Given name & surname · also Hebrew
Zara
“princess”
In English use, Zara has a related form in Sarah. Sarah means “princess” in Hebrew.
Original Hebrewזרח
Meaning & origin
What it means
In English use, Zara has a related form in Sarah. Sarah means “princess” in Hebrew.
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Arabic.
How it developed
Zara is used as a form of Sarah. In English use, Zara has a related form in Sarah. The shared background comes through Sarah: In the biblical account, Sarai is renamed Sarah as part of a blessing. Later Irish and Scottish uses sometimes adopted Sarah in place of local Gaelic names, a separate practice from its Hebrew origin.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1896. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. In English use, Zara has a related form in Sarah. The history of Sarah gives this family its wider story. Sarah is remembered in Genesis as Abraham’s wife and Isaac’s mother. Sarah’s later local adaptations included use for Sorcha in Ireland and Mor in Scotland, showing how an established biblical name could serve different naming traditions.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Zara appears in Matthew 1:3.
From biblical name research
Zara through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 20,930
- 0 boys · 20,930 girls
- Most popular year
- 2022
- 1,441 babies
- 2025
- 1,432
- #212 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +13%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 1,432 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 212 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 12.8% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (167). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 12,764 as a first name in 2020; 895 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.
Zara’s family of names
In English usage, Zara has a related form in Sarah. Zara is a form of Sarah. In German usage, Zara has a conventional equivalent in the French form Sarah.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Zara has relatives in 4 languages. Lines run from its Arabic roots to each of them.
5 related names in 4 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 24
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 7
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 2
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Zara
- Zara LarssonSwedish singer-songwriter (born 1997)
- Zara TindallBritish Olympic equestrian; daughter of Anne, Princess Royalborn 1981
- Zara RutherfordBelgian-British pilotborn 2002
- Zara DolukhanovaSoviet Armenian mezzo-soprano singer (1918-2007)
- Zara YaqobEmperor of Ethiopia1399–1468
- Zara SheikhPakistani actor-modelborn 1982
- Zara NelsovaCanadian musician (1918–2002)
- Zara Mahamat YacoubChadian film maker, director and journalistborn 2000
- Zara AbidPakistani fashion model and actress1992–2020
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Zara, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Xara
“princess; lady” · “princess”
>99% girls
Yelizavetam
“my God is bountiful” · “God is my oath”
>99% girls
सारा
“lady, princess”
>99% girls
Malka
“a queenly woman”
>99% girls
Ellie
“from a foreign land” · “God is my oath”
>99% girls
Delilah
“she who weakened”
>99% girls
Amira
“a princess; one who commands”
>99% girls
Sadie
“princess; lady” · “princess”
>99% girls