Given name & surname
Orion
“the huntress; a constellation”
Orion is used as a given name and a surname. One Greek interpretation is “the huntress; a constellation.”
Original Ancient GreekὨρίων
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Greek interpretation is “the huntress; a constellation.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Greek.
How it developed
In English usage, Orion developed from Ὠρίων.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Orion through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 23,750
- 23,120 boys · 630 girls
- Most popular year
- 2018
- 1,186 babies
- 2025
- 1,030
- #334 for boys · #6,491 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −6%
- Steady
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 1,012 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 334 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 5.9% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 1,152 in 2018. It also appeared in 18 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (152). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 15,212 as a first name in 2020; 306 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Orion’s family of names
In English usage, Orion developed from the Ancient Greek form Ὠρίων. Orion has a related form in Orian. Orion has a related form in Oryan.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 7
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Orion
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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