NameCensus.

UK girl's name

Orna

A feminine name of uncertain meaning, likely derived from Hebrew.

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.

Orna is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Orna popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #5891, with 3 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2006, with 4 births.

This profile covers 10 England and Wales registrations across 3 recorded years from 2000 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales and NISRA Northern Ireland, 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 75% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 19 living people in the UK are called Orna. 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

  • Orna ranked #5891 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 3 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2006, when 4 girls were registered as Orna.
  • Orna ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #440 in 2016.
  • About 19 living people in the UK are estimated to have Orna as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#5891

2024

Births in 2024

3

Latest year

Peak year

2006

4 births

Estimated living

19

2026

Meaning

What does Orna mean?

The name Orna has its origins in the ancient Hebrew language, tracing back to the biblical era around the 5th century BCE. It is derived from the Hebrew word "or," meaning light, and is believed to be a variant of the more common Hebrew name Orah.

One of the earliest known references to the name Orna can be found in the Old Testament of the Bible. In the Book of Ezra, Orna is mentioned as the name of a Levite who returned to Jerusalem from the Babylonian captivity.

During the Middle Ages, the name Orna gained popularity among Jewish communities across Europe and the Middle East. It was often associated with the virtues of enlightenment, wisdom, and spiritual guidance.

In the 15th century, a notable figure named Orna ben Moses Strelisk, a respected Jewish scholar and philosopher from Poland, gained recognition for his writings on Talmudic literature and Jewish mysticism.

In the 18th century, Orna Yissachar Khottner, a prominent rabbinical scholar and author from Hungary, left a lasting impact on Jewish intellectual discourse with his commentaries on the Talmud and Midrash.

Orna Porath, an Israeli scientist and immunologist born in 1924, made significant contributions to the field of cellular immunology and was awarded the prestigious Israel Prize in 1979 for her groundbreaking research.

Orna Ben-Naftali, an Israeli legal scholar and professor born in 1957, is renowned for her work in international humanitarian law and human rights, having served as the Dean of the Faculty of Law at the College of Management Academic Studies in Israel.

Throughout its long history, the name Orna has been cherished for its associations with illumination, wisdom, and intellectual pursuits, reflecting the enduring cultural values of the Hebrew tradition.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Orna over time

The chart below shows babies named Orna registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, 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 Orna, the clearest high point is 2006. The latest England and Wales figure is 3 births in 2024, compared with 4 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Orna
01234200020122024

Decades

Orna by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Orna 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 #5891 3 1
2000s #4035 7 2

Geography

Where Orna is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Orna. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.

Orna ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #440 in 2016.

Northern Ireland
3

Across the UK

Orna in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland (NISRA)

#440 in 2016

3 years of NISRA records, 9 total registered

Notable bearers

Famous people named Orna

  • Orna Coussin

    writer; translator; critic; essayist

    Israeli writer and translator

    1967-

Related

Names similar to Orna

FAQ

Orna: questions and answers

How popular is the name Orna in the UK right now?

In 2024, Orna was ranked #5891 for girls in England and Wales, with 3 births registered.

When was Orna most popular?

The peak year on record was 2006, with 4 babies registered as Orna in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Orna?

A feminine name of uncertain meaning, likely derived from Hebrew.

How many people are called Orna in the UK?

A total of 10 babies have been registered as Orna across the 3 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here and 9 in Northern Ireland.

Where is Orna most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Orna ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #440 in 2016. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.

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.