends; not a formal alternative.
- Ace — Also works the other way round — Ace has long served as an informal nickname for boys and men whose names begin with A, or whose initials spell it out.
Ivan
ee-VAHN
Two syllables with the stress at the back in Russian and in Spanish. American English often says EYE-vun instead, which is a noticeably different name.
- Vanya — The standard Russian familiar form, used for men of any age by family and friends.
- Van — The back of the name, and a short form that travels easily in English.
Who has carried each name
Ace
No documented entry for Ace yet.
Ivan
Ivan Pavlov (b. 1849) — The scientist of Pavlov's dogs
Ivan Turgenev (b. 1818) — Wrote Fathers and Sons
Ivan the Terrible (b. 1530) — The first tsar of Russia
Source: Wikidata — the one source on this page that is not an official agency.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Ace if you want…
- a name on the way upup 35 places on the charts in five years
- a name with fewer syllablesAce is 1 syllable to Ivan's 2
- a newer arrivalAce entered the US charts in 1882
Choose Ivan if you want…
- a name holding steadyIvan is holding its place on the charts
- a name with more sound in itIvan runs 2 syllables, Ace 1
- a long American recordIvan was already in use when US records began in 1880
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Ace
Strengths
- One syllable, four letters, spelled the way it sounds — rarely misheard, rarely misspelled, easy for a child to write early.
- A word already known to every English speaker, so it needs no explanation and no correction over the phone.
- Pairs cleanly with long or multi-syllable surnames, where a short first name carries well.
To consider
- It is a word before it is a name, and the word means 'the best'. Expect the pun — in sports, in report cards, in first introductions — for a lifetime. Some families like that; some find it a lot to hand over.
- There is no longer form to fall back on. A child who wants something more formal for a résumé or a signature has nowhere to retreat.
- Among younger people, 'ace' also circulates as shorthand for asexual, a meaning worth knowing about even though it rarely causes confusion with a name.
Ivan
Strengths
- It is a standing name in a dozen languages rather than an invention.
- The meaning is documented and the descent is unbroken.
- It works in Russian, Spanish and English households without adjustment.
To consider
- The English and Slavic readings move the stress, so the name is said two ways.
- Iven and Ivon will both be written for it.
- The record holds this spelling for daughters as well, though almost never.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Ace and Ivan in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Ace and Ivan?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
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More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists that carry both names
Every list here names both Ace and Ivan — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Ace or Ivan — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Ace or Ivan?
- Ivan, in 2025: Ivan ranked #162 with 2,240 babies; Ace ranked #164 with 2,239 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Ace or Ivan?
- Ace. Over the last five years Ace moved up 35 places; Ivan moved down 9 places.
- Which is the older name, Ace or Ivan?
- Ace entered the US charts in 1882; Ivan was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, Ivan is the older name.
- How many people are named Ace and Ivan?
- About 25,500 people named Ace are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 124,000 people named Ivan are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Aces or Ivans in the classroom?
- Ace will almost certainly be the only one in school. Ivan will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Ace, Ivan and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
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