A Scottish, northern Irish and English surname, Orr, comes from the Old Norse term ‘orri’ which refers to a black grouse. The Old English term of ‘ora’ means a flat-topped ridge or the shoreline. The spelling variations for Orr include Ure, Ire, McIvor and McUre. In England most with the Orr surname live in Lancashire, Yorkshire, Durham, Northumberland and the city of London. In Scotland the Orr families live in the central to southern region. The greater numbers of Orr families reside in Lancashire, Midlothian, Ayrshire and Renfrewshire. In Ireland the county of Antrim, Down, Londonderry, Ulster and Tyrone have many with the Orr surname. Within the United States Orr families originated in New York, Ohio, Illinois, California, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Kentucky. Famous: Bradley Orr (English footballer), Alexander E. Orr (developer of the subway system of NYC), Gary Orr (champion Scottish golfer), Jimmy Orr (professional football player), Rodney Orr (race car driver), Vickie Orr (professional basketball player), James Orr (Canadian filmmaker, director and writer) and Dave Orr (early professional baseball player).