Oluwatobi
Oluwatobi is a Yoruba name meaning "the glory of God surrounds."
Name Census estimates that about 703 living Americans carry the first name Oluwatobi. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 77.8% of registrations being male. The average person named Oluwatobi today is around 19 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Oluwatobi births was 2002 (40 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Oluwatobi. 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 Oluwatobi with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
703
~ 1 in 487,560 Americans
Peak year
2002
40 babies that year
Average age
19
years old
2024 SSA rank
#11,913
Tracked since 1990
Census
Oluwatobi in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 922 people with the first name Oluwatobi, which placed it at #13,189 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
#13,189
National first-name rank
People counted
922
922 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
94.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Oluwatobi
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Oluwatobi is Black at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.2%) and White (1.7%). 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 Oluwatobi 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 Oluwatobi at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American94.7% · 873
- Two or more races2.2% · 20
- White1.7% · 16
- Hispanic or Latino1.1% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 3
Gender
Gender distribution for Oluwatobi
Oluwatobi is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 713 total registrations, 555 (77.8%) were male and 158 (22.2%) were female.
Oluwatobi as a male name
- Ranked #11,913 in 2024
- 6 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2002 (29 births)
Oluwatobi as a female name
- Ranked #17,040 in 2021
- 5 female births in 2021
- Peak: 2000 (12 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Oluwatobi on both sides of the split. Of the 922 people counted with this name, 647 were male (70.2%) and 275 were female (29.8%).
Popularity
Oluwatobi: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Oluwatobi from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 287 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Oluwatobi 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 Oluwatobi during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Oluwatobis live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. Texas, Maryland, New York recorded the most babies named Oluwatobi, while Georgia, New York, Maryland recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 26 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Oluwatobi
The name Oluwatobi is a Yoruba name originating from South Western Nigeria. It dates back to the 15th century and is derived from the words "Oluwa" meaning "Lord" and "Tobi" meaning "is worthy". The name is a combination of these two words and translates to "The Lord is worthy".
The name has its roots in the Yoruba culture and religion, which is one of the oldest and most influential cultures in West Africa. The Yoruba people have a rich history and belief system that revolves around the worship of various deities, known as Orishas, and the concept of a supreme being or creator, referred to as Olodumare.
Oluwatobi was a popular name among the Yoruba people during the ancient times, and it was often given to children as a way of expressing their reverence and devotion to the supreme being or creator. The name has been found in ancient Yoruba texts and religious scriptures, which suggests its widespread use and significance within the culture.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Oluwatobi can be found in the 16th century, during the reign of the Oyo Empire, one of the most powerful and influential kingdoms in Yoruba history. During this period, the name was commonly used among the nobility and the ruling class.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Oluwatobi. One such person was Oluwatobi Akinwande, a renowned Yoruba scholar and historian who lived in the late 17th century. Akinwande is credited with preserving and documenting much of the Yoruba cultural heritage and traditions.
Another prominent figure with the name Oluwatobi was Oluwatobi Adesina, a celebrated Yoruba artist who lived in the 19th century. Adesina was known for his intricate wood carvings and sculptures, which depicted various aspects of Yoruba culture and mythology.
In the early 20th century, Oluwatobi Ogunlesi was a prominent Yoruba businessman and philanthropist. He established several successful businesses and used his wealth to support various educational and social initiatives in his community.
Oluwatobi Adegboyega was a renowned Yoruba playwright and author who lived in the mid-20th century. His works explored various themes related to Yoruba culture and traditions, and he played a significant role in preserving and promoting the Yoruba language and literature.
Finally, Oluwatobi Akintoye was a prominent Nigerian politician and human rights activist who lived in the late 20th century. He was a staunch advocate for democracy and played a crucial role in the struggle against military dictatorship in Nigeria.
People
Oluwatobi + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Oluwatobi 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
Oluwatobi: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Oluwatobi?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 703 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Oluwatobi 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 487,560 US residents.
Is Oluwatobi a common name?
We classify Oluwatobi as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 713 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Oluwatobi most popular?
The single biggest year for Oluwatobi was 2002, when 40 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Oluwatobi is about 19 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Oluwatobi in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 922 people with the name Oluwatobi, or 0.31 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #13,189 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 Oluwatobi 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 Oluwatobi?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Oluwatobi on both sides of the split. Of the 922 people counted with this name, 647 were male (70.2%) and 275 were female (29.8%). 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 Oluwatobi?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Oluwatobi is Black at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.2%) and White (1.7%). 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 Oluwatobi most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Oluwatobi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.7% (873 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 Oluwatobi in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Oluwatobi a male name?
Yes, 77.8% of people registered as Oluwatobi 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 Oluwatobi still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Oluwatobi 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 Oluwatobi 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 Oluwatobi?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.