Olukayode
A Yoruba name meaning "The wealth or good fortune God sends".
Name Census estimates that about 20 living Americans carry the first name Olukayode. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Olukayode today is around 37 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Olukayode births was 2007 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Olukayode. 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 Olukayode with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Olukayode. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
20
~ 1 in 17,137,717 Americans
Peak year
2007
6 babies that year
Average age
37
years old
2007 SSA rank
#11,960
Tracked since 1977
Census
Olukayode in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 338 people with the first name Olukayode, which placed it at #27,177 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
#27,177
National first-name rank
People counted
338
338 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
95.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Olukayode
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Olukayode is Black at 95.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.4%) and White (0.6%). 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 Olukayode 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 Olukayode at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American95.9% · 324
- Two or more races2.4% · 8
- White0.6% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.6% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 2
Popularity
Olukayode: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Olukayode from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 10 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1980s peak, Olukayode remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Olukayode 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 Olukayode 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 Olukayode
The name Olukayode originates from the Yoruba language spoken in southwestern Nigeria and the adjoining areas of Benin and Togo. It can be traced back to the 14th century or earlier, during the height of the Oyo Empire in present-day Nigeria.
Olukayode is a compound name derived from the Yoruba words "Olu," meaning "owner" or "lord," and "kayode," which means "has become a crown." The name can be interpreted as "The owner has become a crown" or "The lord has become a crown." It is a name traditionally given to male children in the Yoruba culture.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Olukayode can be found in the oral traditions and historical accounts of the Oyo Empire. According to these sources, there was a prominent Yoruba warrior and ruler named Olukayode who lived in the late 16th or early 17th century. He was known for his bravery and military prowess in defending the Oyo Empire against external threats.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Olukayode. One of the most famous was Olukayode Ajayi (1926-2014), a Nigerian historian and academic who made significant contributions to the study of African history and the Yoruba culture. He served as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos and was awarded the prestigious Nigerian National Order of Merit.
Another notable figure was Olukayode Akinrinade (1940-2022), a Nigerian lawyer and human rights activist who played a prominent role in the struggle for democracy and good governance in Nigeria. He was a vocal critic of military dictatorships and was briefly imprisoned for his advocacy efforts.
In the field of sports, Olukayode Jaiyeola (born 1975) is a former Nigerian sprinter who competed in the 100 meters and 200 meters events. He won a silver medal in the 200 meters at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Olukayode Ewumi (born 1993) is a British actor best known for his roles in the television series "Chewing Gum" and "The Duchess." He has also appeared in several films, including "Aladdin" (2019) and "Bly Manor" (2020).
Olukayode Somide (born 1981) is a Nigerian-British artist and designer, renowned for his vibrant and colorful textile designs that draw inspiration from his Nigerian heritage and African culture.
While the name Olukayode is primarily associated with the Yoruba people of Nigeria, it has also gained popularity in other parts of Africa and among the African diaspora communities around the world, reflecting the rich cultural heritage and linguistic diversity of the continent.
People
Olukayode + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Olukayode 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
Olukayode: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Olukayode?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 20 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Olukayode 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 17,137,717 US residents.
Is Olukayode a common name?
We classify Olukayode as "Very Rare". It ranks above 39.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 21 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Olukayode most popular?
The single biggest year for Olukayode was 2007, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Olukayode is about 37 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Olukayode in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 338 people with the name Olukayode, or 0.11 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #27,177 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 Olukayode 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 Olukayode?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Olukayode appears almost entirely male. Of the 343 people counted with this name, 99.4% were male and only a very small share were female. 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 Olukayode?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Olukayode is Black at 95.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.4%) and White (0.6%). 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 Olukayode most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Olukayode in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.9% (324 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 Olukayode in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Olukayode a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Olukayode 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 Olukayode still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Olukayode 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 Olukayode 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 share the name Olukayode?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Olukayode on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.