Ivan
Russian variation of John
"God is gracious"Ivan Origin and Meaning
The name Ivan is a boy's name of Russian origin meaning "God is gracious".
Though some might find it a bit heavy-booted, Ivan is one of the few Russian boys' names to become fully accepted into the American naming pool.
Ivan is, of course, ubiquitous in Russian culture. There is one of the brothers in The Brothers Karamazov, the protagonists of Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Ilyich, and Solzhenitsyn's One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, and the title character in Chekhov's Uncle Vanya. Real life Ivans include writer Turgnenev, biologist Pavlov, tennis player Lendl, and rulers Ivan the Great and --oops--Ivan the Terrible. Vanya is his warm and appealing nickname.
Ivan is, of course, ubiquitous in Russian culture. There is one of the brothers in The Brothers Karamazov, the protagonists of Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Ilyich, and Solzhenitsyn's One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, and the title character in Chekhov's Uncle Vanya. Real life Ivans include writer Turgnenev, biologist Pavlov, tennis player Lendl, and rulers Ivan the Great and --oops--Ivan the Terrible. Vanya is his warm and appealing nickname.
# 153 in the US
Ivan Rank in US Top 1000
Ivan Popularity
- 153US2020
- 517Nameberry2021
- 139Future2028
- 276England2020
- 288Germany2016
- 55Spain2020
- 66Portugal2014
- 184Switzerland2020
- 191Poland2020
- 37Estonia2020
20 Names Similar to Ivan
These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Ivan.
- Ivor
- Alexei
- Ivo
- Lars
- Sven
- Victor
- Bernard
- Warren
- Evan
- Ian
- Irina
- Norman
- Nikolai
- Vincent
- Ruben
- Dimitri
- Leonard
- Roland
- Mikhail
- Byron
Lists containing Ivan
- Variations of John
- Exotic Lite Baby Names
- Names That Mean Grace
- Best Names That Mean God
- Best Names That Mean God
- Classic Names That Mean God
- Best Boy Names Starting with Vowels
- Baby Names from Children's Books
- Victorian Boy Names
- Vampire Baby Names
- Russian Baby Boy Names
- Cool Baby Names That Start With I
- Coolated Boys' Names
- Exoticized Names
- Steampunk Baby Names
- Fairy Tale Baby Names
- Athletic Baby Names
- Boy Names ALWAYS in the Top 1000
- Baby Names That Mean God
- Victorian Names from the 1800s
Famous People Named Ivan
- Ivan I Daniilovich KalitaPrince of Moscow
- Ivan II Ivanovich the FairPrince of Moscow
- Ivan III Vasilyevich aka Ivan the GreatPrince of Moscow
- Ivan IV Vasilyevich aka Ivan the TerribleTsar of Russia
- Ivan AlexanderTsar of Bulgaria
- Ivan Asen I and IITsars of Bulgaria
- Ivan Khristoforovich BagramyanRussian WWII commander
- Ivan Lendltennis player
- Ivan Andreyevich BukinRussian ice dancer
- Ivan BassoItalian road bicycle racer
- Ivan AivazovskyRussian painter
- (Ivan) Nathan Followillmusician from band "Kings of Leon"
- Ivan TodorovicSerbian footballer (plays for Portugal)
- Ivan "Kuki" KukoljSerbian singer
- Ivan SanchezSpanish actor
- Ivan DodigCroatian tennis player
- Ivan Petrovich Pavlovrenowned Russian physiologist and Nobel Prize winner
- Ivan Buninwinner of the Nobel Prize in Literature
- Ivan MartinezSpanish YouTuber; twin brother Emilio Martinez
- Ivan OrkinAmerican chef, creator of Ivan Ramen restaurants
Ivan in Pop Culture
- Ivan Braginskypersonification of Russia in the manga/anime Axis Powers: Hetalia
- "The One and Only Ivan"novel by Katherine Applegate
- Ivan Alexeevcharacter in film "Tapeheads"
- Ivancharacter in animated series "Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends"
- "Ivan the Fool" short story by Leo Tolstoy
- Ivan Vankovillain in "The Invincible Iron" comics
- Ivan Denisovich Shukhovtitle character in Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich"
- Ivancharacter in video game "Golden Sun"
- Ivan Vassilevich Lomovcharacter in Anton Chekhov's "A Marriage Proposal"
- Ivan Raidenovich Raikovcharacter in video game "Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater"
- "The Death of Ivan Ilyich" novel by Leo Tolstoy
- Ivan Karamazovcharacter in Fyodor Dostoevsky's "The Brothers Karamazov"
- Ivandoorman in 2006 film "Curious George"
- Ivan Veenmain character in Vladimir Nabokov's "Ada or Ardor"
- Ivan Dragoboxer in film "Rocky IV"
- Ivan Nikolayevich Ponyryov (Bezdomny)character in Mikhail Bulgakov's "The Master and Margarita"
- Ivan Shawblycharacter on TV's "Mona the Vampire"
- Ivancharacter in Aphmau's YouTube series
- Ivan Bruelcharacter in "Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir"
- Ivana vampire in the French online visual novel Moonlight Lovers
- Ivan Steranko an alias of the character of Rocksteady in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Franchise