Olwyn
Welsh name derived from "olwyn" meaning "hoop" or "wheel".
Name Census estimates that about 16 living Americans carry the first name Olwyn. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Olwyn today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Olwyn births was 1970 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Olwyn. 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 Olwyn with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Olwyn. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
16
~ 1 in 21,422,146 Americans
Peak year
1970
6 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2024 SSA rank
#14,787
Tracked since 1917
Popularity
Olwyn: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Olwyn from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 6 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
Olwyn 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 Olwyn 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 Olwyn
The name Olwyn originates from the Welsh language, which has its roots in the ancient Celtic languages spoken across parts of Europe. The name is derived from the Welsh elements "ol" meaning "track" or "trail" and "wyn" meaning "white" or "fair". Together, the name Olwyn can be interpreted as "white trail" or "fair path".
In Welsh mythology and folklore, Olwyn is sometimes associated with the mythical figure of Olwen, a beautiful maiden whose name shares the same roots. Olwen is described in the Mabinogion, a collection of medieval Welsh tales, as having hair that shone brighter than the sun and skin that shone like the snow on the mountains.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Olwyn can be found in the 13th-century Welsh manuscript known as the Black Book of Carmarthen, where it appears as a feminine name. Throughout the centuries, the name has been used by various notable individuals across Wales and beyond.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name Olwyn was Olwyn of Haslor, a 14th-century Welsh noblewoman who inherited lands in Pembrokeshire. In the 16th century, Olwyn Vaughan was a prominent figure in Welsh literature, known for her poetic works and patronage of the arts.
In the 19th century, Olwyn Prys was a Welsh artist and painter who gained recognition for her landscapes and portraits. Born in 1825, she studied art in London and exhibited her works at the Royal Academy.
Olwyn Hughes (1928-1995) was a Welsh actress and singer, best known for her roles in television and film adaptations of Welsh literature. She appeared in productions such as "How Green Was My Valley" and "The Corn is Green".
Olwyn Bowey (1936-2015) was a British art historian and curator, known for her expertise in 20th-century British art. She served as the curator of the Royal Academy of Arts in London and was instrumental in promoting the works of many contemporary artists.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who have borne the name Olwyn throughout history, reflecting its deep roots in Welsh culture and language.
People
Olwyn + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Olwyn 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
Olwyn: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Olwyn?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 16 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Olwyn 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 21,422,146 US residents.
Is Olwyn a common name?
We classify Olwyn as "Very Rare". It ranks above 36.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 22 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Olwyn most popular?
The single biggest year for Olwyn was 1970, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Olwyn is about 23 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 Olwyn in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Olwyn a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Olwyn 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 Olwyn still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Olwyn 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 Olwyn 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 Olwyn?
Want to know how many people share the name Olwyn? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.