Given name & surname
Thor
Thor is a masculine given name from Old Norse. It is used in English, Norwegian Bokmål, Danish, Icelandic, and 1 other language.
Meaning & origin
Where it comes from
In Norwegian use, Thor is a variant of Tor. An origin associated with Tor is Old Norse.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
From Old Norse Þórr; its root is Proto-Indo-European *(s)tenh₂-.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
In mythological stories, Thor is associated with the god of thunder.
Thor through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 4,857
- 4,857 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2015
- 118 babies
- 2025
- 44
- #2,875 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −31%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 44 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 2,875 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 30.9% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 118 in 2015. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (8). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 4,062 as a first name in 2020; 3,105 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.
Thor’s family of names
In English usage, Thor shares a linguistic root with the Swedish form Tor. Thor has a related form in Tore. In Norwegian usage, Thor has a related form in Tor.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Thor has relatives in 6 languages. Lines run from its Old Norse roots to each of them.
14 related names in 6 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 21
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 8
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Thor
- Thor HeyerdahlNorwegian anthropologist and adventurer (1914-2002)
- Thor HushovdNorwegian cyclistborn 1978
- Thor VilhjálmssonIcelandic writer (1925-2011)
- Thor KristensenDanish rowerborn 1980
- Björgólfur ThorIcelandic businessmanborn 1967
- Thor Henningswimmer (1894–1967)
- Thor PedersenDanish politicianborn 1945
- Thor PedersenNorwegian rower (1924-2008)
- Thor ThorvaldsenNorwegian sailor (1909–1987)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Thor, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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“of the tree” · “resembling a lotus blossom”
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Tyr is a masculine given name from Old Norse, ultimately from Proto-Germanic. It is used in Swedish.
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“olive tree”
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“olive tree”
—
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“olive tree”
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Oilbhries
“olive tree”
—