Órla Fallon's Celtic Christmas

Órla, Orlaith, Orla or Orlagh (pronounced OR-lah) is a given name of Celtic origin. The root form of the name is ''Órfhlaith'', interpretable as "golden princess" as it combines the Gaelic elements ''ór'' ("gold") and ''fhlaith'' (literally "prince"), its full feminine form being ''banfhlaith''.

Well known via association with Brian Boru, whose sister Órlaith íngen Cennétig (d. 941) was queen consort to the Irish High King Donnchad Donn, Órflaith (however spelled) was the fourth-most frequently recorded female name in the annals of 12th century Ireland; after a long period of obscurity, the name—in both the Órlaith and Órla forms—became popular in the late 20th century, not only in Ireland but also in Scotland, despite the name not having a Scottish heritage.

It is quite common, even in Ireland, to see the name written as ''Orla'' without the vowel-lengthening fada accent on the "o".

Orla is also a male given name in the Danish language and has been used as a unisex name in the Norwegian, Finnish and German language.

Orla is also a short form of the name Orsola, which is a variant of Ursula.

Historical figures

* Órlaith íngen Cennétig, Queen of Ireland, died 941
* Órlaith Ní Maoil Seachnaill, Queen of Mide, died 1066
* Órlaith Nic Cennétich, died 1104. The ship LÉ ''Orla'' is named after her.IDF LÉ ''Orla'' webpage

* Órlaith Ní Mael Sechlainn, Queen of Connacht, died 1115
* Órlaith Ní Diarmata, Princess of Moylurg, died 1252
* Órlaith Ní Conchobair, Princess of Connacht and Abbess, died 1283
* Orla Jørgensen, Danish male Olympic gold medalist in 1928
* Orla Hyllested, Danish union representative and politician

Broadcasters

* Orla Barry, Irish radio presenter of ''Weekend Blend'' on NewsTalk Radio, a Dublin-based station
* Orla Guerin, Irish correspondent for BBC Africa
* Orla Ní Fhinneadha, Irish television presenter on TG4
* Orla Rapple, Irish broadcaster, she has worked for City Channel, Beat 102/103, AA Roadwatch and ''Seoige and O'Shea''.

Arts and media

* Orla Brady, Irish actress; her most notable and critically acclaimed work was the 1999 film ''A Love Divided''
* Orlagh Cassidy, American actress
* Órla Fallon, singer, songwriter, and harpist. She was a member of Celtic Woman from 2005 to 2009.
* Orla Fitzgerald, Irish actress
* Órfhlaith Flynn, was one of the members of the musical group Anúna
* Orla Gartland, Irish singer
* Orla Kiely graduated from The National College of Art and Design in Dublin, and continued her education with a master's degree at the Royal College of Art in London. Her trademark leaf pattern used in her handbag design has become a highly recognisable international brand. Her collection now spans womenswear, accessories, wallpaper, homewares and stationery, plus a collection of notepaper for Tate Modern.
* Orlaith McAllister, Northern Irish glamour model and former ''Big Brother'' contestant
* Orla O'Rourke, Irish actress
* Orla O'Shea, Irish singer
* Orlaith Rafter, Irish actor and writer
* Orla Tobin (Rose of Tralee), singer, winner of the 2003 Rose of Tralee contest
* Orla Wolf, German writer, artist and filmmaker

Sports

* Orla Noom, professional squash player from the Netherlands
* Orla O'Doherty, professional squash player from Ireland
* Orla Walsh, Irish track cyclist

Other

* Orla Lehmann, Danish statesman
* Orla Møller (1916–1979), Danish priest and politician
* Órlaithí Flynn, member of the Northern Ireland Assembly
* Orla, Italian organ maker
* Órfhlaith Begley, MP in the UK Parliament for West Tyrone

Fictional characters

* Orla McCool, from the sitcom '' Derry Girls''
* Orla Healy, from the television drama ''Three Families''
* Orla Sargent, from the young adult books ''The Raven Cycle''
* Agent Orla, from the educational television series '' Odd Squad''
* Orla, from the novel '' The Sopranos'' and its film adaptation '' Our Ladies''
* Orla, male protagonist of the 19th century German emancipation drama ''Orla'' by Albert Dulk

See also

References

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Orla (Name)
Celtic given names
Danish masculine given names
Irish feminine given names