Obrey
Rare English name potentially derived from Old French aubry, meaning "fair elf".
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Obrey. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Obrey today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Obrey births was 1919 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Obrey. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Obrey. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1919
5 babies that year
Average age
-
1919 SSA rank
#4,617
Tracked since 1919
Popularity
Obrey: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Obrey 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 Obrey during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Obrey
The name Obrey has its origins in the Old French language, derived from the name Aubry, which itself comes from the Germanic name Alberic or Aubry. This name can be traced back to the 9th century and was widely used in medieval France.
The name Obrey is believed to be a variant spelling that emerged in different regions of France during the Middle Ages. It is thought to be derived from the Germanic elements "alf" meaning "elf" or "supernatural being" and "ric" meaning "ruler" or "powerful". Thus, the name Obrey could be interpreted as "elf ruler" or "ruler of supernatural beings".
In the early medieval period, the name Obrey appeared in various chronicles and records, particularly those associated with the Frankish kingdoms and later the Holy Roman Empire. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Obrey de Montdidier, a French nobleman who lived in the 11th century and was a vassal of the Count of Vermandois.
During the 12th century, an Obrey de Coucy was mentioned in the Cartulary of Saint-Vincent of Laon, a medieval manuscript that recorded the transactions and possessions of the abbey. In the 13th century, an Obrey de Châtillon was a knight who participated in the Seventh Crusade led by King Louis IX of France.
In the 14th century, an Obrey de Sancerre was a French nobleman and military commander who fought in the Hundred Years' War against the English. Another notable figure was Obrey de Montmorency, a French courtier and diplomat who served under King Charles VII in the 15th century.
Throughout the Middle Ages and the Renaissance period, the name Obrey was predominantly found among the French nobility and aristocracy, though it also appeared among the bourgeoisie and commoners in various regions of France.
People
Obrey + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Obrey as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with O
Other first names starting with O with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Obrey: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Obrey?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Obrey 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 - US residents.
Is Obrey a common name?
We classify Obrey as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Obrey most popular?
The single biggest year for Obrey was 1919, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Obrey is about 0 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Obrey in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Obrey a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Obrey in the SSA data are male. 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 Obrey still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Obrey 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 Obrey 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How common is the name Obrey?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Obrey at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.