Fun Facts About the Name Onalee
- More than 1 thousand babies named Onalee: U.S. records list 1,007 babies given the name Onalee from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Onalee Mean?
Onalee is a rare English given name, used chiefly in the United States, and it has no single documented etymology. The most likely explanation is that it is a compound of two familiar elements. The first is Ona, a short form used in several European languages and the anglicized spelling of Irish Úna, a name whose own meaning is debated (it is often glossed as "lamb"). The second is the ending -lee, also spelled -leigh, which comes from Old English lēah, "woodland, clearing, meadow." A competing explanation treats Onalee as a spelling variant of Annalee, built from Anna (Hebrew Ḥannāh, "grace, favor") plus the same -lee ending. Because the first element and the manner of formation are both uncertain, the name is not firmly attached to any one meaning; the "lamb" and "grace" readings are interpretations of possible source names, not a settled translation of Onalee itself.
Onalee Name History & Origins
Onalee belongs to a broad group of English-language names made by joining a short, familiar first element to the suffix -lee or -leigh. That suffix is the common English place-name element from Old English lēah, "woodland" or "clearing," which entered personal names through the fashion for surnames used as given names and later became a general feminine ending in combinations such as Annalee and Rosalee. Onalee fits that pattern. Its first element, Ona, was in use as an independent given name in the English-speaking world by the 19th century, carried by Irish families (as an anglicization of Úna) and by families of Scandinavian and German background, where Ona also appears. The combined form is an American-style coinage rather than an inherited name: it does not descend from a traditional Irish, German, or Scandinavian name, and the inherited name standing behind its first element is Irish Úna, not Onalee itself. It has remained uncommon and has no notable religious or literary tradition attached to it.
How Popular is the Name Onalee?
Onalee has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 1928. Its best rank was #1,307 in 1928.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #11,664 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2024 | #7,844 | 14 | 0.0009% |
| 2023 | #8,835 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2022 | #11,956 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2021 | #6,613 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 2020 | #8,807 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2019 | #7,625 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 2018 | #12,217 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2017 | #11,383 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2016 | #5,243 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 2015 | #7,521 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2014 | #12,787 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2013 | #8,462 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2012 | #9,572 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2011 | #10,987 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2010 | #10,294 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2009 | #16,751 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2008 | #14,996 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2007 | #13,607 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2006 | #16,604 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2005 | #11,584 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2004 | #15,582 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2001 | #11,789 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1992 | #14,876 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1991 | #12,637 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1985 | #11,935 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1981 | #9,999 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1966 | #5,660 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1965 | #7,234 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1964 | #5,852 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1963 | #4,799 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1961 | #7,261 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1958 | #5,919 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1956 | #6,640 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1953 | #5,487 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1952 | #3,725 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1951 | #4,280 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1950 | #3,009 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1949 | #3,557 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1948 | #4,520 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1947 | #5,901 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1946 | #2,460 | 16 | 0.0010% |
| 1945 | #2,565 | 13 | 0.0010% |
| 1944 | #3,606 | 8 | 0.0006% |
| 1943 | #2,812 | 12 | 0.0009% |
| 1942 | #2,768 | 12 | 0.0009% |
| 1941 | #2,165 | 16 | 0.0013% |
| 1940 | #3,149 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1939 | #2,705 | 11 | 0.0010% |
| 1938 | #1,925 | 18 | 0.0016% |
| 1937 | #1,720 | 21 | 0.0020% |
| 1936 | #1,930 | 17 | 0.0016% |
| 1935 | #1,645 | 22 | 0.0021% |
| 1934 | #1,641 | 22 | 0.0021% |
| 1933 | #3,662 | 7 | 0.0007% |
| 1932 | #1,932 | 18 | 0.0017% |
| 1931 | #1,626 | 23 | 0.0022% |
| 1930 | #1,797 | 21 | 0.0019% |
| 1929 | #1,696 | 23 | 0.0021% |
| 1928 | #1,307 | 35 | 0.0030% |
| 1927 | #1,870 | 22 | 0.0018% |
| 1926 | #1,761 | 24 | 0.0020% |
| 1925 | #1,495 | 31 | 0.0025% |
| 1924 | #1,753 | 25 | 0.0020% |
| 1923 | #1,882 | 22 | 0.0018% |
| 1922 | #2,259 | 17 | 0.0014% |
| 1921 | #1,907 | 22 | 0.0018% |
| 1920 | #1,691 | 25 | 0.0021% |
| 1919 | #1,972 | 19 | 0.0017% |
| 1918 | #2,179 | 17 | 0.0015% |
| 1917 | #2,178 | 16 | 0.0015% |
| 1916 | #1,936 | 18 | 0.0017% |
| 1915 | #2,116 | 15 | 0.0015% |
| 1914 | #2,579 | 9 | 0.0012% |
| 1912 | #2,568 | 7 | 0.0013% |
| 1911 | #2,397 | 6 | 0.0014% |
| 1910 | #2,083 | 7 | 0.0018% |
| 1904 | #2,097 | 5 | 0.0018% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Onalee Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are patient, persevering and strong willed. You are a good student, absorbing knowledge easily and retaining it well. You are either a saint or a sinner. You tend to hold things inside and suffer in silence. You are frank, methodical and believe in law, system and order.
You are very intuitive. You have a reservoir of inspired wisdom combined with inherited analytical ability, which could reward you through expressions of spiritual leadership, business analysis, marketing, artistic visions, and scientific research. Operating on spiritual side of your individuality can bring you to the great heights, and drop you off if you neglect your spiritual identity. You are always looking for an opportunity to investigate the unknown, to use and show your mental abilities, to find the purpose and meaning of life. You want to grow wise and to understand people and things. You need privacy to replenish your energy. You have a unique way of thinking, intuitive, reflective, absorbing.
✦ Onalee's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Onalee's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.