Given name & surname
Orville
“from the gold town”
Orville looks like a surname, but its given-name story points toward a literary invention.
Meaning & origin
What it means
One French interpretation is “from the gold town.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is French.
The story
Fanny Burney appears to have created Lord Orville for her novel Evelina in 1778. The name seems designed to suggest a Norman surname, rather than to continue a securely identified older personal name.
Orville through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 35,220
- 35,065 boys · 155 girls
- Most popular year
- 1920
- 1,203 babies
- 2025
- 14
- #6,347 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −7%
- Steady
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 14 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 6,347 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 6.9% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 1,195 in 1920. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 8,836 as a first name in 2020; 114 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.
Orville’s family of names
Orville has a related form in Orvil. Orville has a related form in Orvele. Orville has a related form in Orvell.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 10
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Orvillvariant
- Orvilvariant
- Orvellvariant
- Orrvillelikely variant
- Orvylevariant
- Orvylvariant
- Orvyllevariant
- Orvyllvariant
Show 2 moreShow fewer
People named Orville
- ShaggyJamaican reggae musicianborn 1968
- Orville WrightAmerican aviation pioneer (1871–1948)
- Orville GibsonAmerican luthier (1856–1918)
- Orville TurnquestBahamian politicianborn 1929
- Orville FreemanAmerican politician (1918-2003)
- Orville H. PlattAmerican politician (1827-1905)
- Orville Hickman BrowningAmerican politician (1806-1881)
- Orville BrownAmerican professional wrestler1908–1981
- Orville Moodyprofessional golfer (1933-2008)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Orville, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Ferdinand
“a courageous voyager”
>99% boys
Orland
“from the renowned land”
>99% boys
Homer
“a tomboyish woman” · “of the pledge; an epic poet”
>99% boys
Rowland
“from the renowned land”
>99% boys
Rollin
“from the renowned land”
>99% boys
Armand
“of the army; a soldier”
>99% boys
Silvio
“a woodland dweller”
>99% boys
Merle
“resembling a blackbird”
98% boys · 2% girls