Olea
A feminine name of Italian origin meaning "olive tree."
Name Census estimates that about 38 living Americans carry the first name Olea. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Olea today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Olea births was 2020 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Olea. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Olea with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Olea. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
38
~ 1 in 9,019,851 Americans
Peak year
2020
8 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2023 SSA rank
#13,106
Tracked since 1916
Census
Olea in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 132 people with the first name Olea, which placed it at #48,390 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#48,390
National first-name rank
People counted
132
132 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
50.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Olea
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Olea is White at 50.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (25.0%) and Black (14.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Olea described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Olea at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White50.8% · 67
- Hispanic or Latino25.0% · 33
- Black or African American14.4% · 19
- Two or more races6.8% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.3% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Popularity
Olea: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Olea from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 21 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Olea 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 Olea during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Olea
The name Olea has its roots in ancient Greece, where it was derived from the Greek word "elaia," meaning "olive tree." This connection to the revered olive tree suggests that the name may have been bestowed upon individuals with a perceived connection to nature, fertility, or peace.
In Greek mythology, the olive tree was a sacred symbol associated with the goddess Athena, and it was believed to have been the first plant to sprout from the earth after the Great Flood. The olive branch has long been regarded as a symbol of peace and reconciliation, making the name Olea a fitting choice for those seeking harmony and tranquility.
The earliest recorded use of the name Olea can be traced back to ancient Greece, where it was borne by several notable figures. One such individual was Olea of Samos, a Greek poetess who lived in the 5th century BCE and was renowned for her lyrical compositions.
During the Byzantine era, the name Olea gained popularity among Christian communities in the Eastern Mediterranean region. Saint Olea of Antioch, a 4th-century martyr from modern-day Turkey, was venerated for her unwavering faith and courage in the face of persecution.
In the Middle Ages, the name Olea found its way into various European societies. Olea of Merania, a 12th-century German noblewoman, was known for her philanthropic efforts and her role in establishing several monasteries and churches.
The Renaissance period saw the emergence of notable figures bearing the name Olea. Olea Lucinia, an Italian painter and poet from the 16th century, was celebrated for her artistic talents and her contributions to the cultural renaissance of the time.
In more recent history, Olea Bennington, an American botanist and conservationist born in 1892, made significant contributions to the study and preservation of rare plant species in the southwestern United States.
These examples illustrate the enduring presence of the name Olea throughout various cultures and time periods, reflecting its connection to nature, peace, and artistic expression.
People
Olea + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Olea 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
Olea: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Olea?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 38 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Olea 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 9,019,851 US residents.
Is Olea a common name?
We classify Olea as "Very Rare". It ranks above 50.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 48 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Olea most popular?
The single biggest year for Olea was 2020, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Olea is about 10 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Olea in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 132 people with the name Olea, or 0.04 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #48,390 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Olea in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Olea?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Olea leans strongly female. 123 people counted with this name were female (91.8%), compared with 11 male bearers (8.2%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Olea?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Olea is White at 50.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (25.0%) and Black (14.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Olea most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Olea in the 2020 Census, accounting for 50.8% (67 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Olea in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Olea a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Olea in the SSA data are female. 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 Olea still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Olea 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 Olea 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.
How many people have Olea as a first name?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Olea on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.