Orly
Feminine · “light is mine”
Orly is Hebrew for light is mine, and it is one of the modern Israeli names built from ordinary words rather than inherited.
How old is the name Orly?
Orly first appears in US birth records in 1964 — 61 years ago. The typical Orly alive today was born around 2009, making them about 16 years old. About 800 people named Orly are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Orly most popular?
Orly peaked in 2013, reaching #4336 nationally. Today it ranks #4661, 325 places below that high. See the whole 2013 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Orly
Ours, offered as ours. Modern Hebrew naming did something unusual when the language was revived: instead of only inheriting biblical names, it began building new ones out of everyday vocabulary — Orly, light is mine; Shirli, song is mine; Liron, song is mine again by another route. These are transparent to any Hebrew speaker, which biblical names often are not. It is naming in a language people were actively rebuilding.
Meaning
light is mine
From Hebrew or, light, and li, to me; the compound is a complete sentence of two words. The same pattern gives Talya, Shirli and Ayelet-style constructions in modern Israeli naming.
Pronouncing Orly
OR-lee
Two syllables, first stressed. Hebrew stresses the last, or-LEE.
Nicknames for Orly
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
- 1964
- Most girls named
- 201333 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #4336reached in 2013
- Change vs 2024
- +38.1%29 in 2025, from 21
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.
Orly in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- אורלי in Hebrew — transliteration
- Orli in English — spelling variant
Strongest US states over the last decade: New York, California.
Orlys among us
people named Orly are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 55,423 born in 2025 was named Orly
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Orly
- #4661
- Orly on the 2025 chart
- #909
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Orly went to 29 girls in 2025, but Orli is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 51, which makes it the 909th most-given girls’ name of the year — 3,752 places above the chart.
- Orly29
- Orli22
About 1 girl in 31,515 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 55,423 for Orly itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Inna test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Orly's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Inna climbed just as high around 1931, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Inna's path sketches the road Orly is walking now.
Orly sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Orly is headed
Orly should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Orly beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Orly in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A settled meaning that forms a complete sentence in two short words.
- Four letters and two syllables, about as easy to write as a name gets.
- Well used in Israel, so it has a real community behind it.
- The Paris airport is a strong association for European readers.
- The stress differs between the Hebrew and American readings.
- It is unfamiliar outside Jewish communities in America.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Orly
Feminine · #4661 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Orlys are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 800 people named Orly are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Orly?
- Orly is the most-used spelling in US records — 29 of the 51 babies given the name in 2025. The others recorded are Orli.
- How popular is the name Orly in 2025?
- Orly ranks #4661 among US girl names in 2025, with 29 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Orly?
- About 1 in every 55,423 US girls born in 2025 was named Orly — 29 in all.
- Will my child share the name Orly with classmates?
- Orly will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Orly
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Ellenor#4661 · Roselie#4661 · Marni#4661 · Menucha#4661 · Infinity#4661 · Lilya#4661 · Railyn#4661 · Zada#4661
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Orly? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Orly and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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