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Kara as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Kara

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The baby name Kara is a Female name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced KAR-ə (US: /ˈkærə/),KAH-rah (UK: /ˈkɑːrə/).

Kara is English, Irish, Italian, Latin, Turkish in Origin.

Gender: Female
Syllables: 2.0
Origin: English, Irish, Italian, Latin, Turkish
Pronunciation: KAR-ə (US: /ˈkærə/),KAH-rah (UK: /ˈkɑːrə/)

What is the meaning of the name Kara ?

The baby name Kara is a Female name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced KAR-ə (US: /ˈkærə/),KAH-rah (UK: /ˈkɑːrə/).

Kara is English, Irish, Italian, Latin, Turkish in Origin.

Kara is a multicultural given name with several independent roots. In English it mirrors Cara, from Latin carus “dear, beloved,” and also aligns with the Gaelic word cara “friend.” In Turkish, kara means “black, dark” (and by extension “land”), used as a given name and epithetic surname element. Old Norse Kára, a valkyrie in saga literature, offers another strand, glossed as “curly-haired” or “stormy.”

Use in the English-speaking world expanded in the mid-20th century, propelled by fashion for K-initial spellings, and peaked in the 1980s–90s in the United States before settling to steady familiarity. Variants include Cara, Karah, Carah, and Karra; related elaborations are Karina and Carina. In Scandinavia Kára retains the accent, and in Turkish Kara can be unisex. Core meanings: beloved, friend, or dark.

Kara has the following similar or variant Names

Famous people with the name Kara

Katee Sackhoff Actor · Born 1980 · United States Katee Sackhoff is an American actress best known for playing Kara "Starbuck" Thrace on Battlestar Galactica. She has also played Bo-Katan Kryze in The Mandalorian and voiced the character in Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels. Kara DioGuardi Musician · Born 1970 · United States Kara DioGuardi is best known as an American songwriter and music producer in pop and rock. She has written or co-written well-known songs like "Ain't No Other Man," "Walk Away," and "Come Clean," and has also worked as a music publisher, A&R executive, and singer. Kara Hayward Actor · Born 1998 · United States Kara Hayward is an American actress best known for playing Suzy Bishop in Moonrise Kingdom. She earned a Young Artist Award nomination for her breakout role in the 2012 film.
Kara Tointon Actor · Born 1983 · United Kingdom Kara Tointon is an English actress best known for playing Dawn Swann in the BBC soap EastEnders. She also won Strictly Come Dancing in 2010 and later played Maria in ITV’s The Sound of Music Live in 2015. Kara Monaco Actor · Born 1983 · United States Kara Monaco is an American model best known for being Playboy's Playmate of the Month in June 2005. Born on February 26, 1983, she became widely recognized through her work with Playboy magazine. Kara Hui Actor · Born 1960 · People's Republic of China Kara Hui is a prominent actress from the People's Republic of China, best known for her roles in martial arts films. She gained fame with her performance in 'My Young Auntie' and has continued to captivate audiences with her talent and versatility.

Kara – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
Ireland Girls 2025 #1 — 874
FJ Girls 0 #8 2 583
BF 0 #10 1 188
MV Girls 0 #35 1 2,021
TM Girls 0 #35 1 574
AZ 0 #41 3 706
AZ Girls 0 #74 2 1,051
AF 0 #76 1 1,883
AL 0 #76 1 2,372
JP 0 #77 1 4,057
CN 0 #86 1 3,857
PH 0 #86 11 5,607
MD Girls 0 #92 1 865
JM 0 #93 1 3,714
KZ 0 #93 2 1,452
TW 0 #103 1 4,523
GE Boys 0 #105 6 2,055
IQ 0 #105 25 3,533
GE Girls 0 #108 1 1,564
BN Girls 0 #113 2 5,459
KW 0 #121 1 5,216
CY Girls 0 #125 1 3,755
AZ Boys 0 #130 2 1,400
CY Boys 0 #131 1 3,473
GR 0 #131 5 3,911
JO 0 #138 3 2,158
EE Girls 0 #142 1 1,888
CR 0 #147 12 5,526
LT Boys 0 #151 1 2,166
MT Girls 0 #152 2 3,773
BW Boys 0 #154 1 4,685
RS Boys 0 #154 1 2,277
BG Girls 0 #165 60 3,559
IQ Girls 0 #165 514 11,303
Sweden Girls 2020 #179 2 1,663
MT Boys 0 #179 1 4,064
HR 0 #181 1 2,081
CZ 0 #185 2 3,154
AE 0 #186 2 10,220
IQ Boys 0 #189 1,007 13,071
BG Boys 0 #192 28 3,850
RU 0 #193 2 3,641
LT Girls 0 #200 1 1,904
DK 0 #205 2 5,198
SI Boys 0 #211 1 3,402
HU Girls 0 #224 2 3,308
AL Girls 0 #226 2 4,141
PS 0 #226 1 5,692
GR Girls 0 #228 15 6,293
IR 0 #229 3 4,221
NA Girls 0 #236 2 7,146
MO Girls 0 #239 13 7,056
JM Girls 0 #244 16 7,507
Canada Girls 2024 #248 38 2,795
JP Girls 0 #249 3 6,592
NA Boys 0 #252 2 6,830
GR Boys 0 #254 14 6,912
HR Boys 0 #259 1 3,997
KZ Boys 0 #262 28 6,578
TW Girls 0 #267 10 8,139
NG 0 #272 1 5,926
SG 0 #275 8 11,010
KZ Girls 0 #284 37 5,862
JM Boys 0 #293 1 6,876
HR Girls 0 #294 1 3,687
AL Boys 0 #303 1 5,122
CZ Boys 0 #303 3 6,530
JP Boys 0 #303 1 7,909
QA Girls 0 #303 14 15,378
CN Girls 0 #309 41 8,829
SA 0 #311 2 10,560
MY 0 #321 10 12,352
DK Girls 0 #325 5 7,429
PH Girls 0 #326 65 13,098
PL Girls 0 #328 27 5,096
DK Boys 0 #329 4 7,401
TR 0 #330 5,303 19,440
CN Boys 0 #331 1 9,639
GH Girls 0 #334 4 6,973
HK 0 #334 15 8,483
JO Girls 0 #336 4 7,570
GT 0 #338 1 5,948
PL Boys 0 #338 3 6,459
CZ Girls 0 #344 8 5,378
France Girls 2021 #350 56 3,185
SD Girls 0 #357 2 7,678
GH Boys 0 #359 3 8,138
MU Girls 0 #361 2 8,539
JO Boys 0 #363 15 7,057
MU Boys 0 #368 2 8,477
YE 0 #368 14 8,639
EG 0 #380 21 6,387
PT Boys 0 #380 2 7,951
OM Girls 0 #385 12 15,987
Austria Girls 0 #399 22 1,885
RU Girls 0 #401 98 11,913
PH Boys 0 #403 6 11,440
UY Boys 0 #412 2 5,922
Austria Boys 0 #414 29 2,180
SD Boys 0 #418 28 10,523
Germany 0 #420 18 2,542
ZA 0 #427 21 14,421
MX 0 #443 3 8,339
DZ 0 #451 1,159 20,130
LY 0 #455 81 12,703
RU Boys 0 #468 38 12,621
PT Girls 0 #469 3 7,952
CR Girls 0 #479 54 11,342
AR Boys 0 #483 1 7,628
GT Boys 0 #499 1 7,625
KW Girls 0 #501 15 19,177
PA Boys 0 #505 1 9,305
HK Girls 0 #507 109 16,104
CO 0 #509 2 7,768
CR Boys 0 #509 2 10,188
PA Girls 0 #514 5 9,861
IR Girls 0 #515 16 8,334
AE Girls 0 #524 30 20,968
IR Boys 0 #524 29 10,162
CM Girls 0 #528 13 11,671
UY Girls 0 #535 2 6,731
PS Boys 0 #538 11 10,655
SG Girls 0 #539 48 18,916
GT Girls 0 #540 2 7,500
BH 0 #541 13 17,937
CM Boys 0 #541 10 12,054
PS Girls 0 #542 6 10,981
HK Boys 0 #554 4 12,905
BD Boys 0 #604 2 10,045
IL Boys 0 #620 6 10,983
AR Girls 0 #626 5 8,289
LB 0 #633 26 13,263
IL Girls 0 #640 6 11,648
BO Girls 0 #649 3 9,488
IN Girls 0 #650 5 13,121
United States Girls 2024 #657 261 8,487
SY 0 #675 54 11,684
Finland Boys 2026 #676 7 3,552
Germany Girls 0 #689 151 4,949
IT 0 #696 19 4,183
TN 0 #697 133 13,765
CL Boys 0 #698 3 13,390
Finland Girls 2026 #707 32 3,895
NG Girls 0 #726 61 15,093
SG Boys 0 #731 9 17,960
QA Boys 0 #735 9 18,093
KW Boys 0 #755 15 18,755
Germany Boys 0 #759 194 5,697
BR Boys 0 #784 2 12,213
MA 0 #802 336 20,986
EG Boys 0 #816 71 15,035
United States Boys 2004 #825 8 7,246
NL Boys 0 #846 106 5,873
EG Girls 0 #850 110 14,742
OM Boys 0 #862 20 17,948
SA Girls 0 #875 61 25,931
NL Girls 0 #894 62 5,933
Spain Boys 0 #903 28 5,610
CL Girls 0 #908 8 14,098
PE Boys 0 #926 1 14,506
NG Boys 0 #929 23 16,906
MY Girls 0 #958 37 24,821
Spain Girls 0 #959 25 5,561
IN Boys 0 #969 33 16,750
CO Boys 0 #979 3 15,656
BR Girls 0 #985 8 12,708
PE Girls 0 #1,002 9 14,861
ZA Girls 0 #1,005 137 25,928
MX Boys 0 #1,025 9 16,355
CO Girls 0 #1,063 16 16,140
AE Boys 0 #1,073 20 22,615
MY Boys 0 #1,090 22 25,439
MX Girls 0 #1,137 47 17,781
ZA Boys 0 #1,152 27 25,619
IT Girls 0 #1,342 105 9,415
IT Boys 0 #1,364 108 10,046
SA Boys 0 #1,501 114 28,008

Kara is popular in 86 countries — most recent births per country:

Ireland
Scotland, United Kingdom
Canada
France
United States

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

People also ask about Kara

Kara is predominantly a girl's name.
Kara is a 2 syllable name, pronounced KAR-ə (US: /ˈkærə/),KAH-rah (UK: /ˈkɑːrə/).
Common nicknames and spelling variations include Cara, Kira, Keira, Ciara, Caragh and Karah.
Across languages, Kara has these equivalents: {'Italian': 'Cara (beloved), 'Irish': 'Ciara (dark), 'Turkish': 'Kara (black/dark), 'Russian/Slavic': 'Kira (similar sound; different origin).
Yes, very popular — Kara ranked #1 in Ireland in 2025, and appears in official birth registries across 8 countries.
Kara ranks highest in Ireland (#1 in 2025).
Kara's popularity is holding steady. It moved from #1 in 2015 to #1 in 2025 in Ireland.
Yes — 6 notable people named Kara are in our database, including Katee Sackhoff (Actor), Kara DioGuardi (Musician), Kara Hayward (Actor).