Orlean
Feminine
Orlean is given to both — 543 girls and 22 boys since 1880. See other names given to both
Orlean is a rare two- or three-syllable name that sounds like a French city and an American one. It was given almost entirely to girls in an earlier America.
How old is the name Orlean?
Orlean first appears in US birth records in 1896 — 129 years ago. The typical Orlean alive today was born around 1924, making them about 101 years old. Fewer than a hundred people named Orlean are estimated to be alive in the US today — a true one-of-a-kind name.
When was the name Orlean most popular?
Orlean peaked in 1899, reaching #1278 nationally. See the whole 1899 chart.
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Orlean
When French colonists founded a town on a bend of the Mississippi, they named it for Philippe, Duke of Orléans, who was then ruling France as regent for the boy king Louis XV, and New Orleans grew into the most musical city in America. Orlean carries the sound of that name, and of the old French city on the Loire behind it. Whether families were thinking of either, the record does not say, but the echo is a rich one.
Meaningnot established
Not established
No source records the origin of Orlean as a girl's name. It may be shaped by Orleans and New Orleans, or be a build near Arlene and Orla, and no record says which.
Pronouncing Orlean
or-LEEN
Most families stress the second syllable. Some say OR-lee-un.
Nicknames for Orlean
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
- 1896
- Most girls named
- 192126 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1278reached in 1899
- Change vs 1956
- +20.0%6 in 1970, 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.
Orleans among us
Fewer than a hundred people named Orlean are estimated to be alive in the US today — a true one-of-a-kind name.
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Orlean 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
- It carries a rich echo of a great city.
- It is almost certainly unique among the people she will meet.
- People will write Orleans or Arlene.
- A very few boys have been given it; for them it will read as a girl's name.
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Orlean
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Orleans are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. Fewer than a hundred people named Orlean are estimated to be alive in the US today — a true one-of-a-kind name.
- How popular is the name Orlean in 2025?
- Orlean is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Orlean with classmates?
- Orlean will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More O names
The most-given names starting with O, all years combined.
Olivia#1 · Opal#423 · Olive#197 · Olga#3167 · Ollie#2276 · Ora#3712 · Ola#7885 · Ophelia#264
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Orlean? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Orlean and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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