US rank #5048 Boys' name Peak 1881 2,101 births

Ole — #5048 US boys' name

2,101 babies named Ole in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1881. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s3101890s1651900s1221910s2801920s2161930s1511940s1161950s1481960s1071970s921980s401990s192000s752010s1652020s95
#5048
of 14,243 boys in use

More common than 65% of names given to boys today.

1880s
Peak decade

15% of everyone ever named Ole was born in this single decade.

1881
Single peak year

42 babies were named Ole in 1881 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Ole

The Social Security Administration has registered 2,101 babies named Ole between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Ole currently holds the #5048 rank among boys for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1881, when 42 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Ole performed strongest in the 1880s, accumulating 310 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Ole shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in Minnesota, which accounts for 132 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by North Dakota and Washington. In total, SSA state-level files list Ole in 7 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Ole in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 2,101 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Ole at a glance

Outside the top 1,000

Total births

2,101

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1881

42 births that year

Strongest decade: 1880s

Current rank

#5,048

Among boys

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Ole popularity over time

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1881)
42
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
01020304050 202420071977195919421925190818911880 29

Ole by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1880s
Peak decade
1880s
310 births that decade — 15% of Ole's all-time total
1880s3101890s1651900s1221910s2801920s2161930s1511940s1161950s1481960s1071970s921980s401990s192000s752010s1652020s95

Ole by state

Where Ole concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 7 states by recorded births for the name Ole
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Minnesota
132 6.3%
#2 North Dakota
65 3.1%
#3 Washington
11 0.5%
#4 California
6 0.3%
#5 New York
5 0.2%
#6 South Dakota
5 0.2%
#7 Wisconsin
5 0.2%
Minnesota share of Ole's total US births 6.3%
Even split

132 of 2,101 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 7 reporting states.

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Ole?
2,101 babies have been named Ole since 1880. It currently ranks #5048 among boys. The peak year was 1881 with 42 births.
When was Ole most popular?
Ole was most popular in the 1880s decade with 310 total births. The single peak year was 1881.
Where is Ole most popular?
The top states for the name Ole are Minnesota (132 births), North Dakota (65 births), Washington (11 births).
How long has the name Ole been used?
Ole has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Ole?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Olen, Oleg, Olegario, Oley, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.