Okey
A given name of English origin meaning "all correct" or "okay".
Name Census estimates that about 420 living Americans carry the first name Okey. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Okey today is around 72 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Okey births was 1925 (48 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Okey. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Okey is about 72 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Okeys were born before 1964.
People living today
420
~ 1 in 816,082 Americans
Peak year
1925
48 babies that year
Average age
72
years old
1995 SSA rank
#7,568
Tracked since 1881
Census
Okey in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 569 people with the first name Okey, which placed it at #18,829 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#18,829
National first-name rank
People counted
569
569 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
72.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Okey
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Okey is White at 72.6%. The next largest groups are Black (22.0%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Okey described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Okey at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.6% · 413
- Black or African American22.0% · 125
- Two or more races4.2% · 24
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 1
Popularity
Okey: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Okey from the 1880s through to the 1990s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 310 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Okey by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Okey during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Okeys live
Origin
Meaning and history of Okey
The given name Okey is a relatively uncommon one, and its origins can be traced back to the West African region, particularly among the Igbo people of Nigeria. The name's etymology is believed to derive from the Igbo word "ọkụ," which means "fire" or "light." This connection suggests that the name may have been bestowed upon individuals with a fiery or radiant personality or perhaps those born during a significant celestial event such as a meteor shower or an eclipse.
In the Igbo culture, names often carry deep symbolic meaning and are carefully chosen to reflect the circumstances surrounding a child's birth or to express the hopes and aspirations of the parents for their offspring. The name Okey, with its connotation of light and warmth, could have been given to a child born during a particularly bright or auspicious time, or as a form of protection and guidance for their life's journey.
While the precise historical origins of the name Okey are not extensively documented, its use can be traced back several centuries within the Igbo communities of West Africa. However, it is worth noting that due to the oral tradition and limited written records from that era, specific references or mentions in ancient texts or religious scriptures are scarce.
One of the earliest recorded examples of an individual bearing the name Okey can be found in the 18th century, with Okey Nwachukwu, a prominent Igbo trader and negotiator who facilitated economic and cultural exchanges between his people and European settlers in the region. His name and legacy have been celebrated in various historical accounts and oral traditions.
In more recent times, several notable figures have carried the name Okey, including:
1. Okey Ndibe (born 1960), a renowned Nigerian novelist, poet, and memoirist, known for works such as "Arrows of Rain" and "Never Look an American in the Eye."
2. Okey Bakassi (born 1977), a popular Nigerian comedian and actor, renowned for his stand-up comedy performances and appearances in several Nollywood films.
3. Okey Ezeh (born 1972), a Nigerian-American actor and producer, best known for his roles in films like "The Brothers" and "The Smurfs."
4. Okey Chukwu (born 1992), a Nigerian professional footballer who has played for various clubs in Europe, including Brøndby IF and Randers FC.
5. Okey Onuoha (born 1981), a Nigerian-American engineer and entrepreneur, recognized for his work in developing sustainable energy solutions and promoting STEM education.
While the name Okey may not be as prevalent on a global scale, it holds significant cultural and historical significance within the Igbo community of West Africa, reflecting their rich traditions and the importance placed on names as a means of expressing identity, hopes, and aspirations.
People
Okey + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Okey as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with O
Other first names starting with O with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Okey: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Okey?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 420 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Okey going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 816,082 US residents.
Is Okey a common name?
We classify Okey as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,462 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Okey most popular?
The single biggest year for Okey was 1925, when 48 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Okey is about 72 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Okey in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 569 people with the name Okey, or 0.19 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #18,829 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Okey in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Okey?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Okey leans strongly male. 555 people counted with this name were male (97.2%), compared with 16 female bearers (2.8%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Okey?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Okey is White at 72.6%. The next largest groups are Black (22.0%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Okey most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Okey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.6% (413 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Okey in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Okey a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Okey in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Okey still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Okey in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Okey can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people share the name Okey?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.