Valory
A name of uncertain origin and meaning, possibly a variant of "Valerie".
Name Census estimates that about 266 living Americans carry the first name Valory. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Valory today is around 46 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Valory births was 1955 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Valory. 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
266
~ 1 in 1,288,550 Americans
Peak year
1955
16 babies that year
Average age
46
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,481
Tracked since 1943
Census
Valory in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 372 people with the first name Valory, which placed it at #25,491 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
#25,491
National first-name rank
People counted
372
372 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
67.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Valory
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Valory is White at 67.7%. The next largest groups are Black (13.2%) and Hispanic (12.6%). 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 Valory 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 Valory at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.7% · 252
- Black or African American13.2% · 49
- Hispanic or Latino12.6% · 47
- Two or more races4.8% · 18
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 2
Popularity
Valory: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Valory from the 1940s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 90 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
Valory 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 Valory 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 Valory
The name Valory is believed to have its origins in the Latin language, deriving from the word "valere," which means "to be strong" or "to be well." This name gained popularity during the medieval period, particularly in regions of Europe where Latin influence was strong, such as Italy, France, and parts of the Iberian Peninsula.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Valory can be traced back to the 12th century, when it was mentioned in a historical document from the region of Lombardy in northern Italy. In this document, a nobleman named Valory di Brescia was referenced as a prominent figure in the local community.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Valory was often associated with individuals of noble or privileged backgrounds. It was considered a name that conveyed strength, resilience, and a sense of well-being, reflecting the aspirations of aristocratic families during that time.
In the 14th century, a renowned French poet and scholar named Valory de Valois gained recognition for his literary works and contributions to the cultural renaissance of his era. Born in 1320, Valory de Valois was a member of the French royal family and his writings often explored themes of love, chivalry, and the ideals of courtly life.
Moving into the Renaissance period, one notable figure bearing the name Valory was the Italian artist Valory Beccafumi, born in 1486 in Siena, Italy. Beccafumi was a prominent painter and sculptor, known for his elaborate religious frescoes and his unique blend of Renaissance and Mannerist styles.
In the 17th century, Valory de la Salle, a French educator and Catholic priest, made significant contributions to the field of education. Born in 1651, he founded the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, a pioneering organization dedicated to providing quality education to underprivileged children.
Another influential figure named Valory was the French military leader Valory Leclerc, born in 1772. Leclerc played a crucial role in the Napoleonic Wars and was appointed as the Commander-in-Chief of the French expedition to Saint-Domingue (present-day Haiti) in 1801.
While the name Valory has its roots in ancient Latin and gained prominence during the medieval and Renaissance periods, it has continued to be used across various cultures and regions over time, often carrying connotations of strength, resilience, and well-being.
People
Valory + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Valory as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with V
Other first names starting with V with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Valory: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Valory?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 266 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Valory 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 1,288,550 US residents.
Is Valory a common name?
We classify Valory as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 329 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Valory most popular?
The single biggest year for Valory was 1955, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Valory is about 46 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Valory in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 372 people with the name Valory, or 0.12 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #25,491 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 Valory 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 Valory?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Valory leans strongly female. 365 people counted with this name were female (97.6%), compared with 9 male bearers (2.4%). 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 Valory?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Valory is White at 67.7%. The next largest groups are Black (13.2%) and Hispanic (12.6%). 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 Valory most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Valory in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.7% (252 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 Valory in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Valory a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Valory 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 Valory still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Valory 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 Valory 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 Valory?
You can see how many people share the name Valory on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.