UK boy's name
Arnav
A masculine name of Sanskrit origin meaning "ocean of radiance".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Arnav is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Arnav popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #1517, with 17 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2012, with 67 births.
This profile covers 617 England and Wales registrations across 26 recorded years from 1999 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales and NRS Scotland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
The latest count is about 25% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 623 living people in the UK are called Arnav. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Arnav ranked #1517 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 17 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2012, when 67 boys were registered as Arnav.
- • Arnav ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #588 in 2015.
- • About 623 living people in the UK are estimated to have Arnav as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#1517
2024
Births in 2024
17
Latest year
Peak year
2012
67 births
Estimated living
623
2026
Meaning
What does Arnav mean?
The name Arnav has its origins in the Sanskrit language, an ancient Indo-Aryan language that dates back to the 2nd millennium BCE. It is believed to have originated in the Indian subcontinent, specifically in the regions that are now modern-day India and Pakistan. The name Arnav is derived from two Sanskrit words: "Arya," meaning noble or honorable, and "Nava," meaning new or fresh.
In Hindu mythology, the name Arnav is associated with Lord Vishnu, one of the principal deities of Hinduism. Arnav is also mentioned in several ancient Hindu texts, including the Vedas and the Puranas, which are considered sacred scriptures. The earliest known reference to the name Arnav can be found in the Mahabharata, a Sanskrit epic composed between the 8th and 4th centuries BCE.
One of the earliest recorded examples of an individual with the name Arnav is Arnav Ketkar, a renowned Indian musician and composer who lived in the 16th century. Another notable figure with this name is Arnav Goswami, an Indian journalist and news anchor who founded the news channel Republic TV in 2017.
Throughout history, several prominent individuals have borne the name Arnav. These include Arnav Kapoor, an Indian actor and model born in 1985, Arnav Mukherjee, an Indian cricketer born in 1993, and Arnav Sharma, an Indian author and entrepreneur born in 1981.
Additionally, Arnav Kapur was an Indian film director and screenwriter who worked in Bollywood during the 1980s and 1990s. He directed several popular films, including "Chameli Ki Shaadi" and "Pyaar Ke Side Effects." Another notable Arnav was Arnav Deshmukh, an Indian classical dancer and choreographer who lived in the 20th century and made significant contributions to the field of Kathak, a major classical dance form of India.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Arnav over time
The chart below shows babies named Arnav registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1999 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Arnav, the clearest high point is 2012. The latest England and Wales figure is 17 births in 2024, compared with 67 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Arnav by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Arnav was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | #2044 | 58 | 5 |
| 2010s | #968 | 347 | 10 |
| 2000s | #1295 | 207 | 10 |
| 1990s | #2097 | 5 | 1 |
Geography
Where Arnav is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Arnav. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.
Arnav ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #588 in 2015.
Across the UK
Arnav in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#588 in 2015
3 years of NRS records, 10 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Arnav
-
Arnav Patil
badminton player
badminton player
2004-
Related
Names similar to Arnav
- Alfie 86,546
- Alexander 85,525
- Adam 71,855
- Archie 59,965
- Arthur 43,586
- Aaron 36,366
- Alex 32,729
- Andrew 20,169
- Arlo 19,061
- Aidan 16,776
- Albie 16,017
- Albert 15,809
FAQ
Arnav: questions and answers
How popular is the name Arnav in the UK right now?
In 2024, Arnav was ranked #1517 for boys in England and Wales, with 17 births registered.
When was Arnav most popular?
The peak year on record was 2012, with 67 babies registered as Arnav in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Arnav?
A masculine name of Sanskrit origin meaning "ocean of radiance".
How many people are called Arnav in the UK?
A total of 617 babies have been registered as Arnav across the 26 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 10 more in Scotland.
Where is Arnav most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Arnav ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #588 in 2015. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.