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

Olay, 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 Olay surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Olay in America

Olay is the 77522nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Olay surname appeared 247 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 Olay.

We can also compare 2010 data for Olay 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 Olay

The surname OLAY originates from Spain, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Spanish word "ola," meaning "wave," which may suggest that the name originally referred to someone who lived near the sea or a body of water.

One of the earliest documented instances of the OLAY surname can be found in the Catastro de Ensenada, a census-like record compiled in the mid-18th century, which mentions several families with this surname in various regions of Spain. In particular, the name appears to have been concentrated in the coastal areas of Galicia and Asturias.

The OLAY surname is also present in some historical records from the Spanish colonial era in Latin America, indicating that individuals with this name may have been among the early Spanish settlers in the Americas. For instance, there are references to an Alonso Olay, a soldier who participated in the conquest of Mexico in the 16th century.

In the 19th century, the OLAY surname can be found in various Spanish-language documents, including birth and marriage records from regions like Andalusia and Catalonia. Some notable individuals with this surname from this period include Manuel Olay y Díaz (1817-1890), a Spanish politician and lawyer, and Ramón Olay y Cortés (1833-1900), a Spanish military officer and politician.

Moving into the 20th century, one of the most famous individuals with the OLAY surname was María Olay Eznarriaga (1901-1996), a Spanish painter and sculptor known for her avant-garde works. Other notable figures include José Olay (1908-1986), a Spanish football player who represented Spain at the 1934 FIFA World Cup, and Esteban Olay Ramírez (1917-2005), a Spanish architect and urban planner.

While the OLAY surname is relatively uncommon, it has a rich history dating back several centuries and has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, ranging from artists and politicians to military personnel and athletes.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Olay

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

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

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

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