Aurelius was a Roman family name derived from aureus and means "golden". Its most famous bearer is the emperor Marcus Aurelius, whose Meditations are still widely read as a guide to calm and self-discipline. In the United States Aurelius rose from number 2922 in 2015 to number 1122 in 2024 and entered the top 1000 for the first time in 2025, at number 991, carried by the current taste for grand ancient names.