Find out how popular the last name Ogunleye is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Ogunleye.

Ogunleye, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Ogunleye surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ogunleye in America

Ogunleye is the 52970th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ogunleye surname appeared 391 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Ogunleye.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ogunleye to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Ogunleye

The surname Ogunleye has its origins in the Yoruba people of southwestern Nigeria. It is a combination of two words from the Yoruba language - "Ogun" meaning "war" or "iron," and "leye" meaning "to worship" or "to venerate." Together, the name can be interpreted as "one who venerates war" or "one who worships iron."

This surname likely emerged during the pre-colonial era when the Yoruba kingdoms were prominent in the region. The Yoruba people have a rich history of metalworking and warfare, which could explain the significance of the name's meaning.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Ogunleye surname can be found in the archives of the Oyo Empire, a powerful Yoruba kingdom that existed between the 16th and 19th centuries. These records document individuals with the name participating in various roles within the empire's military and administrative structures.

In the 19th century, the spread of Christianity and the influence of European colonization led to some variations in the spelling of the name, such as Ogunlaye or Ogunleye-Shoyinka.

Notable individuals with the surname Ogunleye include:

1. Reverend Samuel Adjai Crowther (1809-1891), a Yoruba linguist and the first African bishop of the Anglican Church.
2. Akanni Ogunleye (born 1981), a Nigerian-American football player who played in the National Football League (NFL) for several teams.
3. Femi Ogunleye (born 1976), a Nigerian lawyer and author known for his works on human rights and environmental justice.
4. Wale Ogunleye (born 1982), a Nigerian-American former professional basketball player who played in the NBA and several international leagues.
5. Adebayo Ogunleye (born 1977), a Nigerian-American former professional football player who played in the NFL for several teams.

While the Ogunleye surname has its roots in the Yoruba culture of Nigeria, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora. However, the name continues to carry the historical significance of its origins and serves as a testament to the rich cultural heritage of the Yoruba people.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ogunleye

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Ogunleye.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Ogunleye was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Ogunleye has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Ogunleye was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Ogunleye, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!