Show ContentsOlsen History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The origin of the distinguished Olsen family can be traced to the historic Scandinavian country of Sweden. The surname Olsen is derived from the Scandianavian personal name Oleifr, which also took the forms Olaf, Olof, and Olav. This name is composed of the elements ans, which means god, and leifr, which means relic. The suffix -sson and its variants are translatable as son of.

Olsen World Ranking

In the United States, the name Olsen is the 583rd most popular surname with an estimated 49,740 people with that name. 1 However, in Canada, the name Olsen is ranked the 755th most popular surname with an estimated 7,071 people with that name. 2 And in Australia, the name Olsen is the 557th popular surname with an estimated 6,894 people with that name. 3 New Zealand ranks Olsen as 271st with 2,244 people. 4


United States Olsen migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Olsen Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Johan Hendrick Olsen, aged 29, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1792 5
Olsen Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Andreas Julius Olsen, aged 21, who landed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1831 5
  • Osmund Olsen, aged 19, who arrived in New York, NY in 1836 5
  • A. Olsen, who arrived in New York, NY in 1840
  • Anders Olsen, aged 2, who landed in New York, NY in 1840 5
  • Olaus Olsen, aged 18, who arrived in New York, NY in 1840 5
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Olsen Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Alek Olsen, who arrived in Mississippi in 1900 5
  • Tobias Olsen, who landed in Mobile, Ala in 1903 5
  • Adolf Olsen, who arrived in New York in 1909
  • Hans Jakob Gunnerus Olsen, who landed in Alabama in 1917 5
  • Carl Martin Olsen, who arrived in Alabama in 1921 5
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

New Zealand Olsen migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Olsen Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Edward Olsen, aged 26, a workman, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Celaeno" in 1871
  • Bertha J. Olsen, aged 28, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Celaeno" in 1871
  • Carl B. Olsen, aged under 1, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Celaeno" in 1871
  • Ole Olsen, aged 28, a farm labourer, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "England" in 1872 6
  • Karen Olsen, aged 24, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "England" in 1872 6
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Olsen (post 1700) +

  • Elizabeth Chase Olsen (b. 1989), American actress, sister of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, known for her roles in the films Silent House (2011), Liberal Arts (2012), Godzilla (2014), and for her portrayal of Wanda Maximoff / Scarlet Witch in Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), and Captain America: Civil War (2016)
  • Sally Olsen (1934-2022), American politician who served in the Minnesota House of Representatives from 1979 until 1992
  • Keith Olsen (d. 2020), American record producer and sound engineer, known for his work with Rick Springfield, Fleetwood Mac, Ozzy Osbourne, the Grateful Dead, Pat Benatar, Heart, Santana, Saga, Foreigner, Magnum and many more
  • Kenneth Harry Olsen (1926-2011), American co-founder of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) in 1957
  • Jon C. B. Olsen (b. 1969), American swimmer who won a total of five Olympic medals, including four gold at the 1992 and the 1996 Summer Olympics
  • Tillie Lerner Olsen (1912-2007), award winning American writer associated with the political turmoil of the 1930s
  • Scott Matthew Olsen (b. 1984), Major League Baseball pitcher for the Florida Marlins
  • Eric Christian Olsen (b. 1977), American actor
  • Austin L. Olsen, American fighter pilot and flying ace in the U.S. Navy, during World War II, credited with 5 aerial victories
  • Christen Mortenson Olsen (1858-1938), American politician, Member of South Dakota State House of Representatives 20th District, 1905-08 7
  • ... (Another 42 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Empress of Ireland
  • Mr. Gustav Olsen (d. 1914), Swedish Third Class Passenger from Gothenburg, Sweden who was traveling aboard the Empress of Ireland and died in the sinking 8
Flight TWA 800
  • Miss. Rebecca Jane Olsen (1976-1996), from Macon, Georgia, USA, American passenger flying aboard flight TWA 800 from J.F.K. Airport, New York to Leonardo da Vinci Airport, Rome when the plane crashed after takeoff ; she died in the crash 9
RMS Titanic
  • Mr. Henry Margido Olsen (d. 1912), aged 28, Norwegian Third Class passenger from Bergen who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking and was recovered by CS Mackay-Bennett 10
  • Mr. Karl Siegwart Andreas Olsen (d. 1912), aged 42, Norwegian Third Class passenger from Trondheim who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 10
  • Master Arthur Carl Olsen, aged 9, Norwegian Third Class passenger from Trondheim who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and survived in the sinking in life boat 13 10
  • Mr. Ole Martin Olsen (d. 1912), aged 27, Norwegian Third Class passenger from Sunnhordland who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 10
SS Newfoundland
  • Mr. Charles Olsen (1894-1914), Newfoundlander from St. John's, who on the 30th March 1914 he was part of the Seal Crew of the "SS Newfoundland" leaving the ship to intercept the Stephano which took him to the hunting grounds, he disembarked to begin sealing, but was caught in a thickening storm, attempting to return to the Newfoundland he and the 132 crew made camp for two days the sealers were stranded on the ice in a blizzard attempting to return to the ship, he died during this time
USS Arizona
  • Mr. Vernon J. Olsen, American Seaman First Class working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he survived the sinking 11
  • Mr. Edward Kern Olsen, American Ensign from Kansas, USA working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he died in the sinking 11


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. "Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
  3. "Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
  4. "Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
  5. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  6. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 4th November 2011). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  7. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 7) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  8. Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 17) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html
  9. The Washington Post Passenger List TWA Flight 800. (Retrieved 2018, February 15th). Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/twa800/list01.htm
  10. Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html
  11. Pearl Harbour: USS Arizona Casualties List Pearl Harbour December 7, 1941. (Retrieved 2018, July 31st). Retrieved from http://pearl-harbor.com/arizona/casualtylist.html


Houseofnames.com on Facebook