Oleh
A masculine name of Ukrainian origin meaning "victor" or "conqueror".
Name Census estimates that about 41 living Americans carry the first name Oleh. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Oleh today is around 69 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Oleh births was 1958 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Oleh. 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 Oleh is about 69 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Olehs were born before 1967.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Oleh. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
41
~ 1 in 8,359,862 Americans
Peak year
1958
10 babies that year
Average age
69
years old
1980 SSA rank
#6,992
Tracked since 1950
Census
Oleh in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,023 people with the first name Oleh, which placed it at #12,227 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
#12,227
National first-name rank
People counted
1.0K
1,023 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
98.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Oleh
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Oleh is White at 98.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.7%) and Black (0.4%). 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 Oleh 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 Oleh at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White98.7% · 1,010
- Hispanic or Latino0.7% · 7
- Black or African American0.4% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.1% · 1
- Two or more races0.1% · 1
Popularity
Oleh: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Oleh from the 1950s through to the 1980s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 49 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Oleh 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 Oleh during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Olehs live
Origin
Meaning and history of Oleh
The given name Oleh has its origins in the Slavic languages, particularly Ukrainian and Russian. It is a variant of the name Oleg, which is derived from the Old Norse name Áleikr or Óláfr, meaning "ancestor's descendent" or "heir to an inheritance."
In the 9th century, the name Oleg was borne by Oleg of Novgorod, a Varangian prince who ruled the Rus' people and is considered one of the founders of the Kievan Rus' state. This historical figure is mentioned in the Primary Chronicle, an early medieval East Slavic chronicle written in the 12th century.
The name Oleh gained popularity among Eastern Slavic populations, particularly in Ukraine and Russia, due to its association with Oleg of Novgorod. Over the centuries, it has been used by various notable individuals, including Oleh Zhuravsky (1914-1994), a Ukrainian artist and illustrator known for his works depicting the Cossack era.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Oleh Kokhan (1918-1994), a Ukrainian artist and sculptor who specialized in monumental and decorative art. His works can be found in various public spaces in Ukraine and other countries.
In the field of literature, Oleh Chornohuz (1935-2003) was a notable Ukrainian writer and translator. He is best known for his translations of works by authors such as Gabriel García Márquez and Mario Vargas Llosa into Ukrainian.
Oleh Blokhin (1952-2022) was a renowned Ukrainian football player and manager. He played for the Soviet Union national team and is considered one of the greatest strikers in Soviet football history. He later coached various clubs and the Ukrainian national team.
Oleh Skrypka (born 1964) is a popular Ukrainian singer, songwriter, and leader of the band Vopli Vidoplyasova. He is known for his contributions to the development of Ukrainian rock music and his efforts in promoting Ukrainian culture and language.
While the name Oleh has its roots in the Slavic languages, it has also been used in other cultures and regions, although its popularity may vary. Regardless of its geographical spread, the name carries a rich historical legacy and continues to be a part of the cultural heritage of Eastern Slavic populations.
People
Oleh + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Oleh 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
Oleh: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Oleh?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 41 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Oleh 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 8,359,862 US residents.
Is Oleh a common name?
We classify Oleh as "Very Rare". It ranks above 51.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 54 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Oleh most popular?
The single biggest year for Oleh was 1958, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Oleh is about 69 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Oleh in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,023 people with the name Oleh, or 0.34 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #12,227 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 Oleh 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 Oleh?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Oleh appears almost entirely male. Of the 1,025 people counted with this name, 99.5% were male and only a very small share were female. 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 Oleh?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Oleh is White at 98.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.7%) and Black (0.4%). 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 Oleh most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Oleh in the 2020 Census, accounting for 98.7% (1,010 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 Oleh in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Oleh a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Oleh 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 Oleh still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Oleh 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 Oleh 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 have Oleh as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.