Given name & surname · also Arabic
Zahra
“white-skinned”·“flowerlike”
Zahra is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “white-skinned” and “flowerlike”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Original Arabicزهرة
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “white-skinned” and “flowerlike”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Arabic.
How it developed
From Arabic زَهْراء; its root is Arabic ز ه ر.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1973. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Zahra through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 9,395
- 0 boys · 9,395 girls
- Most popular year
- 2025
- 562 babies
- 2025
- 562
- #540 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +7%
- Steady
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 562 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 540 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 6.5% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. In 2025, New York had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (62). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 11,597 as a first name in 2020; 1,025 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Zahra’s family of names
Zahra has a related form in Zahira. Zahra has a related form in Zahraa. Zahra has a related form in Zahara.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 15
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 6
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 3
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Zahra
- Zar Amir EbrahimiIranian-French actressborn 1981
- Zahra NematiIranian Paralympic and Olympic archer (born 1985)
- Zahra RahnavardIranian academic and politicianborn 1945
- Zahra EshraghiIranian activistborn 1964
- Tadj al-SaltanehPersian princess and memoirist of the Qajar Dynasty. (1883–1936)
- Zahra KazemiIranian photographer1949–2003
- Zahra LariEmirati figure skaterborn 1995
- Zahra JoyaAfghan journalist and feministborn 1992
- Farkhunda Zahra NaderiAfghan politicianborn 1981
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Zahra, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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