Orval
An American spelling of Orville, a name drawn from French place names and carried into English by Fanny Burney's eighteenth-century novel Evelina, where Lord Orville is a central character.
Orval in 2025
Orval was not given to any babies in 2025. The Social Security Administration only publishes a name once at least five babies receive it in a year, so Orval has fallen below that threshold.
The history of Orval
Orval reached its highest point in 1918, when 304 babies were given the name, ranking 704th that year. Its best-ever ranking was 688th, in 1913.
Across the 146 years of records since 1880, 7,928 babies have been named Orval. Half of them were born before 1924, which places the name's centre of gravity with the Greatest Generation.
Orval by decade
| Decade | Babies named Orval | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 141 | 716 |
| 1890s | 223 | 826 |
| 1900s | 365 | 782 |
| 1910s | 2,009 | 688 |
| 1920s | 2,291 | 726 |
| 1930s | 1,213 | 937 |
| 1940s | 851 | 1,213 |
| 1950s | 461 | 2,006 |
| 1960s | 212 | 2,781 |
| 1970s | 103 | 5,569 |
| 1980s | 35 | 12,951 |
| 1990s | 24 | 17,579 |
Where Orval is heading
Orval was not in use ten years ago, so there is no decade-long trend to compare against yet.
That is less than 5% of its 1918 peak — Orval is now a rare name in the United States.
Names like Orval
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Orval.