NameRealm
Clara

Clara: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning
“clear, bright, famous”
Origin
Latin
Say it
KLAIR-uh · 2 syllables
Used for
Girls

From Latin Clara, feminine of Clarus. It has been used across Europe, with Claire as the French cognate and Klara as a common Central and Eastern European form.

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How popular is Clara?

2024919 per million US babies
1880192019602000
Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Babies named Clara in 20243,060

2024 rank#78 girls

Peak year1890

Total US babies since 1880297,914

Clara is steady now but far below its 1890 peak.

Names like Clara

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

  • Claireclear, bright · French
  • Kiarabright, clear · Italian
  • Clarissabright, clear · Latin
  • Chiaraclear; bright · Italian
  • Clairabright; clear · Latin
  • Klaraclear, bright · Latin
  • Camilayoung ceremonial attendant · Latin
  • Lunamoon · Latin

Clara questions

What does the name Clara mean?

Clara means "clear, bright, famous". It comes from Latin. From Latin Clara, feminine of Clarus. It has been used across Europe, with Claire as the French cognate and Klara as a common Central and Eastern European form.

Is Clara a boy or girl name?

Clara is mainly a girl's name in US records (100% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Clara?

3,060 US babies were named Clara in 2024. Its peak year was 1890.

How do you pronounce Clara?

Clara is usually pronounced KLAIR-uh.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.