UK name, mostly boys
Ori
A Hebrew name meaning "my light" or "fire".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Ori is mostly registered for boys in the UK records. People looking for Ori popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #1675, with 15 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2020, with 15 births.
This profile covers 134 England and Wales registrations across 17 recorded years from 2000 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
The latest count is about 100% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 133 living people in the UK are called Ori. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Ori ranked #1675 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 15 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2020, when 15 boys were registered as Ori.
- • About 133 living people in the UK are estimated to have Ori as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
- • Across the England and Wales records shown here, 88.7% of Ori registrations are for boys.
Latest rank (E&W)
#1675
2024
Births in 2024
15
Latest year
Peak year
2020
15 births
Estimated living
133
2026
Gender
Boy and girl registrations for Ori
In England and Wales birth records, Ori has been registered for both boys and girls. Across the years shown here, 88.7% of registrations are for boys and 11.3% are for girls.
These figures use the sex categories in the published baby-name files. They are useful for spotting how the name is used at registration, but they are not a live measure of gender identity or everyone living with the name today.
Ori registered for boys
- Ranked #1,675 in 2024
- 15 boys registered in 2024
- Peak: 2020 (15 births)
Ori registered for girls
- Ranked #5,891 in 2024
- 3 girls registered in 2024
- Peak: 2019 (5 births)
Meaning
What does Ori mean?
The name Ori has its origins in Hebrew and is derived from the word "or," meaning "light" or "shine." It is a unisex name that has been popular in Israel and among Jewish communities worldwide for centuries.
In ancient Hebrew texts, the name Ori is mentioned as a variation of the name Uriah, which appears in the Book of Samuel in the Hebrew Bible. Uriah was a Hittite soldier who served in the army of King David and was famously the husband of Bathsheba.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Ori was in the 12th century, when Rabbi Ori ben Shlomo, a prominent Jewish scholar and philosopher from Spain, lived and wrote extensively on Jewish law and ethics.
In the 16th century, Ori Sternhell was a renowned Hebrew grammarian and linguist who made significant contributions to the study of the Hebrew language.
A more recent figure bearing the name Ori was Ori Gersht, an Israeli artist born in 1967, known for his large-scale photographs and video installations exploring themes of history, memory, and identity.
Another notable individual with the name Ori was Ori Inbar, an Israeli entrepreneur and co-founder of the social media platform Houzz, which was launched in 2010.
In the world of sports, Ori Sasson was an Israeli Olympic swimmer who competed in the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics, specializing in the backstroke events.
While the name Ori has its roots in Hebrew, it has also been adopted in other cultures and languages, such as Japanese and Finnish, where it may have different meanings or associations.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Ori over time
The chart below compares boys and girls registered as Ori in England and Wales, from 2000 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Ori, the clearest high point is 2020. The latest England and Wales figure is 15 births in 2024, compared with 15 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ori by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Ori was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | #1809 | 65 | 5 |
| 2010s | #2960 | 49 | 7 |
| 2000s | #3242 | 20 | 5 |
Related
Names similar to Ori
- Oliver 157,197
- Oscar 67,495
- Owen 33,517
- Ollie 13,193
- Oakley 9,838
- Omar 6,823
- Otis 6,395
- Oskar 4,827
- Olly 4,403
- Otto 3,839
- Osian 3,145
- Owain 2,310
FAQ
Ori: questions and answers
How popular is the name Ori in the UK right now?
In 2024, Ori was ranked #1675 for boys in England and Wales, with 15 births registered.
When was Ori most popular?
The peak year on record was 2020, with 15 babies registered as Ori in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Ori?
A Hebrew name meaning "my light" or "fire".
How many people are called Ori in the UK?
A total of 134 babies have been registered as Ori across the 17 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.