Orlena
Feminine
Orlena may be built on a French place name or on a front and an ending that the eighteen-eighties used freely, and nothing records which. That place name has been handed down twice: once from a Roman emperor to a French city, and once from the French city to an American one.
How old is the name Orlena?
Orlena first appears in US birth records in 1881 — 144 years ago. The typical Orlena alive today was born around 1921, making them about 104 years old. About 200 people named Orlena are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Orlena most popular?
Orlena peaked in 1881, reaching #830 nationally. See the whole 1881 chart.
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Orlena
Orléans is named after Aurelian. The Gaulish town of Cenabum was destroyed in Caesar's campaigns and rebuilt under the emperor Aurelian as Aurelianum, which wore down through French sound changes into Orléans — a common pattern, in which a Roman refoundation replaces the older native name entirely. The French city then gave its name to a royal dukedom, usually held by a younger son, and that title traveled: the Duke of Orléans was regent of France when a settlement on the Mississippi was founded and named for him. So an American city carries, at three removes and in two languages, the name of a third-century Roman soldier who was assassinated by his own officers on a road in Thrace.
Meaningnot established
Not established
The front resembles the French city name, which American naming of the period used; the -ena ending is a free element. Nothing documents the combination, and no meaning can honestly be assigned to it.
Pronouncing Orlena
or-LEE-nuh
Three syllables with the stress in the middle. Some families say OR-luh-nuh with the weight at the front, and the spelling does not decide.
Nicknames for Orlena
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
- 1881
- Most girls named
- 192123 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #830reached in 1881
- Change vs 1981
- +40.0%7 in 1983, 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.
Orlenas among us
people named Orlena 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
Orlena 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
- Both cuts produce short forms and each is a standing name.
- Middle stress on three syllables is the easiest rhythm English offers.
- Six letters with no silent ones make it simple to spell aloud.
- Orlene, Arlena and Orleana will all be written for it.
- Stress placement is unsettled, so strangers will say it two ways.
- Nothing records the join, so the meaning question has a short answer.
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Orlena
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Orlenas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 200 people named Orlena are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Orlena in 2025?
- Orlena is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Orlena with classmates?
- Orlena 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 Orlena? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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