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Girl · Latin
Clara
Say it: KLAIR-uh
Meaning
Latin clara 'clear, bright, famous'.
Certainscholars agree on this meaning.
A popular 19th-century name, now returning.
Its wave through time
Fading since the 1890s
In the United States
- 286,832 babies given this name since 1880
- At its height in 1890, about 1 in 76 girls
- 2,664 babies in 2020
Through the ages
- The High and Late Middle Ages1100 to 1450
- Victorian and Belle Époque1837 to 1914
- The Modern Age1880 to today
Used by
The family of the name
Other spellings: Clare
| German | Klara |
|---|---|
| Italian | Chiara |
| French | Claire |
| Spanish | Clara |
Famous bearers
- Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross
- Clara Schumann, pianist and composer
- Clare of Assisi, Italian saint
Names worth a look
Where this comes from
- National census records of the 19th and 20th centuries
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
- Lives of the saints and early Christian martyrologies
- Calendars of saints and name days
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.
Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.