Okoye is a
family name (
surname) originating in
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...
. It is an
Anambra dialect derived from the central
Igbo name Okorie (meaning someone born on orie market day, or Oye market day as known in Anambra State).
Notable people with the name Okoye include:
*
Amobi Okoye
Amobi Okoye (born June 10, 1987) is a Nigerian-born former American football defensive tackle. He played college football at Louisville and was drafted by the Houston Texans tenth overall in the 2007 NFL Draft, the youngest player in NFL histor ...
, Nigerian-American National Football League defensive tackle for the Chicago Bears
*
Christian Okoye
Christian Emeka Okoye (; born August 16, 1961) is a Nigerian-American former American football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs from 1987 to 1992. Nicknamed the "Nigerian Nightmare", he is known for his powerful running style and ability ...
, Nigerian-American former National Football League running back for the Kansas City Chiefs
*
Ebele Okoye
Ebele Okoye (born 6 October 1969, Onitsha, Anambra State) is a Nigerian-American painter and animator based in Cologne, Germany since 2000.
Education
Okoye studied Fine and Applied Arts (Graphic design/Illustration) at the Institute of Manage ...
, Nigerian painter
* Gabosky Okoye, popular Nigerian movie producer and pioneer of
Nollywood
Nollywood is a sobriquet that originally referred to the Nigerian film industry. The origin of the term dates back to the early 2000s, traced to an article in ''The New York Times''. Due to the history of evolving meanings and contexts, there ...
industry
*
Godfrey Okoye, Nigerian Catholic bishop
*
Kelechi Okoye
Kelechi Okoye-Ahaneku (born 28 May 1984) is a Nigerian football player, who last played for Rangdajied United in the I-League 2nd Division in India.
International career
He was the Captain of the Nigeria national under-20 football team in 200 ...
, Nigerian professional football player
*
Lawrence Okoye, British record holder in men's discus and National Football League defensive end for the
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pl ...
*
Louis Okoye, Japanese-Nigerian baseball player
*
Monica Okoye, Japanese-Nigerian basketball player
*
Nkeiru Okoye (born 1972), African American composer
*
Oge Okoye, Nigerian actress
*
Pericoma Okoye, Nigerian singer and traditionist
* Peter & Paul Okoye, former members of Nigerian Afro-beats group
P-Square
*
Sam Okoye
Sam Okoye (1 May 1980 – 31 August 2005) was a Nigerian football goalkeeper who represented Nigeria during the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship.
Death
Four months after his 25th birthday, whilst living in Tehran
Tehran (; fa, ت ...
, Nigerian former professional
football player
*
Samuel Okoye, Nigerian astrophysicist
*
Stan Okoye, Nigerian-American basketball player
*
Ugo Okoye, Nigerian former professional football player
Igbo names