How popular is the name Kara?

Kara ranks 271st among girls' names in US records, with 158,442 births since 1882. Over the past decade it accounts for 7,562.

Is Kara a unisex name?

No. Kara is recorded almost entirely as a girls' name; births to the other gender are too few to register as a share.

1991, when 4,625 children were given the name. It has been in use for 143 years and is still recorded as of 2024.

Cara. All of these sound the same and are counted together in the totals on this page.

Girl name#271 of girl names

Pronounced K EH1 R AH0 (ARPABET)

Kara is a girls' name, and first appears in 1882. It has been given to 158,442 children — the 271st most common girls' name on record.

It is falling away, down 54% on the previous decade. Its best single year was 1991, when 4,625 children were given it.

Cara is counted with it here, since the two are pronounced identically.

1991Girls: 4,625Boys: 0

These spellings sound identical to Kara and are counted together with it, which is why the totals here are higher than a single-spelling count.

Phonetic detail

Stress digits mark unstressed (0), primary (1) and secondary (2) syllables.

Same first letter and syllable count, peaking around the same time.

Names from the same era with a matching rhythm but a different initial.

How popular is the name Kara?: Kara ranks 271st among girls' names in US records, with 158,442 births since 1882. Over the past decade it accounts for 7,562.
Is Kara a unisex name?: No. Kara is recorded almost entirely as a girls' name; births to the other gender are too few to register as a share.
When was Kara most popular?: 1991, when 4,625 children were given the name. It has been in use for 143 years and is still recorded as of 2024.
How else is Kara spelled?: Cara. All of these sound the same and are counted together in the totals on this page.