Ola: name meaning, origin & popularity
- Meaning
- “ancestor's descendant”
- Origin
- Scandinavian
- Say it
- OH-lah · 2 syllables
- Used for
- Girls (98% of all uses)
In Scandinavian use, Ola is a form of Olav/Olaf, from Old Norse Anleifr. In Polish, Ola is also a familiar short form of Aleksandra, so usage depends on cultural context.
How popular is Ola?
Babies named Ola in 202416
Peak year1901
Total US babies since 188030,261
Ola is rising: use over the last five years is 1.6× what it was a decade earlier.
Names like Ola
Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.
Ola questions
What does the name Ola mean?
Ola means "ancestor's descendant". It comes from Scandinavian. In Scandinavian use, Ola is a form of Olav/Olaf, from Old Norse Anleifr. In Polish, Ola is also a familiar short form of Aleksandra, so usage depends on cultural context.
Is Ola a boy or girl name?
Ola is mainly a girl's name in US records (98% of uses since 1880).
How popular is Ola?
16 US babies were named Ola in 2024. Its peak year was 1901.
How do you pronounce Ola?
Ola is usually pronounced OH-lah.
Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.