Given name & surname
Avner
“my Father is the light”
Avner is used as a given name and a surname. One Hebrew interpretation is “my Father is the light.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Hebrew interpretation is “my Father is the light.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Hebrew.
How it developed
In Jewish use, Avner is used as a form of Abner.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1921. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. In Jewish use, Avner is a form of Abner. The history of Abner gives this family its wider story. Abner appears in biblical tradition, giving it a longstanding religious and cultural context.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Avner through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 380
- 380 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2015
- 27 babies
- 2025
- 16
- #5,635 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −14%
- Easing
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 16 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 5,635 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 14.0% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 27 in 2015. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 562 as a first name in 2020; 206 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Avner’s family of names
Avner has a related form in Abner. Avner is a form of Abner. Avner has a related form in Avnar.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 6
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
People named Avner
- Avner ShakiIsraeli politician1926–2005
- Avner LessIsraeli police officer (1916-1987)
- Avner ShalevIsraeli generalborn 1939
- Avner StraussIsraeli musicianborn 1954
- Avner YasharIsraeli architectborn 1956
- Avner FaingulerntIsraeli film directorborn 1961
- Avner GreifAmerican economistborn 1955
- Avner PerezIsraeli poet, translator and writer in Hebrew and Ladinoborn 1942
- Avner CohenIsraeli-American academicborn 1951
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Avner, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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