Boys' name · since 1880
Orville
Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 35,065 babies named Orville, peaking in 1920. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #616 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #6,144 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 35,065
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Yes -- Orville is the #6144 most popular boys' name in the U.S. today, with 35,065 recorded since 1880.
Orville has 35,065 recorded births among boys since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #6144 as of the latest data, more common than 56% of boys, busiest in the 1920s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #616 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #6,144 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 35,065 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Orville ranks #616 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #6,144 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 35,065 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #616 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #6,144 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 35,065
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Orville's 35,065 recorded births place it above 98.64% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
43 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Illinois.
How Orville compares
35,065 Top 5% higher than 95% of 13,930 names currently given to boys
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked boys names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Orville's all-time total is 95x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Orville | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 35,065 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 1,195 | 34 | 22,252 |
Orville's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Orville splits its recorded history at 1953: 12% of all births land in the more recent half, 88% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 2010 (6 births) -- compare that against the 1920 peak of 1,195 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Orville popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1920)
- 1,195
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Orville popularity over time - girls
155 total births recorded since 1914 (Orville as girls' name)
Orville by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (9,722 births, 28% of the file).
1920s was Orville's strongest decade.
9,722 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 28% of all-time use.
Orville births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 615
1880s
615 births
- 1890s 870
1890s
870 births
- 1900s 1,365
1900s
1,365 births
- 1910s
1910s
7,901 births
- 1920s
1920s
9,722 births
- 1930s
1930s
5,825 births
- 1940s 3,845
1940s
3,845 births
- 1950s 2,290
1950s
2,290 births
- 1960s 1,184
1960s
1,184 births
- 1970s 615
1970s
615 births
- 1980s 319
1980s
319 births
- 1990s 179
1990s
179 births
- 2000s 132
2000s
132 births
- 2010s 124
2010s
124 births
- 2020s 79
2020s
79 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 9,722 births (28% of all-time use).
How Orville compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 boys names closest to Orville's total volume
Orville by state
Where Orville concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Illinois | | 2,179 | 6.2% |
| #2 | Kentucky | | 2,044 | 5.8% |
| #3 | Missouri | | 1,990 | 5.7% |
| #4 | Minnesota | | 1,787 | 5.1% |
| #5 | Ohio | | 1,755 | 5.0% |
| #6 | Wisconsin | | 1,743 | 5.0% |
| #7 | Oklahoma | | 1,439 | 4.1% |
| #8 | Iowa | | 1,390 | 4.0% |
2,179 of 35,065 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 43 reporting states.
Orville appears in 43 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Orville? ▼
Where does Orville sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Orville most popular? ▼
Where is Orville most popular? ▼
How long has the name Orville been used? ▼
What names are similar to Orville? ▼
What to do with Orville's data
- Orville's decade-level peak was the 1920s (9,722 total births); usage has since declined to 79 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Illinois records the most Orvilles (2,179 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Illinois names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Orville
Nearby Names Like Orville
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Orville
Compare Orville side by side: Orville vs Orval Orville vs Orvil Orville vs Orvel
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Orville
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Orville: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1920)
Similar record span (~145 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1880–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Orville draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.