Orena
An Italian name meaning "gracious gift" or "precious gift".
Name Census estimates that about 24 living Americans carry the first name Orena. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Orena today is around 81 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Orena births was 1920 (19 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Orena. 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
- • The typical person named Orena is about 81 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Orenas were born before 1955.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Orena. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
24
~ 1 in 14,281,431 Americans
Peak year
1920
19 babies that year
Average age
81
years old
1969 SSA rank
#8,314
Tracked since 1895
Census
Orena in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 134 people with the first name Orena, which placed it at #48,062 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
#48,062
National first-name rank
People counted
134
134 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
55.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Orena
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Orena is White at 55.2%. The next largest groups are Black (29.9%) and Two or More Races (6.0%). 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 Orena 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 Orena at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White55.2% · 74
- Black or African American29.9% · 40
- Two or more races6.0% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino5.2% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.0% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 1
Popularity
Orena: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Orena from the 1890s through to the 1960s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 119 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Orena 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 Orena during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Orenas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Orena
The name Orena is believed to have originated from the Greek language, with its roots traced back to ancient times. It is thought to be derived from the Greek word "oreon," which means "mountain." This suggests that the name may have been initially given to individuals who resided in or near mountainous regions.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Orena can be found in the writings of the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, who lived in the 5th century BC. In his work "The Histories," he briefly referenced an individual named Orena, though little is known about the specific context or details surrounding this person.
During the Byzantine era, which spanned from the 4th to the 15th century AD, the name Orena appears to have gained some popularity within certain regions of the Byzantine Empire. A notable figure bearing this name was Orena of Constantinople, a noblewoman who lived in the 9th century AD and was known for her involvement in various political intrigues and court affairs.
In the Middle Ages, the name Orena was also encountered in parts of Europe, particularly in regions with Greek cultural influences. One prominent individual from this time was Orena of Savoy, a French noblewoman born in the 12th century who played a significant role in the administration of the County of Savoy.
As time progressed, the name Orena continued to be used, albeit with varying degrees of popularity across different cultures and regions. In the 16th century, there was a famous Italian artist named Orena Braccio, renowned for her exceptional skills in painting and fresco work.
Another notable figure was Orena Mendez, a Spanish explorer and navigator who accompanied various expeditions to the Americas in the 17th century. She was known for her bravery and contributions to the exploration and mapping of new territories.
While the name Orena has not been as widely used in modern times, it has left a lasting impact through its historical significance and the individuals who have carried it throughout the centuries.
People
Orena + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Orena 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
Orena: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Orena?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 24 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Orena 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 14,281,431 US residents.
Is Orena a common name?
We classify Orena as "Very Rare". It ranks above 43% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 318 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Orena most popular?
The single biggest year for Orena was 1920, when 19 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Orena is about 81 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Orena in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 134 people with the name Orena, or 0.04 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #48,062 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 Orena 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 Orena?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Orena leans strongly female. 134 people counted with this name were female (97.8%), compared with 3 male bearers (2.2%). 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 Orena?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Orena is White at 55.2%. The next largest groups are Black (29.9%) and Two or More Races (6.0%). 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 Orena most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Orena in the 2020 Census, accounting for 55.2% (74 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 Orena in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Orena a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Orena 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 Orena still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Orena 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 Orena 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 have Orena as a first name?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Orena on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.