boy's name
Yvon
ee-VON
- Origin French
- Gender Boy
- Letters 4
- Births on record 40,818
Yvon means yew, and the tree armed medieval Europe — the English longbow was cut from yew, so a name meaning yew is closer to a name meaning bow than to a name meaning tree.
- Yvon is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in France in 1948, when 1,360 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade in France.
- First appears in birth records in 1900.
Yvon over time
Births per decade in France, 1900s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2022, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1900s | 855 |
| 1910s | 1,615 |
| 1920s | 4,245 |
| 1930s | 6,920 |
| 1940s | 9,470 |
| 1950s | 10,530 |
| 1960s | 4,860 |
| 1970s | 1,110 |
| 1980s | 465 |
| 1990s | 220 |
| 2000s | 130 |
| 2010s | 65 |
| 2020s (to 2022) | 10 |
What Yvon means
Yvon means yew. The Germanic names the tree, and because yew was the bow wood the sense carries archery with it rather than gardening, so the element runs through warrior names rather than garden ones.
Where Yvon comes from
Yvon is a French form built on the Germanic iv or iwa, a yew — the wood from which longbows were cut, which is why the element appears across warrior names. Yves and Yvette are the same root, and the Breton Erwan, elsewhere in this group, is the Breton form of Yves. Yew is also the longest-lived tree in Europe and was planted in churchyards, so the name carries both weaponry and death.
Yvon in use
Yvon peaked in France in 1948, when 1,360 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It charts in none of the six markets we track in the most recent year, despite 40,771 lifetime births. The American series never exceeded fifteen births in a year, so its whole history is French.
How popular is Yvon?
In 2022, Yvon was given to 5 babies in France. It was given to fewer than five babies in the most recent year of published US data.
Where Yvon is used
French counts are rounded to the nearest five and nothing below five is published, so these figures show the shape of the name's use rather than an exact tally. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Yvon
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Yvon also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Yvon over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Yvon in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Yvon
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Yvon — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Yvon
What does the name Yvon mean?
Yew — the Germanic iv, the wood longbows were cut from.
Is Yves the same name?
Yes, the same root, and Yvette is its feminine.
Is Erwan related?
Yes — the Breton form of Yves, written up separately here.
Where is Yvon used?
France. The American series never exceeded fifteen births in a year.
How popular is the name Yvon?
In 2022, Yvon was given to 5 babies in France. It was given to fewer than five babies in the most recent year of published US data.
Is Yvon a girl's or a boy's name?
Yvon is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
When was Yvon most popular?
Yvon peaked in 1948, when 1,360 babies were given the name. It has been falling over the past decade.