UK girl's name
Aarna
A feminine name of Indian origin meaning "rays of the rising sun".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Aarna is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Aarna popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #934, with 38 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2024, with 38 births.
This profile covers 391 England and Wales registrations across 18 recorded years from 2007 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales and NRS Scotland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
Aarna is at its recorded peak in the England and Wales series.
We estimate that about 395 living people in the UK are called Aarna. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Aarna ranked #934 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 38 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2024, when 38 girls were registered as Aarna.
- • Aarna ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #802 in 2014.
- • About 395 living people in the UK are estimated to have Aarna as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#934
2024
Births in 2024
38
Latest year
Peak year
2024
38 births
Estimated living
395
2026
Meaning
What does Aarna mean?
The name Aarna has its origins in the Sanskrit language, tracing back to ancient India. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "Arna," which means "the bright red color of the rising sun." The name is believed to have been in use since the Vedic period, which spans from around 1500 BCE to 500 BCE.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Aarna can be found in the Mahabharata, a significant Sanskrit epic from ancient India. In this epic, Aarna is mentioned as the name of a princess from the Kuru dynasty. However, the exact time period or context in which this reference occurs is uncertain.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Aarna. One such person was Aarna Rajagopal (1939-2021), an Indian actress and dancer who gained prominence in the 1960s and 1970s. She was known for her roles in several Tamil and Malayalam films and was also a talented Bharatanatyam dancer.
Another notable figure was Aarna Vainio (1932-2021), a Finnish politician who served as a member of the Parliament of Finland from 1975 to 1999. She was also a member of the Social Democratic Party of Finland and was actively involved in various social and environmental causes.
In the field of literature, Aarna Anttonen (1924-2013) was a Finnish writer and poet. She published several collections of poetry and was highly regarded for her lyrical works that explored themes of nature, love, and the human condition.
Moving to the realm of sports, Aarna Suuronen (1903-1991) was a Finnish athlete who competed in the javelin throw event at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam. She was also a multiple-time national champion in her sport.
Lastly, Aarna Singa (1890-1970) was a notable figure in the Indian independence movement. She was a freedom fighter and activist who participated in the non-violent civil disobedience campaigns led by Mahatma Gandhi. Singa spent several years in British prisons for her involvement in the independence struggle.
While these are just a few examples, the name Aarna has been borne by individuals from various walks of life throughout history, each leaving their mark in their respective fields and contributing to the richness of the name's legacy.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Aarna over time
The chart below shows babies named Aarna registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 2007 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Aarna, the clearest high point is 2024. The latest England and Wales figure is 38 births in 2024, compared with 38 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Aarna by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Aarna was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | #1030 | 166 | 5 |
| 2010s | #1705 | 190 | 10 |
| 2000s | #2326 | 35 | 3 |
Geography
Where Aarna is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Aarna. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.
Aarna ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #802 in 2014.
Across the UK
Aarna in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#802 in 2014
2 years of NRS records, 6 total registered
Related
Names similar to Aarna
- Amelia 94,830
- Ava 54,556
- Amy 52,495
- Alice 46,815
- Abigail 45,658
- Amber 31,922
- Anna 27,802
- Alexandra 19,455
- Amelie 18,051
- Abbie 15,971
- Aimee 15,158
- Annabelle 15,120
FAQ
Aarna: questions and answers
How popular is the name Aarna in the UK right now?
In 2024, Aarna was ranked #934 for girls in England and Wales, with 38 births registered.
When was Aarna most popular?
The peak year on record was 2024, with 38 babies registered as Aarna in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Aarna?
A feminine name of Indian origin meaning "rays of the rising sun".
How many people are called Aarna in the UK?
A total of 391 babies have been registered as Aarna across the 18 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 6 more in Scotland.
Where is Aarna most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Aarna ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #802 in 2014. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.