2010
#146,201
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Orelli
A surname originating from the Italian town of Orello or referring to someone from that area.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Orelli. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Orelli surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Orelli in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Orelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Black (4.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Orelli
The surname Orelli originated in Switzerland during the 16th century. It is derived from the Latin word 'orellus', which means 'little ear'. The name was likely initially given as a nickname to someone with peculiarly shaped ears.
The Orelli family is believed to have originated in the village of Mendrisio, located in the canton of Ticino in southern Switzerland. The earliest recorded mention of the name dates back to a church registry from 1542, where a man named Gian Battista Orelli was listed as a resident of Mendrisio.
In the 17th century, the Orelli family gained prominence in the city of Locarno, also in the canton of Ticino. Several members of the family were involved in the local silk trade and held positions of authority in the city's government.
One of the most notable figures in the Orelli family was Giovanni Battista Orelli (1663-1731), a Jesuit scholar and theologian. He authored several works on religious subjects and was highly regarded for his knowledge of the classics.
Another prominent individual with the surname Orelli was Giovanni Gaspare Orelli (1701-1776), a Swiss jurist and statesman. He served as a judge in the city of Locarno and was involved in the negotiations that led to the formation of the Swiss Confederation.
In the 19th century, the Orelli family spread beyond the borders of Switzerland. One member, Alfredo Orelli (1826-1892), was a renowned Italian painter and sculptor. He is best known for his works depicting scenes from Italian history and mythology.
Another notable figure was Costantino Orelli (1828-1901), an Italian philologist and classical scholar. He served as a professor of Greek literature at the University of Milan and published several influential works on ancient Greek texts.
The surname Orelli has also been associated with several other notable individuals throughout history, including Swiss mathematician Raffaele Orelli (1875-1952) and Italian actor and director Umberto Orelli (1893-1974).
While the Orelli family originated in Switzerland, the name has since spread to other parts of Europe and the world, carried by descendants of the original Swiss families. However, its roots can be traced back to the small village of Mendrisio in the 16th century and the Latin word 'orellus'.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Orelli
Among Census respondents with the surname Orelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Black (4.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Orelli bearers 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 surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Orelli surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.3% · 108
- Black or African American4.3% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- Two or more races1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Orelli
Orelli appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+4 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 1,931 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #146,201 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.5%) | Up 1,931 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Orelli surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #146,201 | #144,270 | 1.3% |
| Count | 113 | 117 | 3.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Orelli bearers went from 113 to 117 (+3.5% change). The surname moved up 1,931 positions in the national ranking, going from #146,201 to #144,270.
FAQ
Orelli surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Orelli?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Orelli. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Orelli?
Orelli ranks #144,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 117 people with the surname Orelli. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Orelli.
Has Orelli become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Orelli went from 113 recorded bearers to 117. That is an increase of 4 (+3.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #146,201 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Orelli?
Among Census respondents with the surname Orelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Black (4.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Orelli in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Orelli appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.3%), Black (4.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Orelli (2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Orelli mean?
A surname originating from the Italian town of Orello or referring to someone from that area. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Orelli (0.04 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Orelli?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Orelli? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.