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Olaf

boy name
Origin
Scandinavian
Syllables
2
Peak era
Rare
Today
▬ Steady

Torn between Olaf and another name? Compare them side by side →

Meaning

ancestor's descendant (Norwegian/Danish royal name; five kings of Norway)

Goes by Ola. See all nicknames

How popular is Olaf around the world?

In the United States, 35 babies were named Olaf between 2020 and 2025. In Poland, 317 boys named Olaf were born in 2025, the 72nd most common name among boys that year.

Olaf is on the official records of the United States, Poland, Norway, Mexico City, England and Wales, Spain, Chile, Argentina and Brazil.

United States

1 in 620,000

In the United States, 35 babies were named Olaf between 2020 and 2025.

1890srare in US records2020s

Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Olaf has stayed rare in US records the whole time: no peak decade to name.

Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration

See the full list for the United States →

Poland

1 in 780

In Poland, 317 boys named Olaf were born in 2025, the 72nd most common name among boys that year.

2000peak 20162025

share of that year’s name registrations

First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)

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Norway

1 in 2,000 · register 2026

In Norway, 14 boys were given the name Olaf in 2025.

peak 19462025

share of the boys on the register for that year, SSB’s own figure

People who have or have had a Norwegian ID number, emigrants left out, from Statistics Norway’s name statistics (release of January 2026): by year of birth for 1945–2020 (everyone born that year who was ever registered in Norway, including people who registered later and people who have since died) and by year of naming from 2021; only first names carried by 200 or more living people are listed, counts under 4 are withheld, and SSB merges spellings that differ only by letters outside the Norwegian alphabet. The shares are SSB’s own, of the people of that sex and year in that count; the 2025 figure counts the children named that year, and no year is a count of births. Source: Statistics Norway (SSB), table 10467 (updated 2026-01-28)

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Mexico City City

1 in 39,000

In Mexico City, there were 3 registrations of Olaf in 2022.

peak 20042022

share of that year’s registrations in the city

Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023

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England and Wales

1 in 65,000

In England and Wales, 9 boys named Olaf were born in 2025, ranked 2,440th among boys that year.

1996peak 20152025

share of that year’s name registrations

Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales

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Spain

1 in 160,000

In Spain, 276 residents are named Olaf, ranked 3,608th among men, with a mean age of 39.9 years.

Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025

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Chile

1 in 180,000

In Chile, 1 boy was registered as Olaf in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.
The count never rose above 5 in a year, too few to chart.

First-name registrations with Chile’s civil registry by year of registration, 1920–2021, counted as spelling groups (Sofía, Sofia and Sofìa are one name, shown with its most-registered spelling); the registry withholds nothing, nametree keeps the groups that reached 5 registrations in some year, and shares divide by every registration of the year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación (Chile) via the guaguas package, first-name registrations 1920-2021

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Argentina

1 in 330,000

In Argentina, 2 newborns were given the name Olaf in 2024.

2012peak 20152024

share of that year’s name registrations

Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024

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Austria

last on record 2024

Olaf is not on the 2025 record for Austria, which publishes every first name down to a single birth, so the name was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.

Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)

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Brazil

At the 2022 census, 60 people in Brazil were named Olaf, ranked 58,763rd, with a median age of 47.

People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022

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Ireland

last on record 2022

Olaf is not on the 2025 record for Ireland, where names under 3 in a year are withheld at source.

2000peak 2019

share of that year’s name registrations

Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names

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Montevideo City

last on record 2009

Olaf is not on the 2011 record for Montevideo, whose registry withholds nothing, so the spelling was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.

Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial

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Scotland

last on record 2023

Olaf is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
The count never rose above 8 in a year, too few to chart.

Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names

See the full list for Scotland →

South Australia

last on record 1963

Olaf is not on the 2017 record for South Australia, whose registry publishes every name given that year.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.

Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names

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Not on the record in Puerto Rico, Canada and New Zealand: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.

Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown.

All records: the most popular baby names around the world →

When you meet Olaf

People given the name Olaf in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1960 to 2009. Age is the one thing the name won't tell you.

Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.

Names that fit alongside Olaf

Gustavo Lars Sven James Nils Leif

Keep exploring

Scandinavian baby names · Short names

Name trails: explore connections from Olaf →

The Olaf deep dive

Written for you · $1.99 →

Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Olaf truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Olaf fits with your family’s names and surname.

Both reports, explained →

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