Oden
Oden was the 2033rd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 74 babies. Its best year was 2022, when it ranked 1691st with 102 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 21 places. More babies were named Oden in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning (as Odin) frenzy, inspiration (Norse god) · Old Norse
- Rank in 2025
- #2,033 boys, down 189 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 74boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2022102 babies
- Total since 1880
- 1,574babies recorded
What does the name Oden mean?
Oden is a spelling of Odin, pronounced the same way, so it shares Odin's meaning and origin.
Odin is the chief god of Norse mythology, Old Norse Óðinn, the same god as English Woden (as in Wednesday) and German Wotan. Wiktionary traces the name to Proto-Germanic *Wōdanaz, from *wōdaz, "frenzy, inspiration", the ecstatic state linked with poetry and battle. Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda (13th century) is the main medieval source for his myths.
Óðinn (Old Norse, “Odin”)*wōdaz (Proto-Germanic, “frenzied, inspired”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Woden, Wotan, Oden.
See also: Scandinavian names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Odin', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Snorri Sturluson, The Younger Edda (Prose Edda), trans. R. B. Anderson (Project Gutenberg eBook #18947), Project Gutenberg
- Dictionary.com Unabridged (based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary), with Collins English Dictionary, s.v. 'Odin', Dictionary.com / Random House / HarperCollins
Oden popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #2,033 | 74 |
| 2020 | #1,844 | 81 |
| 2010 | #2,773 | 44 |
| 2000 | #9,977 | 6 |
| 1990 | — | — |
| 1980 | — | — |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | #3,502 | 7 |
| 1920 | #3,725 | 7 |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Oden, counting every spelling?
Oden is a spelling of Odin, a name family that ranked #444 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #2,033 for Oden on its own. Together these spellings went to 708 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Odin | 604 | #502 | 4,184 |
| Oden | 74 | #2,033 | 422 |
| Odyn | 20 | #4,998 | 123 |
| Odinn | 10 | #8,066 | 42 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Oden?
74 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Oden (0.02 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Oden born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 113 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Oden.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Oden?
About 1,400 people born in the US named Oden are alive today, with a median age of 9; half are between 5 and 14. That makes Oden a young name: most people with it are children.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Oden by state
How common Oden was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. In 37 states fewer than five boys a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Oden: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Oden, they share its era and feel.
Questions about the name Oden
What does Oden mean?
Oden is a spelling of Odin, which means “frenzy, inspiration (Norse god)” (Old Norse origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Oden?
Oden was the 2033rd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 74 babies. Its best year was 2022, when it ranked 1691st with 102 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 21 places. More babies were named Oden in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Oden a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Oden in the US.
Where is Oden most popular?
In 2021–2025, Oden was most common in Arkansas (0.08 per 1,000 boys), followed by Ohio and Minnesota.