NameCensus.

UK boy's name

Orran

Celtic origin, meaning "little green one" or "green warrior".

For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2019. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.

Orran is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Orran popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2019 in this profile. In that release it ranked #4702, with 3 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2008, with 5 births.

This profile covers 27 England and Wales registrations across 8 recorded years from 2001 to 2019. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland 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 60% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 51 living people in the UK are called Orran. 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 2020 or 2026.

Key insights

  • Orran ranked #4702 for boys in England and Wales in 2019, with 3 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2008, when 5 boys were registered as Orran.
  • Orran ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #307 in 2005.
  • About 51 living people in the UK are estimated to have Orran as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#4702

2019

Births in 2019

3

Latest year

Peak year

2008

5 births

Estimated living

51

2026

Meaning

What does Orran mean?

The name Orran is believed to have originated from the Gaelic language, which is an ancient Celtic language spoken in parts of Scotland, Ireland, and the Isle of Man. Its roots can be traced back to the early medieval period, around the 5th to 10th centuries AD.

One theory suggests that Orran is derived from the Gaelic word "oráin," which means "little pale one" or "little green one." This could be a reference to someone with fair or pale complexion or someone associated with nature and greenery. Another possibility is that it is a variation of the name "Oran," which means "little song" or "little poem" in Gaelic.

While its exact origins are unclear, the name Orran has been documented in various historical records and ancient texts from the region. One notable mention is in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, where an individual named "Orran" is referenced in the 9th century AD.

The earliest recorded bearer of the name Orran was Saint Orran, an Irish missionary and hermit who lived in the 6th century AD. He is revered as the patron saint of Colonsay, an island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Another early figure with this name was Orran, a 9th-century Irish scribe and monk known for his work in transcribing and preserving ancient manuscripts.

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals named Orran. One prominent example is Orran, the 11th-century King of Denmark, who ruled from 1095 to 1103 AD. Another was Orran of Shetland, a 12th-century Scottish nobleman and one of the earliest documented settlers of the Shetland Islands.

In the 14th century, there was Orran the Bard, a renowned Scottish poet and storyteller whose works contributed to the preservation of Gaelic culture and traditions. During the 16th century, Orran O'Rourke was an influential Irish chieftain and leader of the O'Rourke clan in County Leitrim, Ireland.

Fast-forwarding to more recent times, Orran Browne was a 19th-century Irish landscape painter known for his depictions of the Irish countryside. In the 20th century, Orran Marin was a prominent French artist and sculptor, best known for his abstract metal sculptures and public art installations.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Orran over time

The chart below shows babies named Orran registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 2001 to 2019. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.

For Orran, the clearest high point is 2008. The latest England and Wales figure is 3 births in 2019, compared with 5 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Orran
01345200120102019

Decades

Orran by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Orran 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
2010s #4711 9 3
2000s #3421 18 5

Geography

Where Orran is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Orran. 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.

Orran ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #307 in 2005.

Northern Ireland
3
Scotland
3

Across the UK

Orran in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#727 in 2024

6 years of NRS records, 21 total registered

Northern Ireland (NISRA)

#307 in 2005

1 years of NISRA records, 3 total registered

Related

Names similar to Orran

FAQ

Orran: questions and answers

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

In 2019, Orran was ranked #4702 for boys in England and Wales, with 3 births registered.

When was Orran most popular?

The peak year on record was 2008, with 5 babies registered as Orran in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Orran?

Celtic origin, meaning "little green one" or "green warrior".

How many people are called Orran in the UK?

A total of 27 babies have been registered as Orran across the 8 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 21 more in Scotland and 3 in Northern Ireland.

Where is Orran most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Orran ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #307 in 2005. 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.