Boys' name · since 1880

Olaf

Olaf has 2,531 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1916 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.

#2,847 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#12,020 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
2,531
born since 1880
1910s
peak decade

Olaf currently ranks #12020 among boys' names in America, with 2,531 babies recorded since 1880.

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Olaf has been recorded 2,531 times among boys since 1880, currently ranked #12020 nationally and more common than 14% of boys, with its heaviest use in the 1910s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.

  • #2,847 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • #12,020 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
  • 2,531 born since 1880
  • 1910s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Olaf ranks #2,847 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #12,020 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 2,531 born since 1880, peaking in the 1910s.

#2,847 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#12,020 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
2,531
born since 1880
1910s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%13.7%
Olaf vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
Above the archive median
All-time archive position

Olaf's 2,531 recorded births place it above 93.74% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

9 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

9 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Minnesota.

How Olaf compares

2,531 Top 19% higher than 81% of 13,930 names currently given to boys

Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked boys names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.

Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data

How the numbers stack up

Olaf's all-time total is 7x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Olaf Median boys name (Takari) #1 boys name (Liam)
All-time total births 2,531 369 358,536
Peak-year births 79 34 22,252

Olaf's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Splitting Olaf's full recorded timeline at 1952, 37% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 63% in the earlier half -- the name was more prevalent in its earlier era than it is today. Its quietest year on record was 1983, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1916 peak of 79 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.

Olaf popularity over time

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1916)
79
Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
020406080100 188018991918193719561975199520142025 5

Olaf by decade

1910s is the heaviest window (501 births, 20% of the file).

1910s was Olaf's strongest decade.

501 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 20% of all-time use.

Olaf births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 1910s at 501 births (20% of all-time use).

Source U.S. Social Security Administration · Baby Names As of August 2026

How Olaf compares to similarly-sized names

Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 boys names closest to Olaf's total volume

Olaf vs 15 similarly-sized boys names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%10%20%30%40% 050100150200 New & already peakedOld name, single-era peakNew & still diversifyingLong history, steady all along Years in SSA records % of total births in the single peak year -60, 2.9%-104, 9%-51, 7.7%-51, 8%-46, 5.6%-48, 5.8%-146, 4.2%-27, 34.6%-49, 9.3%-112, 5.2%-146, 2.5%-112, 3.4%-122, 1.7%-52, 4.3%-65, 5.7%Olaf-146, 3.1%Olaf
Olaf vs 15 similarly-sized boys names

Olaf by state

Where Olaf concentrates geographically, total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Olaf
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Minnesota
123 4.9%
#2 North Dakota
112 4.4%
#3 New York
59 2.3%
#4 California
46 1.8%
#5 Wisconsin
25 1.0%
#6 Illinois
23 0.9%
#7 Iowa
6 0.2%
#8 Montana
5 0.2%
Minnesota share of Olaf's total US births 4.9%
Even split

123 of 2,531 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 9 reporting states.

Olaf appears in 9 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Olaf? ▼
2,531 babies have been named Olaf since 1880. All-time, it sits at #2,847 of 45,481 boys' names by recorded births. In 2025, it ranks #12,020 of 13,930 among boys. The peak year was 1916 with 79 births.
Where does Olaf sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Olaf ranks #2,847 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #12,020 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. All-time ordinal matches browse popularity (total births DESC); the current ordinal uses the 2025 SSA file. See /methodology#corpus-placement.
When was Olaf most popular? ▼
Olaf was most popular in the 1910s decade with 501 total births. The single peak year was 1916.
Where is Olaf most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Olaf are Minnesota (123 births), North Dakota (112 births), New York (59 births).
How long has the name Olaf been used? ▼
Records for Olaf go back to 1880, giving 146 years of history through 2025.
What names are similar to Olaf? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Olan, Olajuwon, Ola, Olando, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

What to do with Olaf's data

  • Olaf's decade-level peak was the 1910s (501 total births); usage has since declined to 35 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
  • Minnesota records the most Olafs (123 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Minnesota names

Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.

Keep exploring Olaf

Nearby Names Like Olaf

Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Olaf

Olan Boy
#6159 2,732 births
Olajuwon Boy
#9155 641 births
Ola Boy
624 births
Olando Boy
621 births
Olamide Boy
#11139 298 births

Compare Olaf side by side: Olaf vs Olan Olaf vs Olajuwon Olaf vs Ola

Or pick any two names to compare →

Related Names

Names with a similar popularity rank to Olaf

Alvie #12019
4,094 births · Peak 1921
Elizabeth #12021
5,216 births · Peak 1989
Willam #12018
3,516 births · Peak 1959
Lafe #12022
696 births · Peak 1884
Loyd #12017
22,436 births · Peak 1926
Lenard #12023
9,997 births · Peak 1925
Cicero #12016
1,453 births · Peak 1920
Solon #12024
1,351 births · Peak 1916

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Olaf: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.

Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.

Data Sources

Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1880–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).

Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Olaf draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.