Olesya (given name)
# Olesya (given name)

Olesya (Ukrainian and Russian: Олеся), may also be spelt Olessia or Olesia, is a feminine given name.

Olesya is a Slavonic name that derives from a word "lyess" (Ukrainian "ліс", Russian "лес" - forest) and means "a girl from the forest", "a girl living in the forest". A different version of the origin of the name states that Olesya is a variant of the name Alexandra, and thus acquires the meaning of "protector". The names Alesya and Lesya can be considered variants of Olesya.

Notable people with the name include:

* Olesya Aliyeva (b. 1977), Russian alpine skier
* Olesya Babushkina (b. 1989), Belarusian gymnast
* Olesya Bakunova (b. 1980), Belarusian sprint canoer
* Olesya Barel (b. 1960), Russian basketball player
* Olesya Belugina (b. 1984), Russian gymnast
* Olesya Chumakova (b. 1981), Russian middle-distance runner
* Olesya Dudnik (b. 1974), Ukrainian gymnast and coach
* Olesya Forsheva (b. 1979), Russian athlete
* Olesya Hudyma (b. 1980), Ukrainian artist, poet and journalist
* Olesya Kurochkina (b. 1983), Russian football player
* Olesya Mashina (b. 1987), Russian footballer
* Olesya Nazarenko (born 1976), amateur wrestler, judoka and sambo player from Turkmenistan
* Olesya Nurgalieva (b. 1976), Russian ultramarathon runner
* Olesya Povh (b. 1987), Ukrainian sprinter
* Olesya Rostovskaya (b. 1975), Russian composer, theremin player, carillonneur, organist, Russian zvon bell-ringer
* Olesya Rulin (b. 1986), Russian-American actress
* Olesya Stefanko (b. 1988), Ukrainian beauty pageant winner
* Olesya Syreva (b. 1983), Russian athlete
* Olesya Velichko (b. 1981), Russian modern pentathlete
* Olesya Vladykina (b. 1988), Russian Paralympic swimmer
* Olesya Truntaeva (b. 1980), Russian footballer
* Olesya Zabara (b. 1982), Russian triple jumper
* Olesya Zamula (b. 1984), Azerbaijani wrestler
* Olesya Zykina (b. 1980), Russian athlete
