BabyNamesMap

Baby names › Boys

Ira

Means “watchful”*

CommonRare
Rank 2015: #1,019, 2016: #952, 2017: #968, 2018: #958, 2019: #873, 2020: #802, 2021: #809, 2022: #846, 2023: #880, 2024: #969, 2025: #8191 in 5,675 boys in the US, 2025#819 · rising · was #1,019 in 2015
CommonRare
Rank 2015: #3,004, 2016: #1,498, 2017: #1,210, 2018: #1,533, 2019: #1,253, 2020: #1,150, 2021: #1,184, 2022: #1,104, 2023: #1,272, 2024: #2,264, 2025: #1,4661 in 15,108 boys in E&W, 2025#1,466 · rising · was #3,004 in 2015

Boy’s name · Hebrew, Slavic · /ˈaɪɹə/

Try with your surname

What Ira means

Means “watchful”

From a Hebrew name עִירָא ('ira), from a word meaning "watchful".

Source: Wiktionary, “Ira” (revision 93542478), CC BY-SA 4.0. Quoted from the etymology; we don’t write our own.

How popular is Ira?

US 2025
#819
301 babies
▲ 150 vs 2024
England & Wales 2025
#1466
18 babies
▲ 798 vs 2024
Scotland
–
Not listed

US: Rising: up from #1019 in 2015. England & Wales: Rising: up from #3004 in 2015.

012318801920196020002025
US, 1880–2025England & Wales, 1996–2025Babies per 1,000 boys born. Dot: biggest US share (1881)

Biggest US share so far: 1881, when 286 boys got the name (#57 that year). First in the US records in 1880.

How common

  • About 1 in 5,675 baby boys in the US in 2025
  • About 1 in 15,108 baby boys in England and Wales in 2025

“1 in N” divides by all listed births for that sex. The US list leaves out names given to fewer than 5 babies, and the UK lists leave out names given to 2 or fewer, so the real figure is a little rarer than shown.

Where in the US

Most popular in VT (4.95 per 1,000 boys), NE (0.68 per 1,000 boys), MN (0.53 per 1,000 boys) in 2025.

AK
ME
WI
VT
NH
WA
ID
MT
ND
MN
IL
MI
NY
MA
OR
NV
WY
SD
IA
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
UT
CO
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
AZ
NM
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
DC
OK
LA
MS
AL
GA
HI
TX
FL
FewerMore · grey: under 5 babies, not listed

SSA state data, 2025. Share of all listed boys born in each state.

US vs UK

Ira is #819 in the US and #1466 in England & Wales (2025).

Rank 2025BabiesHow commonRank 2015
US#8193011 in 5,675#1019
England & Wales#1466181 in 15,108#3004
Scotland––––

Same sex as this page (boys). SSA (US), ONS (England and Wales), NRS (Scotland).

Boy or girl?

In 2025, 57.6% of US babies named Ira were boys.

GirlsBoys
US 2025222301
England & Wales 20253918
US all years since 18807,12555,410
England & Wales since 1996298286

Counts below the publishing threshold (US 5, UK 3) are not included.

How to say it

US/ˈaɪɹə/
/ˈirə/

IPA from Wiktionary.

Other spellings parents chose in 2025

  • Ari808 US · 145 E&W
  • Ori76 US · 14 E&W
  • Uri42 US · 3 E&W
  • Iroh32 US · 3 E&W
  • Aro15 US · 5 E&W
  • Ara10 US · 4 E&W
  • Irah8 US · 4 E&W
  • Airo10 US

Names that sound the same and differ by a letter or two, with baby counts for the same sex. US and E&W counts.

If you like Ira

Boys

  • Amos#730“to carry; a burden”
  • Raphael#394“God cures/has healed”
  • Elliott#160“my God is Yahweh”
  • Jethro#952Editor’s note Up from #1,481 in 2015 to #952 in 2025 in the US
  • Salem#679Editor’s note More popular in the US than England & Wales: #679 vs #1,359 in 2025
  • Elliot#151Variant of Elliott, meaning “my God is Yahweh”

For a sister

  • Davina#749Feminine form of David, meaning “beloved”
  • Ruth#173Editor’s note Peaked in the US in 1920, with 26,102 babies; 1,781 in 2025
  • Ariella#174Form of Ariel, meaning “lion of God”
  • Esther#119“star”
  • Elsie#123Diminutive of Alison, meaning “of noble kind”
  • Vera#205“faith”

Picked from the US top 1,000 in 2025: names Wiktionary also files under Bible, Hebrew, Slavic, whose US popularity since 1990 rose and fell most like Ira’s. Rank is US 2025.

Jump to a random name page, or roll from every name on the home page.