köken: Two possible origins: # Latinate form of a medieval name of Old French origin, from Proto-Germanic *īhwaz (“yew, bow”). Name of French and English saints. Cognate with French Yves. # Short form of Ivan. Doublet of João, Ian, Jean, Ruan, and Geovane, all equivalents to English John.
köken: First recorded as a given name of Latvians in 1962. Shortened from Ivars, also cognate to English Ivo, with ultimately the same Germanic meaning "yew, bow (of yew)".
Unclear still today, either short form of Germanic or Celtic compound names beginning with iv- "yew" - see Proto-Germanic *īhwaz (“yew”) and Proto-Celtic *iwos (“yew”), both from Proto-Indo-European *h₁eyHw- (“yew”).