Loran
Masculine · “of Laurentum”
Loran is given to both — 3,714 boys and 817 girls since 1880. See Loran as a girl nameSee other names given to both
Loran is the old French spelling of Laurence, and it is also, by pure accident, the name of the radio system that guided ships and aircraft across the Atlantic before satellites existed. The two have nothing to do with each other, and for most of the twentieth century the second was better known than the first.
How old is the name Loran?
Loran was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Loran alive today was born around 1942, making them about 83 years old. About 1,600 people named Loran are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Loran most popular?
Loran peaked in 1902, reaching #615 nationally. See the whole 1902 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Laurentius to Loran
The story of Loran
Old French wrote the name Lorans, without the middle syllable that Latin gave it, and that shorter form went into English, into Breton and into a scattering of surnames before the fuller Laurence pushed it aside. It survives in the American record as a given name from the beginning of the count, used for girls as well as boys. The coincidence came later: during the Second World War the United States built a long-range navigation system based on timed radio pulses and named it from its own initials, LORAN, and for fifty years afterwards that was the first thing the word meant to anyone who went to sea.
Meaningscholars disagree
of Laurentum
Laurence is generally traced to a Roman town, Laurentum, though the town's own name and its relation to the laurel are argued over. Loran inherits the whole argument without adding to it.
How the name formed
- Laurentius
- Lorans
- Loran
Related forms: Laurent · Lorans · Lorenzo · Lorenzo
Pronouncing Loran
LOR-un
Two syllables with the weight at the front, the second reduced to a hum. Back-weighted lor-AN, following the French, is also heard.
Nicknames for Loran
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1880
- Most boys named
- 192971 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #615reached in 1902
- Change vs 2018
- 0.0%5 in 2023, from 5
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Loran in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Laurent in French — same name
- Lorans in Breton — same name
- Lorenzo in Italian — same name
- Lorenzo in Spanish — same name
Lorans among us
people named Loran are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Loran sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Two syllables, five letters, and no sound an English speaker has to be taught.
- It sits behind one of the oldest and most widely used names in Europe, with forms in every Romance language.
- It is uncommon in America without looking invented.
- Loren, Lorin and Lorne are near neighbors and will all be written for you.
- The spelling is recorded for girls as well as boys in the United States, and gives no signal either way.
- Anyone with a maritime or aviation background will hear the navigation system first.
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Loran
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Lorans are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,600 people named Loran are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Loran in 2025?
- Loran is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Loran with classmates?
- Loran will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More L names
The most-given names starting with L, all years combined.
Larry#1084 · Lawrence#518 · Louis#249 · Logan#53 · Liam#1 · Lucas#10 · Luke#33 · Leonard#637
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Loran? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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