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Dara as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Dara

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The baby name Dara is a Unisex name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced DAH-rah (/ˈdɑːrə/),DAIR-uh (/ˈdærə/).

Dara is Irish, Khmer, Persian in Origin.

Gender: Unisex
Syllables: 2.0
Origin: Irish, Khmer, Persian
Pronunciation: DAH-rah (/ˈdɑːrə/),DAIR-uh (/ˈdærə/)

What is the meaning of the name Dara ?

The baby name Dara is a Unisex name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced DAH-rah (/ˈdɑːrə/),DAIR-uh (/ˈdærə/).

Dara is Irish, Khmer, Persian in Origin.

Dara is a multicultural, unisex given name with several independent roots. In Irish, it represents a modern form of Dáire/Darragh, tied to Old Irish dair “oak” and the sense “fruitful, fertile.” In Khmer (Cambodian), Dara (ដារា) means “star” and is common for all genders. In Hebrew, Dara appears as a variant of the biblical name Darda (1 Chronicles 2:6), often glossed “wisdom.” In Persian, Dārā relates to Darius (Old Persian Dārayavahuš), yielding meanings like “possessor, wealthy” and serves as a standalone male name.

Usage varies by region: traditionally masculine in Ireland and Iran, widely unisex in Cambodia, and mixed in the English-speaking world. Notable variants and cognates include Dáire, Darragh/Daragh, Daire (Irish); Darda (Hebrew); Dārā, Dariush/Daryush and Darius (Persian); and the feminine Daria in Slavic and Western languages. Spelling Dara is stable across scripts in global use, contributing to its crisp, cross-cultural appeal.

Dara has the following similar or variant Names

Famous people with the name Dara

Sandara Park Actor · Born 1984 · South Korea Dara, born Sandara Park, is a South Korean singer, actress, and TV presenter best known for rising to fame on the Philippine talent show Star Circle Quest in 2004. She later built a successful entertainment career in the Philippines before returning to South Korea in 2007, and she is also widely known as a member of 2NE1, with hits like I Am the Best, Fire, and Come Back Home. Dara Ó Briain Actor · Born 1972 · Ireland Dara Ó Briain is an Irish comedian and TV presenter best known for his stand-up and for hosting Mock the Week, The Panel, and The Apprentice: You're Fired!. Based in the UK, he has performed comedy shows around the world and become a familiar face on British and Irish television.

Dara – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
Ireland Boys 2025 #1 — 836
Ireland Girls 2025 #1 — 874
KH 0 #2 2 102
KH Boys 0 #4 6 270
MV 0 #19 1 644
KR Boys 0 #27 1 897
BN 0 #32 1 2,297
MV Girls 0 #35 1 2,021
IN 0 #71 1 2,963
AO 0 #77 1 2,729
JP 0 #77 1 4,057
SI 0 #80 1 1,612
RS 0 #83 2 923
CN 0 #86 1 3,857
JM 0 #93 1 3,714
KZ 0 #93 2 1,452
ID Girls 0 #100 3 3,319
QA 0 #105 2 7,011
IQ 0 #106 24 3,533
RS Girls 0 #107 29 1,651
GE Girls 0 #108 1 1,564
PH 0 #109 2 5,607
BN Girls 0 #113 2 5,459
OM 0 #119 3 6,215
KW 0 #120 2 5,216
CY Boys 0 #130 2 3,473
Switzerland Girls 2024 #133 3 1,786
Switzerland Boys 2024 #135 3 1,769
ID Boys 0 #135 1 4,130
PA 0 #137 2 3,797
BN Boys 0 #138 2 6,332
JO 0 #139 2 2,158
BW Girls 0 #151 1 4,216
MT Girls 0 #153 1 3,773
IQ Boys 0 #154 1,327 13,071
CR 0 #165 1 5,526
PR Girls 0 #165 3 3,171
SI Girls 0 #176 2 2,769
Sweden Girls 2022 #177 3 1,568
Sweden Boys 2022 #180 3 1,509
HR 0 #181 1 2,081
AE 0 #184 4 10,220
CZ 0 #186 1 3,154
LU Girls 0 #189 2 4,850
AR 0 #190 4 2,915
BG Girls 0 #193 31 3,559
LT Girls 0 #200 1 1,904
PL 0 #212 1 2,600
AO Girls 0 #214 4 4,575
BG Boys 0 #218 3 3,850
IR 0 #224 8 4,221
HU Girls 0 #225 1 3,308
PS 0 #226 1 5,692
MO Girls 0 #242 10 7,056
GR Girls 0 #245 5 6,293
GH 0 #248 1 5,396
PT 0 #248 3 4,161
AO Boys 0 #249 1 5,568
JP Girls 0 #249 3 6,592
NG 0 #253 12 5,926
EC Girls 0 #254 5 3,650
HR Girls 0 #254 36 3,687
TW Boys 0 #254 3 7,111
HR Boys 0 #255 5 3,997
TW Girls 0 #255 22 8,139
KZ Boys 0 #265 25 6,578
GR Boys 0 #268 6 6,912
AF Boys 0 #272 3 3,535
Canada Girls 2024 #273 13 2,795
SG 0 #279 4 11,010
KZ Girls 0 #286 35 5,862
Canada Boys 2024 #288 19 2,588
JM Boys 0 #293 1 6,876
JO Girls 0 #302 24 7,570
JP Boys 0 #302 2 7,909
AL Boys 0 #303 1 5,122
CZ Boys 0 #305 1 6,530
DK Boys 0 #306 20 7,401
SA 0 #312 1 10,560
BR 0 #314 32 5,969
CZ Girls 0 #320 22 5,378
PE 0 #325 5 6,350
DK Girls 0 #327 3 7,429
CN Boys 0 #330 2 9,639
GT 0 #334 5 5,948
QA Girls 0 #335 9 15,378
CN Girls 0 #336 14 8,829
GH Girls 0 #337 1 6,973
PL Boys 0 #338 3 6,459
HK 0 #339 10 8,483
MU Girls 0 #339 13 8,539
SD Girls 0 #351 8 7,678
MY 0 #354 1 12,352
GH Boys 0 #358 4 8,138
PL Girls 0 #360 5 5,096
MU Boys 0 #367 3 8,477
PH Girls 0 #374 17 13,098
OM Girls 0 #376 21 15,987
PT Boys 0 #381 1 7,951
France Boys 2021 #385 3 2,865
JO Boys 0 #389 1 7,057
YE 0 #397 2 8,639
France Girls 2021 #398 8 3,185
Austria Girls 0 #400 21 1,885
RU Girls 0 #401 98 11,913
PT Girls 0 #402 50 7,952
MX 0 #403 11 8,339
EG 0 #404 9 6,387
BD Girls 0 #405 2 8,413
BO 0 #406 3 6,868
PH Boys 0 #406 3 11,440
IQ Girls 0 #414 91 11,303
Austria Boys 0 #428 15 2,180
CL 0 #433 2 6,867
SD Boys 0 #466 1 10,523
PA Girls 0 #467 15 9,861
UY Girls 0 #469 42 6,731
IR Boys 0 #474 79 10,162
AR Boys 0 #483 1 7,628
GT Girls 0 #488 18 7,500
BR Girls 0 #491 609 12,708
KW Girls 0 #493 23 19,177
RU Boys 0 #494 12 12,621
GT Boys 0 #499 1 7,625
PS Girls 0 #503 21 10,981
PA Boys 0 #505 1 9,305
IR Girls 0 #507 24 8,334
CO 0 #509 2 7,768
CR Boys 0 #509 2 10,188
AE Girls 0 #510 44 20,968
CR Girls 0 #516 17 11,342
SG Girls 0 #525 62 18,916
BH 0 #526 28 17,937
HK Boys 0 #551 7 12,905
HK Girls 0 #555 61 16,104
LY 0 #556 4 12,703
BD Boys 0 #559 18 10,045
CM Girls 0 #560 1 11,671
PS Boys 0 #560 2 10,655
CM Boys 0 #568 8 12,054
AR Girls 0 #569 31 8,289
BO Girls 0 #585 27 9,488
IL Girls 0 #600 18 11,648
IN Girls 0 #621 11 13,121
BO Boys 0 #622 1 9,244
IL Boys 0 #625 1 10,983
LB 0 #641 18 13,263
SY 0 #651 78 11,684
Finland Boys 2026 #670 13 3,552
United States Girls 2024 #674 244 8,487
QA Boys 0 #675 33 18,093
NG Girls 0 #688 99 15,093
IT 0 #698 17 4,183
CL Boys 0 #699 2 13,390
Finland Girls 2026 #724 15 3,895
KW Boys 0 #731 39 18,755
BR Boys 0 #735 17 12,213
SG Boys 0 #736 4 17,960
MY Girls 0 #771 226 24,821
Germany Girls 0 #804 35 4,949
PE Girls 0 #810 134 14,861
SA Girls 0 #813 123 25,931
CL Girls 0 #819 33 14,098
OM Boys 0 #823 59 17,948
Spain Girls 0 #835 149 5,561
NG Boys 0 #852 100 16,906
United States Boys 2024 #861 32 7,044
TN 0 #861 5 13,765
EG Boys 0 #873 14 15,035
EG Girls 0 #875 85 14,742
IN Boys 0 #891 111 16,750
Germany Boys 0 #901 52 5,697
NL Boys 0 #913 39 5,873
Spain Boys 0 #916 15 5,610
NL Girls 0 #916 40 5,933
PE Boys 0 #923 4 14,506
CO Girls 0 #966 113 16,140
CO Boys 0 #976 6 15,656
AE Boys 0 #985 108 22,615
MX Girls 0 #992 192 17,781
TR 0 #1,028 184 19,440
MX Boys 0 #1,029 5 16,355
MY Boys 0 #1,073 39 25,439
MA 0 #1,097 32 20,986
DZ 0 #1,154 23 20,130
ZA Girls 0 #1,228 9 25,928
ZA Boys 0 #1,265 8 25,619
IT Girls 0 #1,331 116 9,415
IT Boys 0 #1,392 80 10,046
SA Boys 0 #1,442 173 28,008

Dara is popular in 87 countries — most recent births per country:

Ireland
Ireland
France
Canada
Scotland, United Kingdom

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People also ask about Dara

Dara is a unisex name, given to both boys and girls.
Dara is a 2 syllable name, pronounced DAH-rah (/ˈdɑːrə/),DAIR-uh (/ˈdærə/).
Common nicknames and spelling variations include Darragh, Dáire, Darah, Darra and Darrah.
Across languages, Dara has these equivalents: {'Irish': 'Dáire (Darragh), 'Persian': 'Dārā (related to Darius/Dariush), 'Khmer': "Dara (same form, meaning 'star'), 'related_biblical': 'Darda (similar-sounding name in Hebrew tradition).
Yes, very popular — Dara ranked #1 in Ireland in 2025, and appears in official birth registries across 8 countries.
Dara ranks highest in Ireland (#1 in 2025).
Yes — 2 notable people named Dara are in our database, including Sandara Park (Actor), Dara Ó Briain (Actor).