girl's name
Lorraine
lor-RAYN
- Origin French
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 8
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 227,323
Northern Ireland
#347
1998 births
Lorraine is a girl's name from the French region, whose own name means the kingdom of Lothair — a Frankish king's realm that was carved out of Charlemagne's empire and slowly disappeared. Our data marks it reviving.
- Lorraine is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in 1928, when 6,005 babies were given the name.
- After peaking in the 1920s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival.
- Today about 1 in 13,930 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1882.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 2.
Lorraine over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 73 |
| 1890s | 440 |
| 1900s | 1,605 |
| 1910s | 15,870 |
| 1920s | 50,198 |
| 1930s | 36,558 |
| 1940s | 33,183 |
| 1950s | 33,676 |
| 1960s | 22,320 |
| 1970s | 7,007 |
| 1980s | 4,116 |
| 1990s | 2,270 |
| 2000s | 1,253 |
| 2010s | 1,215 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 1,061 |
What Lorraine means
Lorraine means from Lorraine, and the region's name means the kingdom of Lothair. So the name records a territory named for a man, and the man's own name means famous army.
Where Lorraine comes from
Lorraine is the French region, from Lotharingia — the kingdom of Lothair, a grandson of Charlemagne whose share of the empire was a long strip from the North Sea to Italy. His realm had no natural coherence and was fought over for a thousand years; Lorraine and the Low Countries are what is left of its name. Lothair itself is the Germanic Hlothar, hloda, famous, joined to hari, an army. The Cross of Lorraine became the emblem of the Free French in 1940, which is the association most French speakers still hear in it.
Lorraine in use
Lorraine peaked in the United States in 1928, when 6,005 babies were registered, and our data marks it reviving. It now ranks 1045th in the United States on 238 births, 3659th in England and Wales and 7254th in France, across 227,323 lifetime births in four of the seven markets we track. Like Yvette and Paulette, its revival is American while France, which the name is taken from, has very nearly stopped using it.
How popular is Lorraine?
In 2025, Lorraine was given to 238 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Lorraine is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Lorraine
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Lorraine also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Lorraine over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Lorraine
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Lorraine in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
- French
- Loraine
Sibling names for Lorraine
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Lorraine — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Lorraine
What does the name Lorraine mean?
From Lorraine — the region whose name means the kingdom of Lothair, a grandson of Charlemagne.
What is the Cross of Lorraine?
A two-barred cross that became the emblem of the Free French in 1940.
Is Lorraine coming back?
Our data marks it reviving, though the revival is American rather than French.
How popular is Lorraine?
1045th in the United States, down from a 1928 peak of 6,005 births.
Is Lorraine a girl's or a boy's name?
Lorraine is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Lorraine?
Lorraine has 2 syllables.
What are the nicknames for Lorraine?
Lorraine is usually shortened to Rainy.
Is Lorraine a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Lorraine currently ranks #1,045 in the United States. After peaking in the 1920s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.