Mara
Mara can be either a surname or a first name. Mara is Irish for ocean.
Meaning & Origin of Mara
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Mara can be either a surname or a first name. Mara is Irish for ocean.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Mara
Mara first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1892, with 6 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 2021, when 568 Maras were born — ranking #540 that year. As of 2026, Mara ranks #585 for baby girls with 518 births, gradually rising (+9%). In total, more than 25K Maras have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1890s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Notable people named Mara
A small selection from Wikipedia. Tap "Read more" below to see the full list on Wikipedia.
- Mara Abbott (born 1985), American cyclist
- Mara Bar-Serapion , 1st-century Syriac writer
- Mara Bergman (fl. 1980s–2010s), American author
- Mara Bizzotto (born 1972), Italian politician
- Mara Branković (1420–1487), medieval Serbian royal
- Mara Brock Akil (born 1970), American television producer
- Mara Brunetti (born 1976), Italian swimmer
- Mara Buneva (1902–1928), Bulgarian revolutionary
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Names that sound like Mara
Phonetically similar names — useful when Mara is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Mara
What does the name Mara mean?
How popular is Mara in 2026?
When was Mara most popular?
In which U.S. states is Mara most popular?
Is Mara a unisex name?
What names go well with Mara?
About the name Mara
Mara is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1892 and has accumulated 25K births in the dataset. Mara's peak popularity came in 2021 when it ranked #538. Use the chart and map above to compare Mara's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 2021 →
- Names of the 2020s →
- Names starting with "M" →
- Browse all girl names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.