Vivien
Feminine · “alive”
Vivien is overwhelmingly a girls’ name — 7,403 girls against 26 boys since 1880.
Vivien is alive, in Latin, and in the Arthurian romances she is the Lady of the Lake — the woman who takes Merlin's magic and shuts him up with it.
How old is the name Vivien?
Vivien first appears in US birth records in 1885 — 140 years ago. The typical Vivien alive today was born around 2000, making them about 25 years old. About 5,300 people named Vivien are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Vivien most popular?
Vivien peaked in 1911, reaching #511 nationally. Today it ranks #1844, 1,333 places below that high. See the whole 1911 chart.
Vivien appears on these lists:
Where it comes from
From vivus to Vivien
The story of Vivien
Viviane or Nimue is the Lady of the Lake in the French romances — she gives Arthur Excalibur, raises Lancelot, and traps Merlin after learning everything he knows. Tennyson gives her a whole Idyll. Vivien Leigh, who was born Vivian, carried the spelling from the 1930s. It appears in American records in current use.
Meaning
alive, lively
From the Latin vivus, 'alive' or 'living', through Vivianus. The same root gives vivid, revive, survive and vitamin. The Latin is ordinary and the meaning undisputed. Vivien is the French and English feminine spelling; Vivian serves both sexes.
How the name formed
- vivus
- Vivianus
- Vivien
Related forms: Vivienne · Vivian · Viviana
Pronouncing Vivien
VIV-ee-un
Three syllables, stress on the first. French Vivienne places the stress at the end.
Nicknames for Vivien
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1885
- Most girls named
- 2014248 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #511reached in 1911
- Change vs 2022
- −8.5%108 in 2025, from 118
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Vivien in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Vivienne in French — related form
- Vivian in English — spelling variant
- Viviana in Italian — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, New York.
Viviens among us
people named Vivien are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 14,882 born in 2025 was named Vivien
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Vivien sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Vivien is headed
Vivien is easing off slowly — about 16% fewer babies a year by 2030 if the trend continues.
High confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Vivien beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Vivien in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The alive meaning is transparent, undisputed and about as good as meanings get.
- The Lady of the Lake is one of the more formidable figures in Arthurian romance.
- Vivi and Viv are two short forms, both with real currency.
- Vivian is the unisex spelling and Vivienne the French one.
- The three spellings are constantly confused.
- One actress carries a strong twentieth-century association.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Vivien
Feminine · #1844 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Viviens are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 5,300 people named Vivien are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Vivien in 2025?
- Vivien ranks #1844 among US girl names in 2025, with 108 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Vivien?
- About 1 in every 14,882 US girls born in 2025 was named Vivien — 108 in all.
- Will my child share the name Vivien with classmates?
- Vivien will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Vivien
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Darlene#1844 · Leen#1844 · Rhaenyra#1844 · Ambar#1844 · Emberleigh#1844 · Francine#1844 · Elissa#1844 · Brenna#1844
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Vivien? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Vivien and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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