Ara
Ara is given to both girls and boys: 48 girls and 10 boys were given it in 2025 (#3,255 among girls’ names and #7,710 among boys’, #5,088 among all names counting both); 4,866 Americans have been recorded with it since 1880 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 2,910 Americans named Ara and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (60% of everyone recorded); the median is 30 years old and half are between 10 and 50.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Ara by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Ara mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Ara is “a male given name from Armenian.”
Borrowed from Armenian Արա (Ara).
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Ara?
#3,255 among girls’ names, 2025
Ara rose from #3,304 in 2015 to #3,255 in 2025 among girls’ names; its share of girls born rose from 27.4 to 29.9 per million.
93 babies in 2021, the peak
Ara peaked in 2021, when 93 babies were given it (75 girls, #2,387 among girls’ names). The 58 births of 2025 (girls and boys) are 62% of that peak.
Births by sex.
| Year | Girls | Girls’ rank | Boys | Boys’ rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 48 | #3,255 | 10 | #7,710 |
| 2024 | 51 | #3,125 | 14 | #6,212 |
| 2023 | 52 | #3,144 | 20 | #4,891 |
| 2022 | 78 | #2,365 | 9 | #8,356 |
| 2021 | 75 | #2,387 | 18 | #5,122 |
| 2020 | 55 | #2,933 | 17 | #5,242 |
| 2019 | 54 | #3,006 | 16 | #5,564 |
| 2018 | 62 | #2,751 | 12 | #6,728 |
| 2017 | 62 | #2,750 | 17 | #5,304 |
| 2016 | 53 | #3,105 | 13 | #6,376 |
Every recorded year (146)
| Year | Girls | Girls’ rank | Boys | Boys’ rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 49 | #3,304 | 10 | #7,526 |
| 2014 | 49 | #3,276 | 7 | #9,712 |
| 2013 | 42 | #3,648 | 10 | #7,565 |
| 2012 | 55 | #3,044 | 9 | #8,193 |
| 2011 | 28 | #4,930 | 10 | #7,532 |
| 2010 | 34 | #4,317 | 6 | #10,851 |
| 2009 | 30 | #4,813 | 10 | #7,721 |
| 2008 | 26 | #5,451 | 13 | #6,414 |
| 2007 | 22 | #6,120 | 7 | #9,844 |
| 2006 | 29 | #4,829 | 13 | #6,113 |
| 2005 | 27 | #4,843 | 14 | #5,585 |
| 2004 | 19 | #6,245 | 8 | #8,184 |
| 2003 | 20 | #5,825 | 6 | #9,647 |
| 2002 | 19 | #5,915 | 9 | #7,076 |
| 2001 | 13 | #7,771 | 10 | #6,473 |
| 2000 | 29 | #4,188 | 7 | #8,248 |
| 1999 | 17 | #5,916 | 11 | #5,674 |
| 1998 | 13 | #7,138 | 19 | #3,708 |
| 1997 | 13 | #6,875 | 16 | #4,067 |
| 1996 | 16 | #5,783 | 10 | #5,547 |
| 1995 | 14 | #6,278 | 10 | #5,518 |
| 1994 | 16 | #5,725 | 14 | #4,296 |
| 1993 | 12 | #7,062 | 17 | #3,663 |
| 1992 | 11 | #7,549 | 12 | #4,579 |
| 1991 | 15 | #5,964 | 17 | #3,464 |
| 1990 | 14 | #6,140 | 13 | #4,177 |
| 1989 | 24 | #4,021 | 21 | #2,905 |
| 1988 | 25 | #3,697 | 17 | #3,079 |
| 1987 | 21 | #3,990 | 10 | #4,250 |
| 1986 | 23 | #3,653 | 16 | #3,009 |
| 1985 | 22 | #3,736 | 21 | #2,430 |
| 1984 | 17 | #4,330 | 15 | #2,964 |
| 1983 | 19 | #3,959 | 19 | #2,496 |
| 1982 | 27 | #3,182 | 11 | #3,698 |
| 1981 | 27 | #3,148 | 18 | #2,574 |
| 1980 | 23 | #3,513 | 27 | #2,004 |
| 1979 | 23 | #3,447 | 21 | #2,313 |
| 1978 | 24 | #3,203 | 29 | #1,798 |
| 1977 | 19 | #3,768 | 21 | #2,207 |
| 1976 | 19 | #3,547 | 28 | #1,782 |
| 1975 | 24 | #2,971 | 34 | #1,530 |
| 1974 | 18 | #3,563 | 32 | #1,546 |
| 1973 | 19 | #3,348 | 24 | #1,820 |
| 1972 | 19 | #3,284 | 19 | #2,085 |
| 1971 | 19 | #3,378 | 18 | #2,204 |
| 1970 | 6 | #7,112 | 16 | #2,300 |
| 1969 | 12 | #4,207 | 26 | #1,606 |
| 1968 | 7 | #5,666 | 11 | #2,583 |
| 1967 | 12 | #3,854 | 19 | #1,810 |
| 1966 | 10 | #4,207 | 16 | #1,967 |
| 1965 | 15 | #3,269 | 13 | #2,273 |
| 1964 | 15 | #3,382 | 10 | #2,669 |
| 1963 | 17 | #3,070 | 17 | #1,960 |
| 1962 | 12 | #3,791 | 6 | #3,656 |
| 1961 | 10 | #4,255 | 6 | #3,659 |
| 1960 | 9 | #4,450 | 11 | #2,540 |
| 1959 | 9 | #4,312 | 5 | #4,017 |
| 1958 | 10 | #3,933 | 9 | #2,825 |
| 1957 | 10 | #3,946 | 8 | #3,032 |
| 1956 | 8 | #4,476 | 6 | #3,551 |
| 1955 | 9 | #4,081 | under 5 | |
| 1954 | 15 | #2,893 | 6 | #3,464 |
| 1953 | 11 | #3,488 | under 5 | |
| 1952 | 10 | #3,559 | under 5 | |
| 1951 | 10 | #3,492 | under 5 | |
| 1950 | 13 | #2,914 | under 5 | |
| 1949 | 19 | #2,274 | 6 | #3,314 |
| 1948 | 16 | #2,495 | under 5 | |
| 1947 | 11 | #3,249 | under 5 | |
| 1946 | 20 | #2,094 | 6 | #3,194 |
| 1945 | 21 | #1,825 | under 5 | |
| 1944 | 16 | #2,204 | 7 | #2,871 |
| 1943 | 16 | #2,256 | 6 | #3,242 |
| 1942 | 11 | #2,826 | 5 | #3,587 |
| 1941 | 12 | #2,536 | 7 | #2,882 |
| 1940 | 20 | #1,794 | under 5 | |
| 1939 | 18 | #1,884 | 5 | #3,500 |
| 1938 | 19 | #1,810 | under 5 | |
| 1937 | 22 | #1,631 | 5 | #3,544 |
| 1936 | 23 | #1,553 | under 5 | |
| 1935 | 21 | #1,665 | 15 | #1,841 |
| 1934 | 34 | #1,221 | 11 | #2,272 |
| 1933 | 18 | #1,840 | 9 | #2,549 |
| 1932 | 27 | #1,452 | 10 | #2,471 |
| 1931 | 26 | #1,459 | 13 | #2,102 |
| 1930 | 16 | #2,115 | 8 | #3,034 |
| 1929 | 28 | #1,448 | 19 | #1,734 |
| 1928 | 27 | #1,544 | 11 | #2,526 |
| 1927 | 33 | #1,406 | 11 | #2,528 |
| 1926 | 43 | #1,167 | 14 | #2,194 |
| 1925 | 35 | #1,350 | 11 | #2,599 |
| 1924 | 50 | #1,110 | 6 | #3,890 |
| 1923 | 38 | #1,268 | 11 | #2,623 |
| 1922 | 38 | #1,272 | 9 | #3,026 |
| 1921 | 46 | #1,127 | 10 | #2,812 |
| 1920 | 51 | #1,039 | 8 | #3,222 |
| 1919 | 39 | #1,195 | 9 | #2,888 |
| 1918 | 52 | #1,000 | under 5 | |
| 1917 | 40 | #1,128 | 5 | #4,006 |
| 1916 | 47 | #1,005 | 5 | #3,924 |
| 1915 | 47 | #969 | 8 | #2,841 |
| 1914 | 40 | #932 | 9 | #2,277 |
| 1913 | 34 | #914 | 6 | #2,511 |
| 1912 | 30 | #920 | 6 | #2,287 |
| 1911 | 23 | #900 | under 5 | |
| 1910 | 23 | #896 | 5 | #1,600 |
| 1909 | 12 | #1,225 | under 5 | |
| 1908 | 25 | #769 | under 5 | |
| 1907 | 27 | #727 | under 5 | |
| 1906 | 18 | #873 | under 5 | |
| 1905 | 17 | #903 | under 5 | |
| 1904 | 18 | #854 | under 5 | |
| 1903 | 23 | #695 | under 5 | |
| 1902 | 20 | #774 | under 5 | |
| 1901 | 30 | #559 | under 5 | |
| 1900 | 25 | #726 | under 5 | |
| 1899 | 12 | #936 | under 5 | |
| 1898 | 25 | #651 | under 5 | |
| 1897 | 20 | #700 | under 5 | |
| 1896 | 21 | #688 | under 5 | |
| 1895 | 22 | #658 | under 5 | |
| 1894 | 15 | #785 | under 5 | |
| 1893 | 19 | #662 | 5 | #1,040 |
| 1892 | 21 | #617 | under 5 | |
| 1891 | 18 | #625 | under 5 | |
| 1890 | 22 | #558 | under 5 | |
| 1889 | 22 | #544 | under 5 | |
| 1888 | 20 | #560 | under 5 | |
| 1887 | 16 | #561 | under 5 | |
| 1886 | 17 | #541 | under 5 | |
| 1885 | 17 | #523 | under 5 | |
| 1884 | 18 | #481 | under 5 | |
| 1883 | 7 | #756 | under 5 | |
| 1882 | 10 | #597 | under 5 | |
| 1881 | 8 | #628 | under 5 | |
| 1880 | 6 | #744 | under 5 |
Ranks: girls’ names and boys’ names ranked separately in each year’s SSA file; “under 5” is a year SSA did not list the name for that sex.
Is Ara a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Of the 4,866 Americans recorded as Ara, 73% are girls and 27% boys.
Years with fewer than 20 babies given the name are left blank.
Girls and boys named Ara: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Ara, and how old are they?
2,910 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 60% of the 4,866 Americans ever recorded as Ara. The median Ara alive today is 30 years old; half are between 10 and 50.
The 2020 Census counted 4,113 people named Ara (2,068 women and girls, 2,045 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 2,645 born in the U.S. The Census count is 1.6 times that prediction. Possible reasons: the Census records the name people give, which for many is the short form Ara rather than the name on their birth record, and it counts people born abroad, whom SSA’s files leave out.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 117 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 248 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 566 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 523 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 555 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 897 |
An estimate, not a count. SSA’s files count people born in the United States who received a Social Security number, so anyone born abroad is not in them; before 1937 most people got a number as adults, and their survival is counted from that age.
Living estimate: SSA births carried forward with the survival rates in SSA’s cohort life tables (2024 Trustees Report) for each birth year and sex. How the estimate is made. Count: Census Bureau, first names in the 2020 Census (released April 14, 2026; names reported 100 or more times, with the Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance adjustment).
Where are babies named Ara born?
| State | Births 2025 | Rank, girls | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 11 | #1,845 | 1.2× |
| Texas | 9 | #2,231 | 0.7× |
Where Ara is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Ara is most over-represented in California: since 1910 it was given 1.2 times as often there as its national share each year would predict.
States: SSA state file, 1910-2025, published May 8, 2026; births count girls and boys together, and the rank is among girls’ names in the state in 2025. The file leaves out any state and year with fewer than 5 babies of the name, so small states are undercounted; each ratio compares the state’s births of Ara with the births its national share predicts year by year, for states with at least 100 births of the name.
Names spelled alike
Of these 8 names spelled alike, given to 168,223 babies since 1880, Ara is the seventh most given (2.9% of them). In 2025 it was given to 58 of their 9,772 babies (<1%), the eighth most given that year.
Spelled alike: names in the SSA national file with the same pattern of letters and sounds and at most two letters apart, and Wiktionary’s listed forms; births since 1880 and in 2025, and each name’s peak year, from the SSA national file, published May 8, 2026. Some are separate names, not spellings of one.
Names that rose and fell in the same decades as Ara
Names whose births rose and fell across the same decades, measured on each decade’s share of births.
| Name | Recorded | 1880-2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Nevada | 3,913 |
Similar histories: each decade’s share of births, from the SSA national file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
More about Ara and names like it
- Compare Ara and AriaBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 2020sAra peaked in 2021.
- California’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Ara since 1910.
- The top names of 2021The year the most babies were named Ara.
- The names of Generation AlphaMost people named Ara alive today were born 2013-2025.
- Names starting with AMost given first.