Olivier
A French surname most often connected with the olive tree, though some historians also link it to the old Scandinavian name Oliver.
The #5,438 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 48,241 Americans shares it.
Etymology
In French, Olivier is normally explained as a word for the olive tree, from Old French olivier and ultimately Latin oliva, "olive." Some older surname dictionaries also note that the name was influenced by the popularity of the heroic name Oliver, which they traced in part to Old Norse forms such as Anleifr/Olafr rather than to the tree alone. Because these traditions overlap in the historical record, the surname can be presented as primarily French, with a possible Scandinavian naming influence on the wider personal-name tradition behind it.
History
The surname appears in French records and was borne by families described as of French extraction in older genealogical notes. It is also associated with the medieval popularity of the name Olivier, helped by the Charlemagne cycle and later literary tradition. In English-speaking countries, Olivier often arrived through French bearers or through variant spellings of Oliver.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname books sometimes use the phrase 'olive-tree' as the literal meaning, but they also caution that the famous knight Olivier may have helped spread the name far beyond its botanical origin.
From the historical record
“OLIVERSON. Tlie son of Oliver. OLIVIER. Fr. Olive-tree. The Ollviers of Potterne are of French extraction, being descended from an old family settled at Nay. B.L.G. OLLEY. Supposed to be a 'nurse-name' of Oliver. OLLIFF. See Olive. OLLIVER. See Oliver.”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom