boy's name
Orlando
or-LAN-doh
- Origin Italian
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 3
- Letters 7
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 53,263
the United States
#873
2025 births
Orlando is Roland with its consonants swapped — Italian moved the r, and the hero of the Song of Roland became the hero of Orlando Furioso, the same man under a rearranged name. England and Wales ranks it highest of our markets.
- Orlando is a name of Italian origin.
- Peaked in 1987, when 889 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 12,056 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 3 syllables, with the stress on syllable 2.
Orlando 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 | 137 |
| 1890s | 104 |
| 1900s | 130 |
| 1910s | 1,135 |
| 1920s | 1,607 |
| 1930s | 1,029 |
| 1940s | 1,134 |
| 1950s | 2,777 |
| 1960s | 6,020 |
| 1970s | 6,966 |
| 1980s | 7,711 |
| 1990s | 6,897 |
| 2000s | 7,496 |
| 2010s | 4,710 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 1,843 |
What Orlando means
Orlando means famous land, or renowned throughout the land. The Germanic compound joins a word for fame to one for territory, so it describes reputation across a place.
Where Orlando comes from
Orlando is the Italian form of Roland, from the Germanic hrod, fame or glory, joined to land. The switch of the r is metathesis, the ordinary sound change that also gave English bird from brid and third from thrid. Roland dies at Roncevaux in the Song of Roland; Ariosto's Orlando Furioso sends the same character mad with love. Rudolph, written up separately here, carries the same hrod element.
Orlando in use
Orlando peaked in the United States in 1987, when 889 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It now ranks 453rd in England and Wales on 85 births — its strongest market — then 873rd in the United States on 275 and 2000th in France on 15, across 53,263 lifetime births in four of the seven markets we track. England and Wales set its own peak of 95 births in 2021.
How popular is Orlando?
In 2025, Orlando was given to 275 babies in the United States, ranking #873 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Orlando 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 Orlando
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Orlando also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Orlando over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Orlando 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 Orlando
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Orlando — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Orlando
What does the name Orlando mean?
Famous land — the Germanic hrod, fame, joined to land.
Is Orlando the same as Roland?
Yes. Italian swapped the r, the same change that gave bird from brid.
Who was Orlando Furioso?
Ariosto's version of Roland, driven mad by love.
Where is Orlando most used?
England and Wales at 453rd, well above the United States at 873rd.
How popular is the name Orlando?
In 2025, Orlando was given to 275 babies in the United States, ranking #873 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Orlando a girl's or a boy's name?
Orlando is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Orlando?
Orlando has 3 syllables.
When was Orlando most popular?
Orlando peaked in 1987, when 889 babies were given the name. It has been falling over the past decade.
Is Orlando a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Orlando currently ranks #453 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.