Olson (surname)
Olson (also Olsson, Oleson) is a common surname of Scandinavian origin that literally means "son of Olof or Ole". Olson may refer to:
Politics and government
- Alec G. Olson (born 1930), former member of the US House of Representatives from Minnesota
- Allen I. Olson (born 1938), former Governor of North Dakota
- Bud Olson (1925–2002), Canadian Member of Parliament, Senator and Lieutenant Governor
- Culbert Olson, (1876–1962), Governor of California
- Donovan Olson (born 1965), Iowa State Representative
- Eric T. Olson (born 1952), American admiral and former commander of U.S. Special Operations Command
- Floyd B. Olson (1891–1936), 22nd Governor of Minnesota
- Mark Douglas Olson, U.S. politician, Minnesota state legislator
- Mark W. Olson (born 1943), U.S. Federal Reserve governor from 2001 to 2006
- Ole H. Olson (1872–1954), 18th Governor of North Dakota, State Senator, State Representative and Lieutenant Governor
- Pete Olson (born 1962), Texas State Representative
- Theodore Olson (born 1940), 42nd United States Solicitor General
- William Olson (1873-1931), Wisconsin State Assemblyman
Sports
- Benji Olson (born 1975), former National Football League (NFL) player
- Bob Olson, American collegiate football player
- Carl Bobo Olson, (1928–2002), American boxer
- Drew Olson (born 1983), NFL quarterback
- Greg Olson (baseball) (born 1960), Major League Baseball (MLB) catcher
- Gregg Olson (born 1966), MLB pitcher
- Karl Olson (born 1930), MLB outfielder
- Lisa Olson, American sportswriter
- Lute Olson (born 1934), former basketball coach
- Mark Olson (curler), Canadian curler and 1981 Brier champion
- Sasha Olson (born 1976), Canadian softball player
- Tyler Olson (baseball) (born 1989), American baseball player
Arts and entertainment
- Alix Olson (born 1975), American poet
- Candice Olson (born 1964), Canadian interior designer and host of the home makeover show Divine Design with Candice Olson
- Charles Olson (1910–1970), American modernist poet
- Evan Olson (born 1967), rock singer and songwriter
- Jenni Olson (born 1962), writer, director and documentary filmmaker
- John Olson (poet and writer) (born 1947)
- Kaitlin Olson (born 1975), American actress
- James Olson (actor) (born 1930), American actor
- Johnny Olson (1910–1985), American radio personality and television announcer
- Kenny Olson, Detroit guitarist with Kid Rock
- Mark Olson (musician) (born 1961), U.S. country singer-songwriter
- Nancy Olson, (born 1928), American actress
- Olivia Olson (born 1992), American singer-songwriter and actress
- Scott Olson, guitarist, bassist, and recording engineer
Science and technology
- Arthur David Olson, founding contributor of the tz database
- Dwight C. Olson, founder of Data Securities International
- Frank Olson, (died 1953), U.S. Army biological warfare scientist
- Mancur Olson, Jr. (1932–1988), American economist and social scientist
- Storrs L. Olson, (born 1944), American biologist, ornithologist and avian paleontologist
Writers and commentators
- Barbara Olson (1955–2001), television commentator, 9/11 victim, wife of Theodore Olson
- Brent Olson, syndicated columnist
- Sigurd F. Olson (1899–1982), American author and environmentalist
- Walter Olson (born 1954), author and blogger
Playboy Playmates
- Gale Olson (born 1947)
- Hope Olson (born 1956)
- Kalin Olson (born 1975)
Other
- Annette Olson, Miss North Dakota 2006
- Clifford Olson (born 1940), Canadian serial killer
- Eric T. Olson (philosopher), American-born professor of philosophy at the University of Sheffield
- Gregory Olsen (born 1945), entrepreneur, third private citizen to fly into space with Space Adventures, Ltd.
- Hope A. Olson, library scholar known for her critical analyses of classification systems
- James S. Olson, American professor of history at Sam Houston State University
- James Olson, 17th president of the University of Missouri System
- Jim Olson, Seattle architect
- Michael Fors Olson (born 1966), American Catholic bishop
- Truman O. Olson (1917–1944), U.S. Army soldier posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor