Lorelai
Lorelai was the 333rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 926 babies. That is its highest rank since records began in 1880. Over the last ten years it has moved up 322 places. More babies were named Lorelai in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning respelling of Lorelei · German, American English
Say it LOR-uh-ly /ˈlɔrəlaɪ/
- Rank in 2025
- #333 girls, up 194 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 926girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2025926 babies
- Total since 1880
- 10,253babies recorded
What does the name Lorelai mean?
Lorelai is a respelling of Lorelei, made popular by the TV series Gilmore Girls (2000-2007), whose mother and daughter are both named Lorelai. The Lorelei is a rock on the Rhine linked with a legendary siren whose singing drew sailors to their deaths. Wiktionary glosses the German name as "murmuring rock" or "lurking rock". SSA data first record the spelling in 2001.
Lorelei (German, “rock on the Rhine ('murmuring rock')”)
How sure is this? Probable. The 'rock' part is agreed; the first part is explained as 'murmuring' or 'lurking'.
Related names: Lorelei, Lora, Lori.
See also: Germanic names, names from places.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Lorelai', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Lorelei', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary.com Unabridged (based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary), with Collins English Dictionary, s.v. 'Lorelei', Dictionary.com / Random House / HarperCollins
- US Social Security Administration, national baby-name data 1880-2025 (usage history only), US Social Security Administration
Nicknames for Lorelai
The usual nicknames for Lorelai are Lori and Lola. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Lorelai in the last five years, 163 were named Lola, against 507 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lori · also for Laura, Lorelei, Loretta | Modern | #1,726 | 709 |
| Lola · also for Lorelei, Dolores | Modern | #275 | 5,881 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Lorelais go by each one.
Lorelai popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #333 | 926 |
| 2020 | #527 | 574 |
| 2010 | #749 | 371 |
| 2000 | — | — |
| 1990 | — | — |
| 1980 | — | — |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Lorelai, counting every spelling?
Lorelai has no other common spelling that sounds the same. Counting every name's spellings together, it ranks #357 for girls in 2025, against #333 on the official list, because Anaya/Anaiah/Anayah and Londyn/London/Londynn and Jazlyn/Jazlynn/Jazzlyn move ahead once their spellings are combined.
How many kids will share the name Lorelai?
926 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Lorelai (0.26 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Lorelai born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 9 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Lorelai.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Lorelai?
About 10,200 people born in the US named Lorelai are alive today, with a median age of 8; half are between 4 and 14. That makes Lorelai a young name: most people with it are children.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Lorelai by state
How common Lorelai was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Kentucky (2.4×), Indiana (2.1×), South Carolina (2.0×), Missouri (1.9×), Tennessee (1.9×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Nevada, Utah, California.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Lorelai: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Lorelai, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Lorelai · Sibling names for Lorelai
Questions about the name Lorelai
What does Lorelai mean?
Lorelai means “respelling of Lorelei” (German, American English origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Lorelai?
Lorelai was the 333rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 926 babies. That is its highest rank since records began in 1880. Over the last ten years it has moved up 322 places. More babies were named Lorelai in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Lorelai a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Lorelai in the US.
Where is Lorelai most popular?
In 2021–2025, Lorelai was most common in Maine (1.10 per 1,000 girls), followed by Kentucky and Indiana.