Kara

#1,071 for girls in 2025, 226 births · Last seen for boys in 2004 at #8,143
Given to girls 99.7% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1988 · 3,039 births
Debut · girls
5 births
In top 100 · girls
3 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
101,743
since 1896

Kara over time

girls

Rank among girls' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201979peak #95, 1988girls
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#1,071226—
2024#990261—
2023#936283—
2022#869319—
2021#764373—
2020#669427—
2019#576530—
2018#500621—
2017#515610—
2016#499626—
2015#507624—
2014#439731—
2013#374834—
2012#363860—
2011#339938—
2010#2921,113—
2009#2381,391—
2008#2571,338—
2007#2881,171—
2006#2821,192—
2005#2671,230—
2004#2491,285#8,1438
2003#2391,356—
2002#2231,403—
2001#2161,476—
2000#1921,649—
1999#1831,688—
1998#1761,711—
1997#1611,907#9,2655
1996#1651,909—
1995#1522,148—
1994#1342,376#5,8689
1993#1312,527—
1992#1142,931#8,4355
1991#1063,281—
1990#1103,036#8,1175
1989#1013,121#3,61815
1988#953,039#6,4266
1987#1042,699#3,52113
1986#1022,722#2,89117
1985#982,811#3,40113
1984#952,855#4,5528
1983#1012,714#2,67617
1982#1132,661#3,28213
1981#1212,439#4,5098
1980#1272,445#3,25613
1979#1252,300#3,35712
1978#1272,290—
1977#1202,415#3,38611
1976#1382,037#4,0128
1975#1182,358#2,75114
1974#1252,304#3,5589
1973#1671,630—
1972#1961,454#4,4416
1971#2041,469#4,9075
1970#2091,503#3,5218
1969#2221,354#3,5957
1968#290908#4,1365
1967#275949#3,5596
1966#380580—
1965#319798#3,5376
1964#366663—
1963#329817—
1962#429516#3,3057
1961#553319—
1960#909135—
1959#1,001111—
1958#933122—
1957#1,09092—
1956#935116—
1955#1,09983#3,8865
1954#1,37753#3,4526
1953#1,31854—
1952#1,52340—
1951#1,48140—
1950#1,65332—
1949#2,06922—
1948#1,85826—
1947#1,51039—
1946#1,80825—
1945#1,94119—
1944#1,91620—
1943#2,15117—
1942#1,70624—
1941#2,01817—
1940#2,42412—
1939#2,30013—
1938#2,34013—
1937#2,10115—
1936#3,3767—
1935#3,1568—
1934#3,8026—
1933#3,1098—
1932#3,9016—
1931#4,3315—
1930——
1929——
1928——
1927——
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1922——
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1920——
1919#3,8177—
1918——
1917——
1916—#3,5166
1915—#3,3926
1914——
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1896#1,5835—
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1880——
First appearance
1896

The first year at least five girls were named Kara! It came in at #1,583, and was given to 5 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1896–1918, when fewer than 6 girls a year got the name.

Where Kara is popular in 1979

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #40 for girls · 17 births · 1 in 158 girlsAKMaine: #81 for girls · 17 births · 1 in 358 girlsMEVermont: #125 for girls · 5 births · 1 in 494 girlsVTNew Hampshire: #85 for girls · 14 births · 1 in 344 girlsNHWashington: #101 for girls · 52 births · 1 in 487 girlsWAIdaho: #82 for girls · 19 births · 1 in 363 girlsIDMontana: #122 for girls · 10 births · 1 in 468 girlsMTNorth Dakota: #85 for girls · 14 births · 1 in 330 girlsNDMinnesota: #105 for girls · 57 births · 1 in 487 girlsMNIllinois: #123 for girls · 121 births · 1 in 617 girlsILWisconsin: #117 for girls · 55 births · 1 in 556 girlsWIMichigan: #128 for girls · 90 births · 1 in 662 girlsMINew York: #133 for girls · 150 births · 1 in 659 girlsNYMassachusetts: #63 for girls · 99 births · 1 in 310 girlsMARhode Island: #105 for girls · 10 births · 1 in 447 girlsRIOregon: #91 for girls · 39 births · 1 in 430 girlsORNevada: #183 for girls · 5 births · 1 in 744 girlsNVWyoming: #49 for girls · 16 births · 1 in 179 girlsWYSouth Dakota: #64 for girls · 18 births · 1 in 261 girlsSDIowa: #67 for girls · 67 births · 1 in 294 girlsIAIndiana: #98 for girls · 73 births · 1 in 496 girlsINOhio: #116 for girls · 125 births · 1 in 577 girlsOHPennsylvania: #112 for girls · 125 births · 1 in 547 girlsPANew Jersey: #145 for girls · 53 births · 1 in 702 girlsNJConnecticut: #81 for girls · 43 births · 1 in 342 girlsCTCalifornia: #214 for girls · 150 births · 1 in 1,089 girlsCAUtah: #112 for girls · 33 births · 1 in 487 girlsUTColorado: #136 for girls · 29 births · 1 in 643 girlsCONebraska: #65 for girls · 39 births · 1 in 264 girlsNEMissouri: #81 for girls · 83 births · 1 in 389 girlsMOKentucky: #89 for girls · 58 births · 1 in 422 girlsKYWest Virginia: #83 for girls · 33 births · 1 in 369 girlsWVVirginia: #146 for girls · 40 births · 1 in 730 girlsVAMaryland: #100 for girls · 44 births · 1 in 443 girlsMDDelaware: #112 for girls · 7 births · 1 in 394 girlsDEArizona: #205 for girls · 19 births · 1 in 940 girlsAZNew Mexico: #145 for girls · 15 births · 1 in 578 girlsNMKansas: #71 for girls · 44 births · 1 in 327 girlsKSArkansas: #91 for girls · 31 births · 1 in 418 girlsARTennessee: #151 for girls · 40 births · 1 in 712 girlsTNNorth Carolina: #235 for girls · 25 births · 1 in 1,314 girlsNCSouth Carolina: #304 for girls · 10 births · 1 in 1,725 girlsSCDistrict of Columbia: #161 for girls · 9 births · 1 in 618 girlsDCOklahoma: #71 for girls · 52 births · 1 in 356 girlsOKLouisiana: #343 for girls · 15 births · 1 in 1,950 girlsLAMississippi: #437 for girls · 6 births · 1 in 2,598 girlsMSAlabama: #241 for girls · 18 births · 1 in 1,273 girlsALGeorgia: #261 for girls · 24 births · 1 in 1,401 girlsGAHawaii: #206 for girls · 7 births · 1 in 680 girlsHITexas: #206 for girls · 109 births · 1 in 1,019 girlsTXFlorida: #145 for girls · 66 births · 1 in 710 girlsFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · girls
  1. Alaska#40 · 1 in 158
  2. Wyoming#49 · 1 in 179
  3. Massachusetts#63 · 1 in 310
  4. South Dakota#64 · 1 in 261
  5. Nebraska#65 · 1 in 264

Best ever in a state: #37 in Wyoming, 1977.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
Alaska#40171 in 158
Wyoming#49161 in 179
Massachusetts#63991 in 310
South Dakota#64181 in 261
Nebraska#65391 in 264
Iowa#67671 in 294
Kansas#71441 in 327
Oklahoma#71521 in 356
Connecticut#81431 in 342
Maine#81171 in 358
Missouri#81831 in 389
Idaho#82191 in 363
West Virginia#83331 in 369
New Hampshire#85141 in 344
North Dakota#85141 in 330
Kentucky#89581 in 422
Arkansas#91311 in 418
Oregon#91391 in 430
Indiana#98731 in 496
Maryland#100441 in 443
Washington#101521 in 487
Minnesota#105571 in 487
Rhode Island#105101 in 447
Delaware#11271 in 394
Pennsylvania#1121251 in 547
Utah#112331 in 487
Ohio#1161251 in 577
Wisconsin#117551 in 556
Montana#122101 in 468
Illinois#1231211 in 617
Vermont#12551 in 494
Michigan#128901 in 662
New York#1331501 in 659
Colorado#136291 in 643
Florida#145661 in 710
New Jersey#145531 in 702
New Mexico#145151 in 578
Virginia#146401 in 730
Tennessee#151401 in 712
District of Columbia#16191 in 618
Nevada#18351 in 744
Arizona#205191 in 940
Hawaii#20671 in 680
Texas#2061091 in 1,019
California#2141501 in 1,089
North Carolina#235251 in 1,314
Alabama#241181 in 1,273
Georgia#261241 in 1,401
South Carolina#304101 in 1,725
Louisiana#343151 in 1,950
Mississippi#43761 in 2,598

Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the girls born there that year. The SSA only publishes a name in a state when 5 or more babies of one sex got it.

See more about Kara
Momentum · girls
Falling
  • 81 spots since 2024 (#990 → #1,071)
  • 402 spots since 2020 (#669 → #1,071)
  • 564 spots since 2015 (#507 → #1,071)
  • Biggest jump: 356 spots in 1961 (#909 → #553)
  • Biggest drop: 155 spots in 1957 (#935 → #1,090)
Rise & fade · girls
92 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1896
  • Peaked 1988 at #95 (3,039 births)
  • Births halved by 2001, 13 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 100 for 3 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 3 yrs · run 1984–1985
  • Top 1,000: 67 yrs · run 1960–2024
Share of babies · girls
1 in 571
  • Highest: 1 in 571 girls born in 1991 were named Kara (0.17%)
  • Latest: 1 in 7,112 girls born in 2025 (0.01%)
  • Its best rank, #95 in 1988, was only 1 in 586 (0.17%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · girls
The 1980s
  • 27.0% of all girls named Kara (27,506) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1890s5#1,583 (1896)#1,583
1900s0——
1910s7#3,817 (1919)#3,817
1920s0——
1930s81#2,101 (1937)#3,157
1940s221#1,510 (1947)#1,940
1950s743#933 (1958)#1,241
1960s7,039#222 (1969)#407
1970s19,760#118 (1975)#153
1980s27,506#95 (1988)#106
1990s23,514#106 (1991)#143
2000s13,491#192 (2000)#245
2010s7,487#292 (2010)#440
2020s1,889#669 (2020)#883

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 girls in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Kara in 1979

girls
#125
2,300 births · 1 in 698 girls
boys
#3,357
12 births · 1 in 143,461 boys

Top girls' names in 1979

  1. #1Jennifer56,712
  2. #2Melissa34,050
  3. #3Amanda31,924
  4. #4Jessica27,780
  5. #5Amy21,609
  6. #6Sarah21,015
  7. #7Heather20,834
  8. #8Angela20,256
  9. #9Nicole19,510
  10. #10Michelle19,266
  11. #125Kara2,300

Top boys' names in 1979

  1. #1Michael67,713
  2. #2Christopher50,659
  3. #3Jason50,369
  4. #4David42,053
  5. #5James39,351
  6. #6Matthew35,621
  7. #7John35,410
  8. #8Robert34,015
  9. #9Joshua31,120
  10. #10Brian28,659
  11. #3,357Kara12
More about 1979

girls

1,605,268 girls got a published name in 1979; 1 in 698 of them was named Kara, which outranked 99.0% of the 11,972 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 17.0% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Kara
  1. #122Julia2,568
  2. #123Barbara2,493
  3. #124Jaclyn2,303
  4. #125Kara2,300
  5. #126Ann2,266
  6. #127Suzanne2,245
  7. #128Candice2,227
Biggest movers since 1978
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,593Breanne#2,125 → #532
  2. ↑ 1,527Loni#2,516 → #989
  3. ↑ 1,287Renata#2,012 → #725
  4. ↑ 985Ashanti#1,862 → #877
  5. ↑ 896Nicolette#1,581 → #685
Fallers
  1. ↓ 392Christel#762 → #1,154
  2. ↓ 312Kenisha#557 → #869
  3. ↓ 297Ariane#887 → #1,184
  4. ↓ 285Imelda#947 → #1,232
  5. ↓ 252Farrah#539 → #791

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,721,536 boys got a published name in 1979; 1 in 143,461 of them was named Kara, which outranked 52.5% of the 7,071 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 24.1% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Kara
  1. #3,168Zain13
  2. #3,168Zaki13
  3. #3,168Zenon13
  4. #3,357Kara12
  5. #3,357Adil12
  6. #3,357Akili12
  7. #3,357Albin12
  8. #3,569Abdel11
  9. #3,569Able11
  10. #3,569Adren11

Tied with 211 names at #3,357; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1978
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,228Tyrel#2,134 → #906
  2. ↑ 471Jace#1,186 → #715
  3. ↑ 387Chaz#1,371 → #984
  4. ↑ 311Tyrell#1,051 → #740
  5. ↑ 308Frederic#1,203 → #895
Fallers
  1. ↓ 1,230Dequan#927 → #2,157
  2. ↓ 641Rahsaan#869 → #1,510
  3. ↓ 446Chip#989 → #1,435
  4. ↓ 308Rashaun#996 → #1,304
  5. ↓ 307Kenya#749 → #1,056

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1979 →