Oprah Winfrey Reveals Her Birth Name Was 'Orpah'

Oprah Winfrey revealed her legal birth name is Orpah, a biblical name she unknowingly went by incorrectly for years. The 72-year-old media mogul shared the backstory of her name on Keke Palmer's podcast, "Baby, This Is Keke Palmer."

Winfrey explained that her birth certificate name was "Orpah," derived from the Bible, but due to spelling difficulties, people began calling her "Oprah." "It's not what made me. I was a kid. Nobody knew how to spell it," Winfrey said. "So, it turned out on my birth certificate, it’s Orpah. And then people started calling me Oprah. And so it’s just the difference between the P being before the R or after the R. So once they started with Oprah, that’s it."

The talk show titan learned around the age of 20 that the name her family and friends used differed from her birth certificate. She noted that the biblical roots of "Orpah" come from the Book of Ruth, chapter 1, verse 14, referencing the story of Ruth and Naomi. "Ruth said, 'Wherever thy goest, I will go.' And then Orpah said, 'I’m going back. I'm sorry. I can't. Too long. The road's too long.'"

Winfrey also pointed out that Keke Palmer has a different name on her birth certificate, Lauren Keyana Palmer. Winfrey's media company, Harpo Productions, is famously named by spelling her adopted name backward.

In other remarks on the podcast, Winfrey drew criticism for her comments regarding work-life balance for young professionals. She stated that individuals in their early 20s starting their careers "aren't supposed to have" work-life balance and should instead focus on dedicating themselves to their work. "You're supposed to lay it in. Lay in the work," she advised.

Winfrey, who has an estimated net worth of $3.4 billion, attributed her current freedom to make choices based on her desires to her past dedication. "You have to do what you have to do, until you can do what you want to do," she stated.

Fans reacted to her work-life balance advice with mixed responses. Some criticized her for a perceived lack of relatability to ordinary people's struggles, while others praised her perspective, attributing her success to her upbringing in poverty and hard work. Winfrey began her media career at 17 and became a millionaire by 1989, reaching billionaire status by 2000, making her the first Black female billionaire.