Unisex name · since 1880
Ira
Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 55,410 babies named Ira, peaking in 1947. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #470 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #819 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 55,410
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Ira currently ranks #819 among unisex names in America, with 55,410 babies recorded since 1880.
Ira has 55,410 recorded births among boys since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #819 as of the latest data, more common than 94% of boys, busiest in the 1920s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #470 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #819 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 55,410 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Ira ranks #470 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #819 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 55,410 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #470 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #819 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 55,410
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Ira's 55,410 recorded births place it above 98.96% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
48 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.
How Ira compares
55,410 Top 4% higher than 96% of 13,930 names currently given to boys
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked boys names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Ira's all-time total is 150x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Ira | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 55,410 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 884 | 34 | 22,252 |
Ira's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Ira splits its recorded history at 1953: 36% of all births land in the more recent half, 64% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 2001 (88 births) -- compare that against the 1947 peak of 884 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Ira popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1947)
- 884
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Ira popularity over time - girls
7,125 total births recorded since 1880 (Ira as girls' name)
Ira by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (7,911 births, 14% of the file).
1920s was Ira's strongest decade.
7,911 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 14% of all-time use.
Ira births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 2,379
1880s
2,379 births
- 1890s 1,916
1890s
1,916 births
- 1900s 1,714
1900s
1,714 births
- 1910s
1910s
6,115 births
- 1920s
1920s
7,911 births
- 1930s
1930s
5,838 births
- 1940s
1940s
7,156 births
- 1950s
1950s
7,026 births
- 1960s
1960s
4,412 births
- 1970s 3,107
1970s
3,107 births
- 1980s 2,098
1980s
2,098 births
- 1990s 1,184
1990s
1,184 births
- 2000s 1,070
2000s
1,070 births
- 2010s 1,806
2010s
1,806 births
- 2020s 1,678
2020s
1,678 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 7,911 births (14% of all-time use).
How Ira compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 boys names closest to Ira's total volume
Ira by state
Where Ira concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 7,647 | 13.8% |
| #2 | Texas | | 3,643 | 6.6% |
| #3 | Pennsylvania | | 2,548 | 4.6% |
| #4 | Georgia | | 1,972 | 3.6% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 1,884 | 3.4% |
| #6 | North Carolina | | 1,786 | 3.2% |
| #7 | California | | 1,761 | 3.2% |
| #8 | Florida | | 1,500 | 2.7% |
7,647 of 55,410 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 48 reporting states.
Ira appears in 48 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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Where does Ira sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Ira most popular? ▼
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What to do with Ira's data
- Ira's decade-level peak was the 1920s (7,911 total births); usage has since declined to 1,678 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Iras (7,647 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. New York names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Ira
Nearby Names Like Ira
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Ira
Compare Ira side by side: Ira vs Iran Ira vs Iram Ira vs Irah
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Ira
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Ira: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1947)
Similar record span (~145 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1880–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Ira draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.