Given name & surname
Thora
“thunder”
Thora is a variant of Tora. In Scandinavian use, Tora carries the interpretation “thunder.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Thora is a variant of Tora. In Scandinavian use, Tora carries the interpretation “thunder.”
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1883. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Thora through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 2,424
- 0 boys · 2,424 girls
- Most popular year
- 1916
- 72 babies
- 2025
- 20
- #6,093 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +8%
- Steady
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 20 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 6,093 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 7.6% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 72 in 1916. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 930 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Thora’s family of names
Thora has a related form in Tora. In German usage, Thora has a conventional equivalent in the Swedish form Tora.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 2
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Thora
- Thora BirchAmerican actressborn 1982
- Thora HirdBritish actress (1911–2003)
- Thora DaugaardDanish women's rights activist, pacifist, editor and translator1874–1951
- Thora HallagerDanish photographer (1821–1884)
- Thora Bjorg HelgaIcelandic actressborn 1989
- Thora PedersenDanish women's rights activist (1875-1954)
- Thora Neels-HanssonNorwegian actress (1918-2007)
- Henriette CroneDanish trade unionist, politician and peace activist1874–1933
- Thora KulleSwedish textile artist (1849–1939)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Thora, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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