Most Popular Names in Croatia Over the Last 100 Years

by croatiaweek
November 9, 2017
in News

(Photo credit: Fotovijesti.com)

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, whilst 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.

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
2016 – Luka, Marko, Jakov

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

1950s – Marija, Nada, Ana
1960s – Marija, Vesna, Mirjana
1970s – Ivana, Marija, Sanja
1980s – Ivana, Ana, Martina
1990s – Ivana, Ana, Marija
2000s – Lucija, Ana, Lana
2016 – Mia, Lucija, Petra