Explore the Family Name Olander

The meaning of Olander

1. Swedish: ornamental or habitational name composed of the first element of various origins (in one case from the farm name Olles, genitive of the personal name Olle, in the province of Dalarna) + the suffix -ander, derived from Greek anēr (genitive andros) ‘man’. 2. Swedish (Ölander): habitational name for someone from the island of Öland. 3. Swedish (Ölander): ornamental, topographic, or habitational name from ö ‘island’ (also from placenames containing this word) + -lander, a hybrid suffix from land ‘land’ and -ander, derived from Greek anēr (genitive andros) ‘man’, or from placenames beginning with Öl-, such as Ölmstad, + the suffix -ander. 4. Americanized form of Swedish Ålander (see Alander). Some characteristic forenames: Scandinavian Lennart, Nels, Bjorn, Britt, Helmer, Holger, Lars, Majken.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Olander in the United States?

According to the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Olander saw a slight increase between 2000 and 2010. The ranking of the name moved from 12,667th most popular in 2000 to 12,576th in 2010, showing a change of 0.72%. Additionally, the count or total number of people with the Olander surname also increased by 9.91%, going from 2,240 in 2000 to 2,462 in 2010. Despite these changes, the proportion of individuals with this surname per 100,000 people remained constant at 0.83.

20002010Change
Rank#12,667#12,5760.72%
Count2,2402,4629.91%
Proportion per 100k0.830.830%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Olander

As for the ethnic identity associated with the Olander surname, the data from the Decennial U.S. Census reveals that the vast majority of individuals with this surname identified as White in both 2000 and 2010, although there was a slight decrease in this category of about 2.05%. Meanwhile, those identifying as Hispanic saw an increase of 70.63% over the decade. People identifying with two or more races also increased by 38.02%, while those identifying as Black saw a modest increase of 14.56%. No individuals with the Olander surname identified as Asian/Pacific Islander or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either year.

20002010Change
White95.58%93.62%-2.05%
Hispanic1.43%2.44%70.63%
Two or More Races1.21%1.67%38.02%
Black1.03%1.18%14.56%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%

Olander ancestry composition

23andMe computes an ancestry breakdown for each customer. People may have ancestry from just one population or they may have ancestry from several populations. The most commonly-observed ancestry found in people with the surname Olander is British & Irish, which comprises 32.6% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are Scandinavian (24.6%) and French & German (20.2%). Additional ancestries include Eastern European, Spanish & Portuguese, Finnish, Indigenous American, and Italian.

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ANCESTRY BREAKDOWNCOMPOSITION
British & Irish32.6%
Scandinavian24.6%
French & German20.2%
Other22.7%
Olander

Possible origins of the surname Olander

Your DNA provides clues about where your recent ancestors may have lived. Having many distant relatives in the same location suggests that you may all share common ancestry there. Locations with many distant relatives can also be places where people have migrated recently, such as large cities. If a large number of individuals who share your surname have distant relatives in a specific area, it could indicate a connection between your surname and that location, stemming from either recent ancestral ties or migration.

Based on 23andMe data, people with last name Olander have recent ancestry locations spanning a few countries, mostly in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Ireland.

RECENT ANCESTRY LocationPercentage
Lancashire, United Kingdom64.10%
Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom64.10%
Greater Manchester, United Kingdom64.10%
Greater London, United Kingdom64.10%
Glasgow City, United Kingdom64.10%

What Olander haplogroups can tell you

Haplogroups are genetic population groups that share a common ancestor on either your paternal or maternal line. These paternal and maternal haplogroups shed light on your genetic ancestry and help tell the story of your family.

The top paternal haplogroup of people with the surname Olander is O-F2415, which is predominantly found among people with East Asian & Indigenous American ancestry. Haplogroup O-F2415 is descended from haplogroup O-M1359. Other common haplogroups include E-M183 and O-F2859, which are predominantly found among people with European and East Asian & Indigenous American ancestry.

The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Olander surname are: H1, N, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.

olanderPaternal Haplogroup Origins O-M1359
Paternal Haplo Image

Your paternal lineage may be linked to the Cham

One of the many populations harboring members of haplogroup O1b1a1a1a1 is the Cham ethnic group, a group of people who speak Austronesian languages in Mainland Southeast Asia. Austronesian languages make up a language family that is extremely large and widespread, comprising over 350 million people on islands such as Madagascar, Easter Island, and many others. However, Austronesian languages are less common on mainland Asia, with a notable exception being the Chamic language. Research suggests that ancestors of the Cham people migrated from Southeast Asian islands to the mainland around the year 500 BCE, and that early Cham populations quickly began mixing with indigenous southern Vietnamese populations. As a result, the Chamic language now has words that were borrowed from languages spoken by indigenous Vietnamese people. It is likely that an ancestral Kinh population was one of the populations that mixed with the Cham people shortly after their migration to mainland Asia.

Your maternal lineage may be linked to Marie Antoinette

Because it is so dominant in the general European population, haplogroup H also appears quite frequently in the continent's royal houses. Marie Antoinette, an Austrian Hapsburg who married into the French royal family, inherited the haplogroup from her maternal ancestors. So did Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, whose recorded genealogy traces his female line to Bavaria. Scientists also discovered that famed 16th century astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus traced his maternal lineages to haplogroup H.

Maternal Haplo Image

What do people with the surname Olander have in common?

Spoiler alert: it's complicated. People with the same last name are usually no more genetically similar than a randomly sampled group of people from the same population. That said, people with the same surname are more likely to have similar ancestries than randomly sampled individuals. The reason is the tendency of people with similar cultural or geographical backgrounds to preferentially mate with one another. That's why people who share a surname may be more likely to share traits and tendencies in common than people within the general population. Check out the percentages below to see the prevalences of tastes, habits, and traits of people with your surname compared with prevalences among 23andMe users.

Preferences

Olander

Chocolate Ice Cream

Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.

"Olander" Surname 43.5%

23andMe Users 41.3%

Traits

Olander

Acrophobia

An intense fear of heights that goes beyond the concern many people feel around significant heights.

"Olander" Surname 34.8%

23andMe Users 16.7%

Habits

Olander

Sugary Drink

Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.

"Olander" Surname 14.3%

23andMe Users 21.1%

Wellness

Olander

Migraine

A severe headache characterized by intense pain, sensitivity to light and sound, and often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.

"Olander" Surname 8.5%

23andMe Users 16.4%

Are health conditions linked to the last name Olander?

The short answer is that, if there is an association between surname and health, it's usually more about your ancestry than your name. Individuals with a given surname are no more genetically similar than the general population but often have similar ancestries. The populations of people associated with those shared ancestries often have sets of genetic variations, also known as alleles, in common. Some of those alleles are associated with a greater likelihood of developing certain diseases.

Disease variant frequency by ancestry

Disease allele frequencies in populations associated with the surname Olander are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition

Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Y402H variant

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of irreversible vision loss among older adults. The disease results in damage to the central part of the retina (the macula), impairing vision needed for reading, driving, or even recognizing faces. The 23andMe Health + Ancestry DNA test includes the two most common variants associated with an increased risk of developing the condition: the Y402H variant in the CFH gene and the A69S variant in the ARMS2 gene. Learn more about Age-Related Macular Degeneration

British & Irish 62.1%

23andMe Users 57.2%