ORIOL (ОРЁЛ)

We go on traveling around Russian towns in search for their Kartvelian hearts. The next stop is Oriol.

I think it's important to spell it ORIOL, not OREL, because it may explain the name.

There's nothing glorious in seeing the root OR- which may be the Kartvelian 'ori' - 'two'. Indeed, the town is built in place where two rivers - Oka and Orlik - join.

But there is a twist. The legend says that the town obtained its name right when they started to CUT DOWN AN OAK STANDING ON RIVER'S BANK, which made some eagle fly off that oak, blablabla... (eagles in Orel? Indeed?).

Take aside the eagle story and focus on that oak on river's bank. The point is that in Kartvelian ოლე [ole] means 'isolated stand of trees in meadow/by river'. Exactly what that oak should have looked like. Now assume there was not one such oak, but two of them and translate into Kartvelian.

You'll have ORI+OLE=ORIOLE.