Mara

What Mara means

Means “bitterness”

From Hebrew מָרָא (mara, “bitterness”), derived from Hebrew מַר (mar, “bitter”).

Source: Wiktionary, “Mara” (revision 94607035), CC BY-SA 4.0. Quoted from the etymology; we don’t write our own.

How popular is Mara?

US: Rising: up from #736 in 2015. England & Wales: Rising: up from #831 in 2015.

Biggest US share so far: 2021, when 568 girls got the name (#540 that year). First in the US records in 1892.

How common

• About 1 in 3,221 baby girls in the US in 2025
• About 1 in 3,423 baby girls in England and Wales in 2025
• About 1 in 459 baby girls in Scotland 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 SD (2.62 per 1,000 girls), HI (2.33 per 1,000 girls), MN (1.4 per 1,000 girls) in 2025.

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

US vs UK

Mara is #587 in the US and #538 in England & Wales (2025).

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

Boy or girl?

In 2025, 99.9+% of US babies named Mara were girls.

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

Other spellings

Other spellings parents chose in 2025

• Mary2,230 US · 131 E&W
• Mira916 US · 135 E&W
• Myra429 US · 86 E&W
• Meera246 US · 34 E&W
• Mari129 US · 32 E&W
• Maira62 US · 76 E&W
• Maura127 US
• Mayra86 US · 18 E&W

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 Mara

Girls

• Ruth#173Editor’s note Peaked in the US in 1920, with 26,102 babies; 1,781 in 2025
• Davina#749Feminine form of David, meaning “beloved”^*
• Miriam#246possibly “bitter”^*
• Salem#435Editor’s note Climbing fast in the US: #1,425 in 2015, #435 in 2025
• Noah#624Editor’s note Climbing fast in the US: #1,588 in 2015, #624 in 2025
• Esther#119“star”^*

For a brother

• Reuben#883Editor’s note More popular in England & Wales than the US: #29 vs #883 in 2025
• Ira#819“watchful”^*
• Salem#679Editor’s note More popular in the US than England & Wales: #679 vs #1,359 in 2025
• Raphael#394“God cures/has healed”^*
• Amos#730“to carry; a burden”^*
• Shiloh#278Editor’s note Used for both: 53% of US babies named Shiloh in 2025 were boys

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