Orrel
Anglicized form of the French name Orel, a diminutive of Oreille meaning "golden ear of grain".
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Orrel. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Orrel today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Orrel births was 1916 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Orrel. 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 Orrel. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1916
5 babies that year
Average age
-
1920 SSA rank
#4,797
Tracked since 1916
Popularity
Orrel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Orrel from the 1910s through to the 1920s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 5 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Orrel 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 Orrel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Orrel
The name Orrel is believed to have its roots in Old English, originating sometime around the 9th or 10th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "orel," which means "champion" or "brave warrior." This suggests that the name may have been bestowed upon individuals who displayed exceptional courage or skill in battle.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Orrel can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. Here, the name appears as "Orellus," likely a variant spelling of the original Old English name.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Orrel seems to have been relatively uncommon, though it did appear in various historical documents and records. One notable bearer of the name was Orrel de Vipont, a Norman knight who fought alongside William the Conqueror during the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.
As time progressed, the name Orrel underwent various spelling variations, including Orrell, Orrall, and Orral. In the 16th century, an Orrel Woodcock was mentioned in the records of the parish of Rochdale, Lancashire, England, indicating the name's continued use during this period.
During the 17th century, Orrel Cromwell, a distant relative of Oliver Cromwell, the Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland, was born in 1620. He served as a member of Parliament and played a role in the English Civil War.
Another notable figure bearing the name was Orrel Jones, a Welsh poet and writer who lived from 1784 to 1854. He was known for his works in the Welsh language, which helped preserve and promote the cultural heritage of Wales during a time of rapid industrialization and social change.
In the late 19th century, Orrel Hutchinson, an American engineer and inventor, was born in 1877. He made significant contributions to the development of early aviation and is credited with designing and building one of the first successful aircraft propellers.
While the name Orrel may have fallen out of widespread use in more recent times, its rich history and meaningful origins serve as a testament to the enduring legacy of names derived from Old English roots.
People
Orrel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Orrel 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
Orrel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Orrel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Orrel 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 Orrel a common name?
We classify Orrel 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, 10 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Orrel most popular?
The single biggest year for Orrel was 1916, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Orrel 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 Orrel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Orrel a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Orrel 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 Orrel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Orrel 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 Orrel 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 many Americans are named Orrel?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.