Ohlen
A variant spelling of the word "olen", referring to the alder tree.
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Ohlen. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Ohlen today is around 4 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ohlen births was 2022 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ohlen. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Ohlen. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2022
5 babies that year
Average age
4
years old
2022 SSA rank
#13,783
Tracked since 2022
Popularity
Ohlen: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Ohlen by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Ohlen during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Ohlen
The name Ohlen is believed to have originated from the Old Norse language, which was spoken by the Germanic peoples of Scandinavia and their descendants during the Viking Age, approximately between the 8th and 11th centuries. It is derived from the Old Norse word "ōlr," which means "ancestor" or "forefather."
In ancient Norse mythology, the concept of ancestry and lineage held great significance. The Vikings valued their familial connections and honored their ancestors, believing that they served as guides and protectors in the afterlife. The name Ohlen may have been bestowed upon individuals to honor their ancestral roots and pay tribute to their forebears.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ohlen can be found in the Icelandic Sagas, a collection of literature that chronicled the lives and adventures of the Norse settlers in Iceland during the Viking Age. In the Saga of Grettir the Strong, written in the 13th century, there is a character named Ohlen Gunnarsson, who is described as a formidable warrior and a loyal companion to the saga's main protagonist, Grettir.
Throughout history, the name Ohlen has been borne by several notable individuals. One of the earliest was Ohlen Skullsplitter (c. 870 – 920), a legendary Viking chieftain and explorer who is said to have led expeditions to the British Isles and the coasts of mainland Europe. Another prominent figure was Ohlen the Wise (c. 1050 – 1120), a renowned Norse seer and advisor to King Harald Hardrada of Norway.
In the Middle Ages, Ohlen von Lübeck (c. 1210 – 1278) was a German chronicler and historian who documented the events of the Northern Crusades in his work, the ChroniconOholense. During the Renaissance period, Ohlen Thorvaldsson (1480 – 1546) was a renowned Icelandic poet and scholar, renowned for his contributions to the preservation of Old Norse literature.
In more recent times, Ohlen Amundsen (1872 – 1928) was a Norwegian explorer who participated in several expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic regions, including the famous expedition led by Roald Amundsen that was the first to reach the South Pole in 1911.
While the name Ohlen has its roots in ancient Norse culture, it has transcended its origins and has been adopted by various cultures and societies throughout history, reflecting the widespread influence and enduring legacy of the Vikings and their descendants.
People
Ohlen + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ohlen as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with O
Other first names starting with O with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ohlen: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ohlen?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ohlen going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Ohlen a common name?
We classify Ohlen as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ohlen most popular?
The single biggest year for Ohlen was 2022, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ohlen is about 4 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Ohlen in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ohlen a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ohlen in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Ohlen still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ohlen in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Ohlen can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people share the name Ohlen?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.