Ava

AY-va

Hebrew, Latin or Germanic

"life; bird; water, island"

Ava Origin and Meaning

The name Ava is a girl's name of Latin origin meaning "life; bird; water, island".

Ava is one of the prime examples of a modern classic name, rising thought the course of a generation into the Top 10, where it has lingered for nearly 20 years.

In medieval times, Ava was a diminutive of Germanic names beginning in Av-, in particular Aveline, from which the name Evelyn would eventually arise. It may derive from a Proto-Germanic root meaning "island" or "water". However, the medieval name eventually fell out of use entirely, only to resurface in contemporary times.

This suggests that today’s Ava may be a modern variation of Eva. Alternatively, Ava could also derive from the Latin avis, meaning "bird." Ava has separate Persian roots as a name meaning "voice" or "sound."

Ava was given a huge popularity boost—Ava's currently among the top girl names and the top girls' name starting with A—when dozens of high-profile stars such as Reese Witherspoon and Hugh Jackman chose Ava for their daughters. Another reason for its appeal: It's one of the elite group of girl names that mean life. This Glamour Girl name via Hollywood beauty Ava Gardner is attractive but epidemically popular!

Some parents who love Ava's simplicity and style have looked on to other choices that might take her place: Eva, Avery, Ada, Aveline and so on. The result, as with other popular names such as Hailey and Aiden that have spawned a raft of imitators, is that Ava is beginning to feel even more ubiquitous than it might otherwise based on its Top 5 standing.

Ava seemed to be headed towards Number 1—it's no accident we titled one of our books on baby name style Beyond Ava & Aiden—but, though it seems to have been somewhat side-swiped by the Olivia-Isabella-Sophia group, it will still certainly stay in the Top 10 for years to come. It's a lovely name on many levels, but if you want something that will stand out, keep looking.

One of the most fascinating things about Ava is that it's a much more ancient name than its modern-feeling sleekness would suggest. St. Ava was the daughter of King Pepin and was cured of blindness and became a nun.

While Ava Gardner represents the Golden Age of Hollywood image of the name, director Ava DuVernay updates it to new Hollywood, together showcasing the name's attractive mix of glamor and strength.

Ava Rank in US Top 1000

# 8 in the US

Ava Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 21 on Nameberry

Ava Popularity

• 8 US 2023
• 21 Nameberry 2024
• 11 Canada 2023
• 9 Future 2028
• 4 England 2022
• 10 Scotland 2023
• 15 Ireland 2023
• 6 Australia 2023
• 8 New Zealand 2023
• 39 France 2023
• 153 Germany 2016
• 190 Netherlands 2015
• 55 Switzerland 2023
• 48 Slovenia 2023
• 77 Dogs 2022
• 92 Cats 2021

20 Names Similar to Ava

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Ava.

• Eva
• Ella
• Isabella
• Avery
• Aria
• Grace
• Amelia
• Emma
• Mia
• Olivia
• Charlotte
• Audrey
• Aurora
• Sophia
• Ada
• Evelyn
• Lily
• Anna
• Arabella
• Chloe

Famous People Named Ava

• Saint Ava Princess of Aquitaine; daughter of Pepin II; cured of blindness by Saint Rainfredis, then became a Benedictine nun
• Ava Marie DuVernay American film director
• Ava Lowle Willing American Socialite; first wife of John Jacob Astor IV
• Ava Alice Muriel Astor American Socialite; daughter of John Jacob Astor IV and Ava Lowle Willing
• Ava Lavinia Gardner American Actress and Singer
• Ava Marlene Barber American country music singer
• Ava Leigh (born Hayley Carline) British reggae singer
• Ava 11th century poet; first woman writer in German
• Ava Astaire McKenzie daughter of actor and dancer Fred Astaire
• Ava Elizabeth Sambora daughter of Richie Sambora and Heather Locklear (b. 1997)
• Ava Elizabeth Phillippe daughter of Ryan Phillippe and Reese Witherspoon (b. 1999)
• Ava Archer Reeves (b. 1999) stillborn daughter of actor Keanu Reeves and Jennifer Syme
• Ava Elizabeth DeLonge (b. 2002) daughter of musician Tom DeLonge and Jennifer Jenkins
• Ava Rose Kathleen McBride (b. 2005) daughter of singer Martina McBride
• Ava Eliot Jackman (b. 2005) daughter of actors Hugh Jackman and Deborra Lee Furness
• Ava Mazurkiewicz (b. 2006) daughter of drummer Paul Mazurkiewicz of Cannibal Corpse
• Ava Carpinello (b. 2006) daughter of actors Amy Acker and James Carpinello
• Ava Lorenn Gosselaar (b. 2006) daughter of actors Mark,Paul Gosselaar and Lisa Ann Russell
• Ava Dillon (b. 2006) daughter of actors Kevin Dillon and Jane Stuart
• Ava Veronica Priestley (b. 2007) daughter of actor and director Jason Priestley
• Ava Lila Rae Niccol (b. 2008) daughter of model Rachel Roberts and director Andrew Niccol
• Ava Rhea Economopoulos (b. 2008) daughter of comedians Caroline Rhea and Costaki Economopoulos
• Ava Jean Blanchard (b. 2008) daughter of actress Tammy Blanchard
• Ava LaRynn Davis (b. 2009) daughter of singer LaKisha Jones and Larry Davis
• Ava Madelyn McGee (b. 2009) daughter of golfer Annika Sorenstam and Mike McGee
• Ava Salazar (b. 2009) daughter of actress Paz Vega and Orson Salazar
• Ava Katherine Otto (b. 2010) daughter of country music singer James Otto
• Ava Reese Biermann (b. 2010) daughter of actress Andrea Roth and Todd Biermann
• Ava Grace Strickland (b. 2011) daughter of reality TV's Melissa Rycroft and Tye Strickland
• Ava Frances Manning (b. 2011) daughter of football player Eli Manning and Abby McGrew
• Ava Jaymes McLean (b. 2012) daughter of singer A.J. McLean and Rochelle Karidis
• Ava Berlin Renner (b. 2013) daughter of actor Jeremy Renner and Sonni Pacheco
• Ava Grace Pobre (b. 2014) daughter of actress Stacy Keibler and Jared Pobre
• Ava Marie Jean Wayans (b. 2014) daughter of Vanessa Simmons and Michael Wayans
• Ava Obi (b. 2015) daughter of footballer Mikel Obi
• Ava Marie Grace Faustino (b. 2015) daughter of actor David Faustino and Lindsay Bronson
• Ava Lane Busby (b. 2015) one of the Busby Quints on "Outdaughtered"
• Ava Kemp (b.2017) daughter of actor Ross Kemp
• Ava Laverne West (b. 2018) daughter of American actress Amber Stevens West & American actor Andrew J. West
• Ava Max (b. 1994 Amanda Ava Koci), American singer/songwriter, singer of breakthrough song "Sweet But Psycho"

Ava in Pop Culture

• Ava London character in "Beneath the Glitter" by Elle and Blair Fowler
• Ava Jerome character on American soap "General Hospital"
• Ava Benton character on American soap "All My Children"
• Ava Peralta character on American soap "Guiding Light"
• Ava Moore transgender character on TV's "Nip/Tuck"
• Ava Lord character in in the "Sin City" series
• Ava Gregory main character on TV's "Summerland"
• Ava Marchetta main character in movie "Material Girls"
• Ava Barlow character in Kristen Ahsley's "Rock Chick" series
• Ava Ire main character in webcomic "Ava's Demon"
• Ava Hartman character on British soap "EastEnders"
• Ava Walker character in 1999 film "Tumbleweeds"
• Ava Garden Wilder character in Nina LaCour's "Everything Leads to You"
• Ava Wilhelmina Lavender main character in Leslye Walton's "The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender"
• Ava Ayala aka White Tiger character in Marvel comics
• Ava humanoid robot in the film "Ex Machina"
• Ava Inferi Portuguese musical group
• Ava Persian name meaning "voice"
• Ava Adore song by Smashing Pumpkins
• Ava Morgenstern character on "Girl Meets World"
• Ava Wilson character in "Supernatural" season 2
• Ava Jeffords son of Terrence "Terry" Jeffords in Brooklyn Nine Nine