Girl's name
Zara
Say it ZAR-uh
Roots in Hebrew and Arabic flower (if from Arabic zahra)
2 syllables
Where Zara is loved, common and rare
Common across Slovenia, the UK, Ireland and five more places. Rare in Canada, the Netherlands, three German cities and eight more places.
1 in 208 girls born in Northern Ireland in 2025
Slovenia 38thNorthern Ireland 55thScotland 56th
LovedCommonRare
Every place
In 25 of the 40 official lists, among them Slovenia (38th), Northern Ireland (55th) and Scotland (56th).
Show all 25 placesShow less
| Place | Rank | Girls | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slovenia | 38th 2025 | 45 | about 1 in 147 |
| Victoria state | 40th 2025 | 140 | rank only |
| South Australia state | 43rd 2025 | 34 | rank only |
| New South Wales state | 47th 2025 | 134 | rank only |
| Northern Ireland | 55th 2025 | 35 | 1 in 208 |
| Scotland | 56th 2025 | 71 | 1 in 252 |
| New Zealand | 61st 2025 | 58 | rank only |
| Queensland state | 64th 2025 | 80 | rank only |
| Ireland | 66th 2025 | 78 | 1 in 271 |
| England and Wales | 73rd 2025 | 625 | 1 in 405 |
| Ontario province | 131st 2024 | 83 | about 1 in 656 |
| The Netherlands | 192nd 2025 | 78 | about 1 in 782 |
| British Columbia province | 223rd 2023 | 14 | about 1 in 854 |
| Austria | 381st 2025 | 13 | 1 in 2,748 |
| Cologne city | 419th 2023 | 2 | about 1 in 3,072 |
| Italy | 434th 2024 | 31 | 1 in 5,780 |
| Norway | 454th 2025 | 5 | 1 in 4,359 |
| Poland | 461st 2025 | 5 | 1 in 23,958 |
| Sweden | 526th 2025 | 11 | about 1 in 3,652 |
| Quebec province | 540th 2025 | 8 | about 1 in 3,250 |
| Catalonia region | 604th 2025 | 4 | 1 in 4,818 |
| Berlin city | 615th 2023 | 4 | about 1 in 3,626 |
| Switzerland | 617th 2025 | 10 | 1 in 3,399 |
| France | 816th 2025 | 45 | 1 in 6,373 |
| Bonn city | 249th 2025 | 2 | about 1 in 1,508 |
Rare, below the listed names: Munich, Leipzig, Rostock, Spain, Hungary and Israel.
Not in a short top list, so no figure: Nova Scotia (top 21), Denmark (top 50), Finland (top 50), Iceland (top 10), Estonia (top 25), Moscow (top 61), Turkey (top 30), Argentina (top 20) and Croatia (top 50).
Germany publishes no national statistics on first names. German figures here are city lists (Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Bonn, Leipzig, Rostock), never the country.
Sources: Statistični urad Republike Slovenije (SURS), SiStat (Slovenia); Registry of BDM Victoria (DataVic) (Victoria); SA Attorney-General's Department, Births, Deaths and Marriages (data.sa.gov.au) (South Australia); NSW Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages (Data.NSW) (New South Wales); NISRA (Northern Ireland); National Records of Scotland (Scotland); Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), SmartStart (New Zealand); Queensland Registry of BDM (Qld Open Data Portal) (Queensland); Central Statistics Office (CSO) (Ireland); Office for National Statistics (England and Wales); Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (Ontario); Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB) (the Netherlands); BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (British Columbia); Statistik Austria (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1) (Austria); Stadt Köln, Standesamt (offenedaten-koeln.de) (Cologne); ISTAT, Contanomi (Italy); Statistics Norway (SSB) (Norway); Ministerstwo Cyfryzacji, rejestr PESEL (dane.gov.pl) (Poland); Skatteverket (Swedish Tax Agency) (Sweden); Retraite Québec (Banque de prénoms, Données Québec) (Quebec); Idescat (Institut d'Estadística de Catalunya) (Catalonia); BerlinOnline GmbH; Landesamt für Bürger- und Ordnungsangelegenheiten (LABO) / Standesämter (Berlin); Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS) / Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS) (Switzerland); INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (France); Bundesstadt Bonn, Standesamt (opendata.bonn.de) (Bonn). How we count, and every source
About the name
Zara has two explanations, and both are current. It can be a twentieth-century variant of Sarah, the Hebrew name of Abraham's wife in Genesis. It can also be explained as coming from the Arabic zahra, meaning 'flower'. Families are free to lean toward either reading, or to value the name for bridging the two.
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ZAR-uh is two syllables with a bold opening letter and a soft finish. Zarah and Zarra are alternative spellings, and Sara, Sarah and Zaira sit nearby.
Zara is best known in Australia, in the top fifty in Victoria, South Australia and New South Wales, and it is also well liked in Slovenia. In Canada it peaked around 2022, though it is now easing back in many of the countries where it is used.
Meaning, origin, pronunciation
- Pronounced
- ZAR-uh, 2 syllables
- Meaning
flower (if from Arabic zahra)
- Origin
- Hebrew and Arabic
Etymology
A 20th-century variant of Sarah, or explained as Arabic zahra, "flower"; given to the daughter of Princess Anne in 1981.
From the Wiktionary entry, CC BY-SA 4.0, shortened.
Over time
Over five years: rising in 1 of 23 regions, falling in 14.
Show the yearsShow less
Rank in each place since 1996; higher on the chart is more popular.
Ten years of ranks
Her rank each year, English-speaking regions first. A blank means no published rank for her that year.
| Region | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England and Wales | 68 | 70 | 68 | 66 | 73 | 69 | 70 | 73 | 69 | 73 |
| Scotland | 40 | 36 | 44 | 39 | 62 | 47 | 51 | 34 | 36 | 56 |
| Northern Ireland | 39 | 38 | 37 | 50 | 45 | 38 | 46 | 32 | 64 | 55 |
| Ireland | 57 | 53 | 53 | 43 | 70 | 54 | 88 | 57 | 65 | 66 |
| Ontario | 88 | 99 | 86 | 82 | 96 | 87 | 67 | 72 | 131 | |
| British Columbia | 345 | 243 | 143 | 210 | 230 | 169 | 150 | 223 | ||
| New South Wales | 23 | 29 | 32 | 30 | 32 | 29 | 31 | 35 | 58 | 47 |
| Victoria | 27 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 28 | 30 | 44 | 39 | 40 |
| Queensland | 32 | 28 | 34 | 33 | 49 | 78 | 53 | 60 | 61 | 64 |
| South Australia | 28 | 23 | 30 | 38 | 33 | 40 | 24 | 44 | 46 | 43 |
| New Zealand | 38 | 37 | 42 | 40 | 50 | 73 | 67 | 46 | 68 | 61 |
| Quebec | 287 | 221 | 206 | 388 | 339 | 216 | 266 | 339 | 412 | 540 |
| France | 1183 | 1041 | 1270 | 1005 | 1099 | 1221 | 1071 | 1034 | 1013 | 816 |
| The Netherlands | 271 | 172 | 144 | 130 | 157 | 172 | 199 | 226 | 192 | |
| Austria | 282 | 301 | 281 | 262 | 297 | 210 | 278 | 317 | 429 | 381 |
| Switzerland | 515 | 468 | 711 | 490 | 639 | 370 | 679 | 417 | 995 | 617 |
| Berlin | 542 | 317 | 382 | 360 | 264 | 242 | 301 | 615 | ||
| Munich | 185 | 180 | 162 | 220 | ||||||
| Cologne | 370 | 249 | 439 | 684 | 216 | 322 | 643 | 419 | ||
| Bonn | 222 | 359 | 221 | 168 | 419 | 392 | 380 | 362 | 249 | |
| Norway | 356 | 277 | 346 | 255 | 393 | 322 | 402 | 322 | 332 | 454 |
| Sweden | 305 | 395 | 535 | 413 | 378 | 539 | 338 | 500 | 375 | 526 |
| Catalonia | 486 | 541 | 541 | 532 | 604 | |||||
| Italy | 563 | 465 | 512 | 433 | 533 | 434 | ||||
| Poland | 323 | 322 | 317 | 507 | 445 | 456 | 440 | 428 | 396 | 461 |
| Hungary | 100 | 90 | 96 | 93 | 94 | |||||
| Slovenia | 46 | 30 | 35 | 38 | 37 | 68 | 32 | 38 | 32 | 38 |
England and Wales, 1996 to 2025
| Year | Rank | Girls | per 100,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 73 | 625 | 246.8 |
| 2024 | 69 | 666 | 258.2 |
| 2023 | 73 | 631 | 245.9 |
| 2022 | 70 | 685 | 260.0 |
| 2021 | 69 | 773 | 282.1 |
| 2020 | 73 | 712 | 265.3 |
| 2019 | 66 | 805 | 287.4 |
| 2018 | 68 | 765 | 265.4 |
| 2017 | 70 | 842 | 281.5 |
| 2016 | 68 | 876 | 285.2 |
| 2015 | 72 | 799 | 259.5 |
| 2014 | 67 | 838 | 273.3 |
| 2013 | 70 | 780 | 252.9 |
| 2012 | 71 | 886 | 275.1 |
| 2011 | 73 | 790 | 245.9 |
| 2010 | 76 | 815 | 253.9 |
| 2009 | 75 | 832 | 265.5 |
| 2008 | 71 | 938 | 297.1 |
| 2007 | 70 | 897 | 293.0 |
| 2006 | 80 | 727 | 243.0 |
| 2005 | 85 | 640 | 222.0 |
| 2004 | 96 | 538 | 188.2 |
| 2003 | 99 | 505 | 181.2 |
| 2002 | 100 | 456 | 170.6 |
| 2001 | 104 | 471 | 175.8 |
| 2000 | 113 | 436 | 159.6 |
| 1999 | 123 | 399 | 141.6 |
| 1998 | 141 | 321 | 111.0 |
| 1997 | 158 | 289 | 98.6 |
| 1996 | 168 | 265 | 89.5 |
Sources: Office for National Statistics (1996-2025), OGL v3.
Ontario and British Columbia since 1925
Half of the babies named Zara in Ontario and British Columbia since 1925 were born in or after 2016. First recorded in 1982. Her peak year there: 2022, at 244.2 per 100,000 girls.
Babies named Zara per 100,000 girls born in Ontario and British Columbia, by five-year period. Her 2022 peak is averaged into its five-year period, so the line sits below it.
Sources: Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (1917-2024), OGL-Ontario; BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (1924-2023), OGL-BC.
Sister names for Zara
1 in 197 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Zara.
1 in 347 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Zara.
1 in 202 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Zara.
1 in 347 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Zara.
1 in 688 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Zara.
1 in 132 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Zara.
1 in 146 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Zara.
1 in 126 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Zara.
1 in 108 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Zara.
1 in 459 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Zara.
Middle names for Zara
1 in 57 in Northern Ireland
Zara Grace
2-1 beats · initials ZG
Changes the beat after Zara: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 71 in Scotland
Zara Olivia
2-4 beats · initials ZO · Zara slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Zara: 2 syllables, then 4 syllables. Zara slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 99 in Scotland
Zara Sophia
2-3 beats · initials ZS
Changes the beat after Zara: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 311 in Ireland
Zara Maria
2-3 beats · initials ZM
Changes the beat after Zara: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 214 in Northern Ireland
Zara Rose
2-1 beats · initials ZR
Changes the beat after Zara: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 78 in Northern Ireland
Zara Emily
2-3 beats · initials ZE · Zara slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Zara: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables. Zara slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 491 in Ireland
Zara Julia
2-3 beats · initials ZJ
Changes the beat after Zara: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 1,286 in England and Wales
Zara Miriam
2-3 beats · initials ZM
Changes the beat after Zara: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
Same style as Zara
Names whose popularity rose and fell with hers across regions and decades.
1 in 108 in Scotland
97% alike: moves with Zara across countries and decades.
1 in 166 in England and Wales
96% alike: moves with Zara across countries and decades.
1 in 1,025 in England and Wales
95% alike: moves with Zara across countries and decades.
1 in 141 in Scotland
95% alike: moves with Zara across countries and decades.
1 in 436 in Scotland
95% alike: moves with Zara across countries and decades.
1 in 347 in Northern Ireland
95% alike: moves with Zara across countries and decades.
1 in 197 in Scotland
95% alike: moves with Zara across countries and decades.
1 in 189 in Ireland
95% alike: moves with Zara across countries and decades.
Famous people named Zara
Zara Larsson, Zara Tindall, Zara Rutherford and Zara Dolukhanova.
Show all 4Show less
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Swedish singer-songwriter (born 1997)
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British Olympic equestrian; daughter of Anne, Princess Royal born 1981
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Belgian-British pilot born 2002
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Soviet Armenian mezzo-soprano singer (1918-2007)
People: Wikidata (CC0), linked to Wikipedia in this page's language when an article exists.
Questions about Zara
5 questions, on how popular she is, what it means, how to say it, whether she is rising and sister names.
Show all 5 questionsShow less
How popular is Zara?
Her best rank is No. 38 in Slovenia in 2025, about 1 in 147 girls. She is in the published lists of 25 of our 40 regions.
What does Zara mean?
Wiktionary glosses Zara as "flower (if from Arabic zahra)".
How do you pronounce Zara?
ZAR-uh, with 2 syllables.
Is Zara getting more popular?
Over five years: rising in 1 of 23 regions, falling in 14.
Which sister names go with Zara?
The deck's top five sisters for Zara: Layla, Abigail, Eden, Eliza and Aaliyah. Each is scored on style, era, popularity and origin, with sound clashes flagged.