Olaf or Olav (, , or British ; Old Norse: ''Áleifr'', ''Ólafr'', ''Óleifr'', ''Anleifr'') is a Scandinavian and German given name. It is presumably of Proto-Norse origin, reconstructed as ''*Anu-laibaz'', from ''anu'' "ancestor, grand-father" and ''laibaz'' "heirloom, descendant".

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

forms are attested as ''Ǣlāf'', ''Anlāf''. The corresponding Old Novgorod dialect form is ''Uleb''. A later English form of the name is ''Olave''. In the Norwegian language, ''Olav'' and ''Olaf'' are equally common, but Olav is traditionally used when referring to Norwegian royalty. The

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

form is '' Olov'' or ''Olof'', and the Danish form is ''Oluf''. It was borrowed into Old Irish and

Scots Scots usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: * Scots language, a language of the West Germanic language family native to Scotland * Scots people, a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland * Scoti, a Latin na ...

with the spellings ''Amlaíb'' and ''Amhlaoibh'', giving rise to modern version '' Aulay''. The name is Latinized as ''Olaus''.

Notable people

North Germanic

;Denmark * Olaf I of Denmark, king 1086–1095 *

Olaf II of Denmark no, Olav Håkonsson , house = Bjelbo , father = Haakon VI of Norway , mother = Margaret I of Denmark , birth_date = , birth_place = Akershus Castle, Oslo , death_date = , death_place = Falsterbo Ca ...

, also Olaf IV of Norway * Oluf Haraldsen (died c. 1143), Danish nobleman who ruled Scania for a few years from 1139 ;Norway * Olaf Haraldsson Geirstadalf, petty king *

Olaf I of Norway Olaf Tryggvason (960s – 9 September 1000) was King of Norway from 995 to 1000. He was the son of Tryggvi Olafsson, king of Viken (Vingulmark, and Rånrike), and, according to later sagas, the great-grandson of Harald Fairhair, first King of N ...

Tryggvason, 969 – 9 September 1000 * Olaf II of Norway, or Saint Olaf, ruled 1015–1030 * Olaf III of Norway, king 1067–1093 * Olaf Magnusson (formerly IV) of Norway, 1103–1110 * Olaf IV of Norway, king 1370 – 23 August 1387; was also Olaf II of Denmark ;Sweden *

Olaf of Sweden (disambiguation) Olaf of Sweden also "Onela" - Swedish: ''Olov'' or ''Olof'' - may refer to: *Onela Onela was according to ''Beowulf'' a Swedish king, the son of Ongentheow and the brother of Ohthere. He usurped the Swedish throne, but was killed by his nephew ...

(I, II and III)

Norse-Gaelic

Not all the following were strictly Norse-Gaels, but they share the most common Norse-Gaelic names. * Olaf the Black, 13th-century Norse king * Amlaíb Conung (King Olaf), King of Dublin, possibly identical with Olaf the White * Olaf III Guthfrithson (Emlaíb mac Gofraid), King of Dublin * Amlaíb Ua Donnubáin (Auliffe O'Donovan), regional Irish king

Mann and the Isles

* Olaf I of Mann, also called Olaf Godredsson (c. 1080–1153) *

Olaf II the Black Óláfr Guðrøðarson (died 1237) (Scottish Gaelic: ''Amhlaibh Dubh''), also known as Olaf the Black, was a thirteenth-century King of the Isles, and a member of the Crovan dynasty. He was a son of Guðrøðr Óláfsson, King of the Isles and ...

, also called Olaf Godredsson (1173/4–1237), King of Mann and the Isles 1229–1237.

Novgorod Republic (in Ukraine or Kievan Rus')

* Uleb Ragnvaldsson, son of Ragnvald Ulfsson jarl of Staraja Ladoga (Aldeigjuborg), military leader of Novgorod Republic in conquering of Yugra in 1032.

Modern people

Given name

* Olav V of Norway, king 1957–1991 * Olaf Amundsen (1876–1939), Norwegian lawyer and politician * Olaf Fink (1914–1973), American educator and state senator * Olaf Lubaszenko, Polish actor * Olaf Pooley (1914–2015), English actor *

Count Oluf of Rosenborg Oluf, Count of Rosenborg (Oluf Christian Carl Axel; 10 March 1923 – 19 December 1990), a former Danish prince, was the youngest child and son of Prince Harald of Denmark by his wife, Princess Helena Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Gl� ...

(1923–1990) *

Olaf Scholz Olaf Scholz (; born ) is a German politician who has served as the chancellor of Germany since 8 December 2021. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, Social Democratic Party (SPD), he previously served as Vice Chancellor of German ...

(born 1958), German politician *

Olaf C. Seltzer Olaf C. Seltzer (August 27, 1877 - December 16, 1957) was a Danish-born American painter and illustrator from Great Falls, Montana. He did over 2,500 paintings and illustrations of the American West, including cowboys. Early life Seltzer was born ...

(1877-1957), Danish-born American painter * Olaf Stapledon (1886–1950), British author and historian *

Oluf van Steenwinckel Oluf van Steenwinckel (died 1659) was a Denmark, Danish building master and engineer, probably the son of Hans van Steenwinckel the Younger. Biography In the 1640s he worked at Nykøbing Castle among other places and from 1651 to 52 he was Copenh ...

(died 1659), Danish building master and engineer

Middle name

* Erwin Olaf (Erwin Olaf Springveld), Dutch photographer

Fictional characters

* Count Olaf, a fictional character and the main antagonist in the series of novels ''A Series of Unfortunate Events'' by Lemony Snicket * Olaf, a fictional character in ''Jungle Jam and Friends: The Radio Show!'' * Olaf, a fictional anthropomorphic snowman in the 2013 film ''Frozen'' *Olaf, the Berserker, a character in the multiplayer online battle arena video game '' League of Legends'' *Olaf "the Stout", a fictional character in the video game series '' The Lost Vikings'' * Olaf the Troll, a fictional character in the TV series ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' *Olaf, one of

Snoopy's siblings Snoopy is an anthropomorphic beagle in the comic strip ''Peanuts'' by Charles M. Schulz. He can also be found in all of the ''Peanuts'' films and television specials. Since his debut on October 4, 1950, Snoopy has become one of the most recog ...

in ''Peanuts'' *Olaf Potato, a fictional anthropomorphic potato in the British animated short series '' Small Potatoes'' *Olaf the Smug Anteater, a fictional character from '' Animal Crossing: New Leaf'' *Olaf the Lofty, a fictional inventor from Noggin the Nog *Agent Olaf, from Odd Squad (TV series) *Olaf (Agent Otto Jefferies), a fictional character from the ''

Anita Blake Anita Blake is the title and viewpoint character of the '' Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter'' series by Laurell K. Hamilton. The series takes place in a parallel world in which supernatural characters like vampires and werewolves exist alongside reg ...

'' series. *Olaf One-Eye, ancient High King of Skyrim from the video game series The Elder Scrolls.

Named animals

* Nils Olav

Septs and clans

* McAuliffe (surname) * Mac Amhlaoibh and Mac Amhalghaidh (Irish septs) * Clan Macaulay of Lewis * Clan MacAulay