girl's name
Orlagh
OR-la
- Origin Irish
- Gender Girl
- Letters 6
- Popularity Top 1000 (E&W)
- Births on record 1,853
Scotland
#177
2024 births
Orlagh is a girl's name from the Irish Órlaith, meaning golden sovereign. It ranks 177th in Scotland but only 443rd in Northern Ireland, and its largest market is England and Wales — an unusual spread for an Irish name.
- Orlagh is a name of Irish origin.
- Peaked in England and Wales in 2022, when 54 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade in England and Wales.
- Today about 1 in 18,819 babies in England and Wales is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1996.
Orlagh over time
Births per decade in England and Wales, 1990s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1990s | 42 |
| 2000s | 124 |
| 2010s | 252 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 218 |
What Orlagh means
Orlagh means golden princess or golden sovereign. The Irish original joins the word for gold to a word for sovereignty rather than for royalty by birth.
Where Orlagh comes from
Orlagh anglicizes the Irish Órlaith, from ór, gold, joined to flaith, sovereignty or a sovereign. The second element is the same one that appears in the old Irish concept of the flaithius, the sovereignty of the land personified as a woman a king must marry — so the name carries a political idea rather than a decorative one. Órlaith was borne by a sister and a niece of Brian Boru in the tenth and eleventh centuries, which makes it one of the few Irish women's names of that period recorded by name in the annals. The spelling Orlagh is one of several anglicizations alongside Orla and Orlaith, and it is the one that has traveled furthest outside Ireland.
Orlagh in use
Orlagh ranks 177th in Scotland on 23 births, 443rd in Northern Ireland on 3 and 1174th in England and Wales on 28, and does not chart in the Republic of Ireland at all in this spelling. Its largest market in our data is England and Wales, where it peaked in 2022 with 54 births, and it is rising. Our records carry it from 1996 across 1,853 lifetime births — an Irish name whose recorded life has been largely British.
How popular is Orlagh?
In 2025, Orlagh was given to 28 babies in England and Wales. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Orlagh is used
Figures for England and Wales withhold any name given to fewer than three babies in a year, so a gap means the name fell below that floor rather than went unused. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Orlagh
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Orlagh also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Orlagh over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Orlagh
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.
Orlagh 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.
Sibling names for Orlagh
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Orlagh — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Orlagh
What does the name Orlagh mean?
Golden sovereign — ór, gold, joined to flaith, sovereignty.
How do you pronounce Orlagh?
OR-la. The gh is silent.
Is Orlagh the same as Orla?
Yes. Orla, Orlagh and Orlaith are all anglicizations of the Irish Órlaith.
Where is Orlagh used?
It ranks 177th in Scotland, and its largest market in our data is England and Wales rather than Ireland.
How popular is the name Orlagh?
In 2025, Orlagh was given to 28 babies in England and Wales. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Orlagh a girl's or a boy's name?
Orlagh is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
When was Orlagh most popular?
Orlagh peaked in 2022, when 54 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
What are the nicknames for Orlagh?
Orlagh is usually shortened to Orla.
Is Orlagh a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Orlagh currently ranks #177 in England and Wales. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.