NameCensus.

UK girl's name

Neve

A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "bright" or "radiant".

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.

Neve is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Neve popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #583, with 67 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2008, with 457 births.

This profile covers 7,180 England and Wales registrations across 29 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, 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 15% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 8,308 living people in the UK are called Neve. 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

  • Neve ranked #583 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 67 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2008, when 457 girls were registered as Neve.
  • Neve ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #295 in 2024.
  • About 8,308 living people in the UK are estimated to have Neve as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#583

2024

Births in 2024

67

Latest year

Peak year

2008

457 births

Estimated living

8,308

2026

Meaning

What does Neve mean?

The name Neve originated from the Hebrew language, derived from the word "navah," which means "dwelling place" or "home." It gained popularity during the medieval period in Israel and surrounding regions.

Neve can be traced back to ancient Hebrew texts, including the Talmud, where it was used as a reference to the homeland or a place of residence. In the Bible, the word "navah" appears in various forms, such as "naveh" or "navith," often referring to pastures or meadows.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Neve dates back to the 12th century. Neve ben Shlomo, a renowned Jewish scholar and commentator, lived in Spain during this period and made significant contributions to the study of the Talmud.

In the 16th century, Neve Shalom, a prominent Sephardic Jewish philosopher and kabbalist, was born in Safed, Ottoman Palestine (now Israel). He was known for his work on mystical interpretations of Jewish texts.

During the 17th century, Neve Yerushalmi, a Jewish scholar and authority on Halakha (Jewish law), lived in Jerusalem and authored several notable works on Jewish jurisprudence.

In the 19th century, Neve Tzedek was the name given to one of the first Jewish neighborhoods established outside the walls of the Old City of Jaffa (now part of Tel Aviv, Israel). The name Neve Tzedek means "Oasis of Justice" in Hebrew.

Another notable figure was Neve Shalom Ashkenazi, a Lithuanian-born Hebrew writer and poet who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He is remembered for his contributions to modern Hebrew literature.

While the name Neve has its roots in Hebrew and Jewish culture, it has gained popularity across various communities and cultures around the world, transcending its original linguistic and religious boundaries.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Neve over time

The chart below shows babies named Neve registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 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 Neve, the clearest high point is 2008. The latest England and Wales figure is 67 births in 2024, compared with 457 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Neve
0114229343457199620102024

Decades

Neve by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Neve 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 #365 654 5
2010s #198 2,772 10
2000s #152 3,414 10
1990s #975 340 4

Geography

Where Neve is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Neve. 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.

Neve ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #295 in 2024.

Scotland
12
Northern Ireland
4

Across the UK

Neve in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#295 in 2024

28 years of NRS records, 1,096 total registered

Northern Ireland (NISRA)

#350 in 2021

14 years of NISRA records, 77 total registered

Notable bearers

Famous people named Neve

  • Neve Megan Thomas

    badminton player

    badminton player

    2004-

Related

Names similar to Neve

FAQ

Neve: questions and answers

How popular is the name Neve in the UK right now?

In 2024, Neve was ranked #583 for girls in England and Wales, with 67 births registered.

When was Neve most popular?

The peak year on record was 2008, with 457 babies registered as Neve in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Neve?

A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "bright" or "radiant".

How many people are called Neve in the UK?

A total of 7,180 babies have been registered as Neve across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 1,096 more in Scotland and 77 in Northern Ireland.

Where is Neve most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Neve ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #295 in 2024. 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.