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

Ogunsanya, 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 Ogunsanya surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ogunsanya in America

Ogunsanya is the 109258th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ogunsanya surname appeared 162 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 Ogunsanya.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ogunsanya 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 Ogunsanya

The surname Ogunsanya has its origins in the Yoruba language of southwestern Nigeria, West Africa. It is a compound name derived from the words "Ogun" meaning "war" or "warrior", and "sanyan" meaning "to walk with energy or vigor".

The name likely emerged during the various Yoruba wars and conflicts of the 16th-18th centuries, denoting a warrior or soldier who fought with great energy and determination. The earliest known written records of the Ogunsanya name appear in historical accounts and oral traditions from this period of Yoruba history.

One of the first documented references to the Ogunsanya name can be found in the chronicles of the Oyo Empire, a powerful Yoruba kingdom that ruled over much of what is now southwestern Nigeria from the 16th to the 19th century. These accounts mention several Ogunsanya warriors who served in the Oyo military forces and participated in various battles and campaigns.

In the late 18th century, an Ogunsanya leader named Adeyemi Ogunsanya played a significant role in the establishment of the Ibadan city-state, one of the largest and most influential Yoruba settlements of the time. Adeyemi Ogunsanya was born around 1750 and is remembered as a skilled military strategist and diplomat who helped forge alliances between various Yoruba communities.

Another notable figure bearing the Ogunsanya name was Adesoji Ogunsanya, a respected Yoruba chief and landowner who lived in the mid-19th century. He was involved in the resolution of several inter-community disputes and is credited with helping to maintain peace and stability in the region during a period of political upheaval.

In more recent times, the Ogunsanya name has been carried by several prominent Nigerians, including Akinola Ogunsanya, a respected educator and academic who served as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan from 1977 to 1983. Another notable Ogunsanya was Adebayo Ogunsanya, a successful businessman and industrialist who founded the Ogunsanya Group of Companies, one of the largest industrial conglomerates in Nigeria.

While the Ogunsanya name has its deepest roots in the Yoruba culture of southwestern Nigeria, it has since spread to other parts of the country and beyond, carried by individuals and families of Yoruba descent who have migrated to different regions and continents over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ogunsanya

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

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 Ogunsanya 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 Ogunsanya 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 Ogunsanya was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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