Harvey is the English form of the Breton Haerviu, composed of haer, battle, and viu, worthy, and means "battle-worthy" or "strong in battle". The Normans brought it to England; in America it belongs to the invisible rabbit in the play Harvey and to gay-rights pioneer Harvey Milk. After decades out of fashion Harvey returned to the US top 1000 in 2011 and has risen from number 439 in 2015 to number 251 among boys' names in 2025.