Given name
Orval
“having the strength of a spear”
Orval is used as a given name. One English interpretation is “having the strength of a spear.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “having the strength of a spear.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
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
Orval through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 7,928
- 7,916 boys · 12 girls
- Most popular year
- 1918
- 304 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 7 in 1995. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 304 in 1918. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,588 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Orval’s family of names
Orval has a related form in Ordval. Orval has a related form in Ordvald. Orval has a related form in Ordwald.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 7
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
People named Orval
- Orval Faubus36th governor of Arkansas (1910-1994)
- Orval HansenAmerican politician (1926-2017)
- Orval TessierCanadian ice hockey coach (1933–2022)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Orval, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Otha
“the little rich child”
82% boys · 18% girls
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“a military leader”
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Ellsworth
“from the nobleman's estate”
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“from the moor of the elm trees”
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Elmo
“a protector” · “an amiable man”
98% boys · 2% girls
Eldred
“an old, wise advisor”
93% boys · 7% girls
Hobart
“having a shining intellect”
>99% boys
Morton
“from the town near the moor”
>99% boys