Ole
A Norwegian masculine given name of Old Norse origin meaning "ancestor's descendant".
Name Census estimates that about 790 living Americans carry the first name Ole. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Ole today is around 44 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ole births was 1881 (42 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ole. 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.
People living today
790
~ 1 in 433,866 Americans
Peak year
1881
42 babies that year
Average age
44
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,178
Tracked since 1880
Popularity
Ole: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ole from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1880s, with 310 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1880s peak, Ole remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ole 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 Ole during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Oles live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. Minnesota, North Dakota, Washington recorded the most babies named Ole, while Wisconsin, South Dakota, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 33 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Ole
Ole is a masculine given name of Norse origin, derived from the Old Norse word "óli," which means "ancestral" or "progenitor." The name has been in use since ancient times and can be traced back to the Viking era in Scandinavia.
The name Ole is believed to have originated in Norway, where it was commonly used among the Norse people. It gained popularity throughout the region and eventually spread to other parts of Europe, particularly in areas influenced by Norse culture and settlements.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ole can be found in the Icelandic sagas, which are literary works that recount the stories and legends of the Norse people. In these sagas, several characters bear the name Ole, indicating its widespread use during the Viking Age.
Throughout history, there have been notable individuals who carried the name Ole. One of the most famous was Ole Worm (1588-1654), a Danish naturalist, antiquarian, and physician who made significant contributions to the fields of archaeology and natural history.
Another prominent figure was Ole Bull (1810-1880), a Norwegian violinist and composer who was renowned for his virtuosic performances and pioneering work in establishing Norwegian folk music as a distinct genre.
In the realm of literature, Ole Rolvaag (1876-1931) was a Norwegian-American novelist and educator who is best known for his novel "Giants in the Earth," which depicts the struggles of Norwegian immigrants in the American West.
The name Ole also found its way into the world of sports, with Ole Evinrude (1877-1933), a Norwegian-American inventor who revolutionized the outboard motor industry and founded the Evinrude Outboard Motor Company.
Lastly, Ole Gunnar Solskjær (born 1973) is a former Norwegian professional footballer and current manager of Manchester United, one of the most successful and renowned football clubs in the world.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who have borne the name Ole throughout history, showcasing its enduring presence across various fields and cultural contexts.
People
Ole + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ole 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
Ole: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ole?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 790 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ole 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 433,866 US residents.
Is Ole a common name?
We classify Ole as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,101 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ole most popular?
The single biggest year for Ole was 1881, when 42 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ole is about 44 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Ole a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ole 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.
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.