Meaning and history
Gunnar is derived from the Old Norse name Gunnarr, composed of the elements gunnr, meaning “war,” and herr, meaning “army” or “warrior,” making it a cognate of Gunther. In Norse legend, Gunnar was Brynhildr’s husband, and he had his brother-in-law Sigurd murdered after his wife falsely accused Sigurd of taking her virginity.
20062006: 512 births, rank #507
2007: 464 births, rank #553
2008: 488 births, rank #540
2009: 480 births, rank #550
2010: 457 births, rank #553
20112011: 520 births, rank #499
2012: 603 births, rank #450
2013: 758 births, rank #396
2014: 816 births, rank #382
2015: 825 births, rank #388
20162016: 798 births, rank #400
2017: 707 births, rank #439
2018: 621 births, rank #468
2019: 576 births, rank #497
2020: 542 births, rank #526
20212021: 545 births, rank #541
2022: 486 births, rank #589
2023: 478 births, rank #593
2024: 476 births, rank #598
20252025: 462 births, rank #612
Gunnar moved from #598 to #612 for boys between 2024 and 2025. Its highest annual birth count came in 2015, with 825 births.