The girl's name Olivia \o-li-via\ is pronounced oh-LIV-ee-ah. It is of Latin origin, and its meaning is "olive tree". Coined by Shakespeare as the name of a much-wooed aristocrat in his play "Twelfth Night" (1599). He may have derived the name from the olive plant, or as a feminine form of Oliver. Biblical: the olive tree is a symbol of fruitfulness, beauty, and dignity. Today, "extending an olive branch" traditionally signifies an offer of peace. Today, Olive is associated with Popeye's scrawny girlfriend, Olive Oyl. See also Olida. Singer Olivia Newton-John.

Olivia has 19 variant forms: Liv, Liva, Livia, Livvie, Livvy, Olia, Oliff, Oliffe, Oliva, Olive, Oliveea, Olivet, Olivetta, Olivette, Olivija, Olivine, Olivya, Ollie and Olva.

ORIGIN
English

MEANING
Olive tree

William Shakespeare is credited with inventing the name for the rich heiress wooed by a duke in his play, "Twelfth Night" possibly taken from the Latin word "oliva" which means "olive." The name was influenced during the 1970s by Australian singer and actress Olivia Newton-John and first entered the top 100 in 1990.

ALTERNATIVES
Alivia Olivya Olivea

NICKNAMES
Liva Olia Ollie Livie Olva Livia Liv

FAMOUS Olivias
Olivia de Havilland (actress)

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