Comments for the name Ivan

Russian standard pronunciation of the name Ivan is actually ee-VAHN. [noted -ed]

Ivan has a nameday on 7th January according to the Orthodox calendar and on the 6th January according to the Catholic calendar. The celebration is in honour of St John the Baptist.

The name "Ivano" is the Italian variant of "Ivan".

In Further Tales of the City, writer Armistead Maupin creates an amusing situation utilizing the similarity of the Russian pronunciation of the name to that of the female name "Yvonne."

Also Serbian. [noted -ed]

Ivan the Terrible was a Russian czar. I like this name however. I'd name my kid it if I got the chance.

Slovak director Ivan Reitman is bearer this name. He was born 27 October 1946, Komárno, Czechoslovakia.

Let's not forget off-road racer Ivan Stewart.

Northern Irish singer George Ivan Morrison, better known as Van Morrison.

Russians made their own version of the Nordic god's name IVANHO, to gain viking strength.

Ivan Novak is a spokesperson for the Slovene musical group Laibach. He also does lighting and projector stuff for the group.

It´s the Slavic form of the Hebrew name Jan. It meant "God is gracious".

Pronounced as "ee-VAHN" (short -ee-).

A famous bearer is Czech tennis player Ivan Lendl, born 7th March 1960, Ostrava, Czechoslovakia.

I think the name is great for any man of any age, one that never goes out of style. Someday, when I marry and have kids, I want to name my son Ivan. I wonder if it's because I have a crush on a guy I know named Ivan! Love the name.

Ivan is also used in Spanish.

Pronounced Ee-vahn in Spanish.

I picture a handsome, mysterious and sexy guy, one who is also very strong and brave/manly. I love this name! I'm glad it's not overly used, so it's still unique without sounding strange. I also like the way it's pronounced in Spanish-speaking countries : ee-van, either way it's a great name.

Mjr. Ivan Tomeček is a fictional character from the TV show "Mesto tieňov" (2008). He is played by Pavel Višňovský.

Actor Ivan Franěk, born 17th June 1964 in Plzeň.

Ivan Dixon, who played James Ivan "Kinch" Kinchloe on Hogan's Heroes. He died March 2008, leaving Richard Dawson and Robert Clary the only surviving regular cast members from the 60's TV sitcom.

Pronounced EE-vahn in Croatia.

I love this name only when it's pronounced in the Croatian way (EE-vahn). Unfortunately, English speakers ruined this name by pronouncing it EYE-vun or eye-VAHN.

Ivan Milat is a notorious Australian serial killer, known for the so-called 'Backpacker Murders' that occurred in New South Wales during the 1990s.
The name Ivan is considered unusable by many due to this association.

Pronounced ee-VAHN in Czech, Slovak and Polish.

One Day In The Life of Ivan Denisovich, anyone? A Russian novel (and later a Norwegian-British movie) about life in a gulag written by Alexandr Solzhenitsyn.

Reminds me too much of Yvonne, and thus girly. I don't care for it.

This has always been one of my favorite Russian names, even though it's so common over there. It sounds so romantic, elegant, and dignified when pronounced Ee-VAHN; the Anglo pronunciation EYE-vin just throws it away and makes it sound ugly. It also doesn't hurt that there were a number of Tsars (mostly in the Ryurikovich Dynasty, the pre-Romanov ruling family) named Ivan, including Tsar Ivan III, known as Ivan the Great, one of Russia's greatest rulers ever.

Ivan Aivazovsky (1817-1900) was a Russian painter.

Ivan Le Lorraine Albright (1897-1983) was an American painter. He did a painting for the film 'The Picture of Dorian Gray'.

Ivan was the second son of the first Romanov Tsar Michael I and his wife Eudoxia.

Ivan (1666-1696) was the son of Tsar Alexei I of Russia and his wife Maria. He later became Tsar Ivan V.

Hurricane Ivan was a powerful hurricane that devastated the Caribbean and the East Coast of the United States in September 2004. At the time, it was the second-costliest hurricane in the United States. By the time I posted this comment, it was the fifth-costliest hurricane (behind Wilma, Andrew, Ike, and Katrina).

Despite the negative comments about its English pronunciation, however, I like both Russian and English pronunciations of Ivan. It is one of the many Russian names I can tolerate.

I know one person with this name, people usually say eye-vin, which I prefer but since he's Spanish it's sometimes ee-vahn.

Name of the Day: January 20, 2013.