Lorel
A feminine name of unknown origin, possibly inspired by the laurel plant.
Name Census estimates that about 224 living Americans carry the first name Lorel. It is a predominantly female name (98.3% of registrations). The average person named Lorel today is around 51 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lorel births was 1956 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lorel. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
224
~ 1 in 1,530,153 Americans
Peak year
1956
15 babies that year
Average age
51
years old
1938 SSA rank
#3,829
Tracked since 1938
Census
Lorel in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 422 people with the first name Lorel, which placed it at #23,260 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#23,260
National first-name rank
People counted
422
422 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
72.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lorel
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lorel is White at 72.3%. The next largest groups are Black (14.5%) and Hispanic (8.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Lorel described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Lorel at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.3% · 305
- Black or African American14.5% · 61
- Hispanic or Latino8.3% · 35
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.8% · 12
- Two or more races1.7% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 2
Gender
Gender distribution for Lorel
Lorel leans heavily female at 98.3% of total registrations, but 5 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Lorel as a male name
- Ranked #3,829 in 1938
- 5 male births in 1938
- Peak: 1938 (5 births)
Lorel as a female name
- Ranked #16,617 in 2023
- 5 female births in 2023
- Peak: 1956 (15 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Lorel leans strongly female. 375 people counted with this name were female (88.2%), compared with 50 male bearers (11.8%).
Popularity
Lorel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lorel from the 1930s through to the 2020s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 95 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Lorel by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Lorel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Lorels live
Origin
Meaning and history of Lorel
The name Lorel is a feminine given name with origins that can be traced back to the Latin language. It is believed to be derived from the Latin word "laurus," which means "laurel" or "bay laurel." The laurel was a symbol of victory, honor, and triumph in ancient Roman culture, and it was often used to crown victors and heroes.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lorel can be found in medieval European texts, where it was sometimes spelled as "Laurel" or "Laurelle." During this period, the name was likely associated with the laurel wreath, which was a symbol of academic achievement and poetic excellence.
In the 16th century, the name Lorel gained popularity in France, where it was sometimes used as a diminutive form of the name Laurence. It was during this time that the spelling "Lorel" became more commonly used.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Lorel. One of the earliest recorded examples is Lorel de Montferrat, a 12th-century French noblewoman who was known for her patronage of the arts and literature.
Another significant figure was Lorel de Sully, a 13th-century French architect and master mason who oversaw the construction of several important Gothic cathedrals, including the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris.
In the 16th century, Lorel de Médicis, an Italian noblewoman and member of the influential Medici family, played a significant role in the cultural and political life of Renaissance Italy.
During the 18th century, Lorel Pichler was an Austrian writer and poet who gained recognition for her lyrical works and contributions to the Romantic movement.
In the 20th century, Lorel Arnaud was a French artist and sculptor known for her unique style and innovative use of materials, particularly in her abstract works.
While the name Lorel has historically been more common in European cultures, it has also been used in other parts of the world, though its origins and meanings may have evolved or been adapted over time.
People
Lorel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lorel as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Lorel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lorel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 224 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lorel going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,530,153 US residents.
Is Lorel a common name?
We classify Lorel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 75.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 293 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lorel most popular?
The single biggest year for Lorel was 1956, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lorel is about 51 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Lorel in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 422 people with the name Lorel, or 0.14 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #23,260 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Lorel in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Lorel?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Lorel leans strongly female. 375 people counted with this name were female (88.2%), compared with 50 male bearers (11.8%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Lorel?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lorel is White at 72.3%. The next largest groups are Black (14.5%) and Hispanic (8.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Lorel most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Lorel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.3% (305 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Lorel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Lorel a female name?
Yes, 98.3% of people registered as Lorel in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Lorel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Lorel in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Lorel can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are called Lorel?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.