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Akira as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Akira

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The baby name Akira is a Unisex name , 3 syllables long and is pronounced AH-kee-rah (Japanese: /aˈkiɾa/).

Akira is Japanese in Origin.

Gender: Unisex
Syllables: 3.0
Origin: Japanese
Pronunciation: AH-kee-rah (Japanese: /aˈkiɾa/)

What is the meaning of the name Akira ?

The baby name Akira is a Unisex name , 3 syllables long and is pronounced AH-kee-rah (Japanese: /aˈkiɾa/).

Akira is Japanese in Origin.

Akira is a unisex Japanese given name whose meaning depends on the kanji chosen. Frequent forms - 明, 亮, 晶, 朗, 晃, 彰 - convey ideas of brightness, clarity, radiance, or manifest excellence; it may also be written in kana (あきら/アキラ). The element aki generally denotes “bright” or “clear,” while -ra is phonetic, letting parents nuance the sense from lucid intelligence to shining light.

In Japan the name has long-standing use, especially popular for boys in the mid‑20th century and now common across genders. Global familiarity rose with figures like filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, composer Akira Ifukube, and artist Akira Toriyama, plus Katsuhiro Otomo’s manga/film title Akira. Variants include the short form Aki and related compounds Akio, Akiko, and Akihiro. Outside Japan the Hepburn spelling Akira predominates, with an increasingly feminine reading in some countries.

Akira has the following similar or variant Names

Famous people with the name Akira

Akira Takarada Actor · Born 1934 · Japan Akira Takarada was a Japanese actor best known for his roles in the Godzilla film series. He appeared in key entries like Godzilla (1954), Mothra vs. Godzilla, and Invasion of Astro-Monster. Akira Ishida Actor · Born 1967 · Japan Akira Ishida is a Japanese voice actor best known for roles like Athrun Zala in Mobile Suit Gundam SEED, Setsuna Aoki in Sakura Wars, and Masahiro Sanada in Tenjō Tenge. He became one of anime’s most popular voice actors, winning the Animage Anime Grand Prix in 2004 and a Seiyu Award in 2007. Akira Emoto Actor · Born 1948 · Japan Akira Emoto is a Japanese actor best known for his long film and TV career, including roles in Tampopo, Dr. Akagi, and Shark Skin Man and Peach Hip Girl. He was born on 3 November 1948.
Akira Terao Actor|musician · Born 1947 · Japan Akira Terao is a Japanese singer, musician, and actor, best known for his award-winning work in both music and film. He is especially known for the hit song “Ruby no Yubiwa,” and as of 2012, he was the only male actor to have won both a Japan Record Award and a Japan Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role. Akira Kamiya Actor · Born 1946 · Japan Akira Kamiya is a Japanese voice actor best known for playing iconic anime roles like Kenshiro in Fist of the North Star and Ryo Saeba in City Hunter. He also voiced Shutaro Mendo in Urusei Yatsura and was the first voice of Kogoro Mori in Detective Conan from 1996 to 2009. Akira Kubo Actor · Born 1936 · Japan Akira Kubo is a Japanese actor best known for his roles in classic kaiju films. He starred in 'Destroy All Monsters' and 'Son of Godzilla', which are part of the famous Godzilla series. Born in 1936, Kubo has had a long and varied career in Japanese cinema.

Akira – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
JP Boys 0 #7 939 7,909
FJ Girls 0 #9 1 583
JP 0 #12 74 4,057
DJ Girls 0 #28 2 488
BN 0 #32 1 2,297
EE 0 #37 1 1,051
ID 0 #39 1 2,238
MO 0 #52 1 2,706
AZ Girls 0 #75 1 1,051
AL 0 #76 1 2,372
AO 0 #77 1 2,729
CN 0 #86 1 3,857
LT 0 #88 1 949
JM 0 #93 1 3,714
AF Girls 0 #94 1 2,402
TW 0 #97 7 4,523
ID Girls 0 #102 1 3,319
QA 0 #106 1 7,011
PH 0 #109 2 5,607
EC 0 #121 1 2,502
KW 0 #121 1 5,216
Switzerland Boys 2024 #133 5 1,769
Switzerland Girls 2024 #134 2 1,786
ID Boys 0 #135 1 4,130
BN Boys 0 #136 4 6,332
PA 0 #137 2 3,797
LT Boys 0 #151 1 2,166
CR 0 #165 1 5,526
PR Girls 0 #167 1 3,171
HU Boys 0 #173 2 3,954
Sweden Boys 2020 #176 2 1,548
MT Boys 0 #179 1 4,064
Sweden Girls 2021 #182 2 1,666
RU 0 #192 3 3,641
DK 0 #206 1 5,198
SI Boys 0 #211 1 3,402
MO Boys 0 #212 12 5,842
TW Boys 0 #215 27 7,111
AO Girls 0 #216 2 4,575
JP Girls 0 #218 28 6,592
AL Girls 0 #227 1 4,141
NA Girls 0 #236 2 7,146
MO Girls 0 #237 15 7,056
BD 0 #240 2 5,992
GR Girls 0 #249 1 6,293
PT 0 #250 1 4,161
EC Girls 0 #255 4 3,650
Canada Girls 2024 #262 24 2,795
JM Girls 0 #275 4 7,507
SG 0 #276 7 11,010
TW Girls 0 #283 7 8,139
KZ Boys 0 #294 3 6,578
Canada Boys 2024 #297 10 2,588
QA Girls 0 #300 17 15,378
AL Boys 0 #303 1 5,122
CZ Boys 0 #303 3 6,530
CN Boys 0 #304 16 9,639
MY 0 #307 24 12,352
SA 0 #310 3 10,560
PE 0 #322 8 6,350
KZ Girls 0 #329 4 5,862
HK 0 #332 17 8,483
JO Girls 0 #338 2 7,570
PL Boys 0 #339 2 6,459
PH Girls 0 #342 49 13,098
CZ Girls 0 #351 1 5,378
CN Girls 0 #352 8 8,829
SD Girls 0 #354 5 7,678
PH Boys 0 #357 27 11,440
BR 0 #359 2 5,969
GH Boys 0 #361 1 8,138
MU Girls 0 #361 2 8,539
PL Girls 0 #363 2 5,096
MU Boys 0 #369 1 8,477
BD Girls 0 #373 14 8,413
OM Girls 0 #375 22 15,987
France Boys 2021 #379 9 2,865
PT Boys 0 #381 1 7,951
JO Boys 0 #388 2 7,057
YE 0 #394 5 8,639
France Girls 2021 #398 8 3,185
BO 0 #407 2 6,868
UY Boys 0 #411 3 5,922
CL 0 #433 2 6,867
MX 0 #441 5 8,339
HK Boys 0 #444 84 12,905
PA Girls 0 #453 29 9,861
SD Boys 0 #461 6 10,523
PT Girls 0 #469 3 7,952
ZA 0 #470 5 14,421
RU Girls 0 #471 28 11,913
AR Boys 0 #475 9 7,628
RU Boys 0 #481 25 12,621
KW Girls 0 #487 29 19,177
GT Boys 0 #497 3 7,625
PA Boys 0 #504 2 9,305
CR Boys 0 #509 2 10,188
CO 0 #510 1 7,768
CR Girls 0 #521 12 11,342
IQ Girls 0 #522 4 11,303
UY Girls 0 #534 3 6,731
AE Girls 0 #535 19 20,968
GT Girls 0 #540 2 7,500
PS Girls 0 #544 4 10,981
IR Girls 0 #545 1 8,334
LY 0 #559 1 12,703
SG Girls 0 #560 27 18,916
PS Boys 0 #561 1 10,655
IR Boys 0 #562 4 10,162
CM Boys 0 #573 3 12,054
HK Girls 0 #580 36 16,104
BH 0 #581 7 17,937
BO Boys 0 #582 11 9,244
BO Girls 0 #595 17 9,488
BD Boys 0 #605 1 10,045
IN Girls 0 #608 24 13,121
SG Boys 0 #614 84 17,960
AR Girls 0 #622 9 8,289
IL Boys 0 #625 1 10,983
CL Boys 0 #633 33 13,390
IL Girls 0 #643 3 11,648
United States Girls 2024 #646 272 8,487
Finland Boys 2026 #659 24 3,552
BR Boys 0 #680 72 12,213
LB 0 #690 1 13,263
IQ Boys 0 #693 5 13,071
QA Boys 0 #698 10 18,093
Finland Girls 2026 #728 11 3,895
SY 0 #762 6 11,684
PE Boys 0 #764 115 14,506
CL Girls 0 #791 61 14,098
KW Boys 0 #801 6 18,755
TN 0 #806 24 13,765
Germany Girls 0 #814 25 4,949
United States Boys 2024 #839 54 7,044
SA Girls 0 #848 88 25,931
PE Girls 0 #849 95 14,861
EG Boys 0 #876 11 15,035
Spain Boys 0 #888 43 5,610
MY Girls 0 #901 94 24,821
CO Boys 0 #902 19 15,656
OM Boys 0 #913 6 17,948
BR Girls 0 #926 16 12,708
Germany Boys 0 #928 25 5,697
EG Girls 0 #929 31 14,742
MY Boys 0 #934 179 25,439
MX Boys 0 #937 46 16,355
NL Boys 0 #938 14 5,873
NG Boys 0 #939 13 16,906
Spain Girls 0 #953 31 5,561
MA 0 #995 134 20,986
IN Boys 0 #1,032 8 16,750
CO Girls 0 #1,047 32 16,140
DZ 0 #1,062 115 20,130
AE Boys 0 #1,081 12 22,615
MX Girls 0 #1,083 101 17,781
ZA Girls 0 #1,116 26 25,928
TR 0 #1,200 12 19,440
ZA Boys 0 #1,264 9 25,619
IT Girls 0 #1,364 83 9,415
IT Boys 0 #1,386 86 10,046
SA Boys 0 #1,556 59 28,008

Akira is popular in 81 countries — most recent births per country:

United States
Canada
Switzerland
France
Switzerland

Did we miss something about this name? Let us know!

People also ask about Akira

Akira is a unisex name, given to both boys and girls.
Akira is a 3 syllable name, pronounced AH-kee-rah (Japanese: /aˈkiɾa/).
Common nicknames and spelling variations include Aki, Akiko, Akio, Akira (different kanji spellings) and Akira (hiragana/katakana).
Across languages, Akira has these equivalents: Clara/Claire (Latin: 'clear, bright'), Chiara (Italian), Lucia/Lucas/Lucian (Latin: 'light'), Ziya (Arabic: 'light').
Yes — Akira ranked #133 in Switzerland in 2024, and appears in official birth registries across 7 countries.
Akira ranks highest in Switzerland (#133 in 2024).
Yes — 6 notable people named Akira are in our database, including Akira Takarada (Actor), Akira Ishida (Actor), Akira Emoto (Actor).