Orr

Orr may also refer to:

Acronyms

Places

Orr (surname)

Orr is a surname common throughout the English-speaking world, but especially in Scotland, Ulster, the United States, Canada, and northern England. The name is considered to have numerous origins: such as being derived from an Old Norse byname; a Gaelic nickname; and an Old English topographical name, or similar place-name.

Etymology

There are numerous origins for the surname. The northern English, Scottish and Northern Irish surname is derived from the Old Norse byname Orri, meaning "blackcock" (a male black grouse). Another origin for the Scottish name is from the Gaelic odhar, meaning "pale", "dun". Another origin for the English name is from a topographical name for a person who lived on a shore, or ridge. This name is derived from the Old English ora, meaning "shore", "hill-slope", "flat-topped ridge". The name could also be derived from a place-name, derived from this Old English word; for example, the surname Ore is derived from Oare, in Berkshire, Kent; and Wiltshire; or Ore, in East Sussex. Padraig Mac Giolla Domhnaigh, suggested that the Irish surname originates from an Anglicisation of Gaelic Mac Iomhaire. Mac Giolla Domhnaigh stated that this was an old name from Renfrewshire, and a sept of the Campbells; he stated that the name was earlier spelt Mac Ure.

Orr (Catch-22)

Orr is a fictional character in the classic novel Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. Orr is a bomber pilot who shares a tent with his good friend, the protagonist of the novel, Yossarian. Described as "a warm-hearted, simple-minded gnome," Orr is generally considered crazy. His most notable feature is repeatedly being shot down over water, but, until his final flight, always managing to survive along with his entire crew. On his final flight, perhaps two-thirds of the way through the novel, he is again shot down into the Mediterranean, and is lost at sea. Only in the last ten pages of the novel does Heller reveal that Orr's crashes were part of an elaborate (and successful) plot to escape the war.

Orr is the only airman of the group to successfully get away by the end of the novel.

Character sketch

Motivations

Orr's motivation throughout is to escape the squadron and the war. He is also known for being very mechanically adept and uses his skills to make his and Yossarian's tent as comfortable as possible. This is because Yossarian is his friend, and although it is Orr's intent to escape, he wants to make things comfortable and good for his friend.