Orion

oh-RY-un

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The name Orion means “rising in the sky, hunter.” It comes from the Greek language tradition.

Orion was a giant huntsman in Greek mythology whom Zeus placed among the stars as a constellation. It is one of the most recognizable star patterns in the sky. The name perfectly bridges the celestial and mythological trends.

Wiktionary traces Orion through Latin Orion to the Greek Ōríōn, speculating it may mean heaven's light, but explicitly says this is without any firm evidence, so it should be read as a guess rather than a settled derivation. A second Wiktionary entry tracing an earlier form Udyong looks like an unrelated place-name origin from a different language and is disregarded here.

Wikipedia says Orion is usually derived from the mythological hunter or the constellation named for him, and that use of the name has increased in recent years alongside other mythological names; the sources don't mention the specific myth of Zeus placing him among the stars, so that detail is left out.

• Orion (Greek mythological hunter)
• Orion (constellation)
• Orion spacecraft (NASA)

Sibling names that share Orion's rhythm and register without echoing it too closely.