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

Olk, 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 Olk surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Olk in America

Olk is the 40976th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Olk surname appeared 532 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 Olk.

We can also compare 2010 data for Olk 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 Olk

The surname Olk has its origins in Germany, dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Low German word "olk," which means "hump" or "protruding part." This suggests that the name may have initially been a descriptive nickname given to someone with a physical characteristic resembling a hump or protrusion.

The earliest recorded instances of the name Olk can be found in various German historical records and documents from the 16th and 17th centuries. One notable example is the mention of Hans Olk, a resident of the town of Lübeck in northern Germany, in a municipal record from 1582.

In the 17th century, the name Olk appeared in various regions of Germany, including the areas around the cities of Hamburg and Bremen. It is possible that the name was associated with certain occupations or trades that involved physical labor, leading to the development of the descriptive nickname.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Olk was Johann Olk, born in 1684 in the town of Rostock, located in the northern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Johann was a respected merchant and trader, dealing in various goods and commodities throughout the Baltic region.

Another notable figure bearing the Olk surname was Friedrich Olk, a German philosopher and scholar born in 1798 in the city of Leipzig. Friedrich's works focused on metaphysics and the nature of reality, and he was widely regarded as a leading thinker of his time.

In the 19th century, the name Olk gained some prominence in the field of literature. Karl Olk, born in 1821 in Berlin, was a renowned poet and writer whose works explored themes of love, nature, and the human condition. His collection of poems, "Lieder der Sehnsucht" (Songs of Longing), published in 1856, was particularly well-received and celebrated.

As the Olk surname spread throughout Germany and neighboring regions, it also found its way into other areas of Europe. In the late 19th century, Hans Olk, a German emigrant born in 1865, settled in the Netherlands and established a successful business importing and exporting goods between the two countries.

While the surname Olk may not be as common as some other German family names, it has maintained a presence throughout history, with individuals bearing this name contributing to various fields and leaving their mark on the cultural and societal fabric of their respective eras.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Olk

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

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

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

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