UK name, mostly boys
Dara
A Persian name meaning "possessor of wealth or noble.".
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.
Also recorded as a girls' name in the UK, with 307 girls.
Dara is mostly registered for boys in the UK records. People looking for Dara popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #1025, with 29 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2023, with 42 births.
This profile covers 540 England and Wales registrations across 28 recorded years from 1997 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, 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.
The latest count is about 69% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 1,362 living people in the UK are called Dara. 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
- • Dara ranked #1025 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 29 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2023, when 42 boys were registered as Dara.
- • Dara ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #89 in 2024.
- • Dara is also recorded for girls, but the boys side is the larger UK variant in these records.
- • About 1,362 living people in the UK are estimated to have Dara as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
- • Across the England and Wales records shown here, 63.8% of Dara registrations are for boys.
Latest rank (E&W)
#1025
2024
Births in 2024
29
Latest year
Peak year
2023
42 births
Estimated living
1,362
2026
Gender
Boy and girl registrations for Dara
In England and Wales birth records, Dara has been registered for both boys and girls. Across the years shown here, 63.8% of registrations are for boys and 36.2% are for girls.
These figures use the sex categories in the published baby-name files. They are useful for spotting how the name is used at registration, but they are not a live measure of gender identity or everyone living with the name today.
Dara registered for boys
- Ranked #1,025 in 2024
- 29 boys registered in 2024
- Peak: 2023 (42 births)
Dara registered for girls
- Ranked #2,574 in 2024
- 10 girls registered in 2024
- Peak: 2020 (18 births)
Meaning
What does Dara mean?
The name Dara is believed to have originated from the Persian language, and it can be traced back to ancient Persia (modern-day Iran) and the surrounding regions. The name is derived from the Persian word "dara," which means "wealthy" or "prosperous." It was a popular name among the ruling classes and nobility of ancient Persia.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dara can be found in the ancient Persian epic, the Shahnameh, written by the poet Ferdowsi in the late 10th century. In this epic, Dara is mentioned as a character, although it is not clear whether this was a real person or a fictional figure.
The name Dara gained prominence during the Achaemenid Empire (550-330 BCE), which ruled over a vast territory stretching from the Indus Valley in the east to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. One of the most famous historical figures with the name Dara was Darius the Great (550-486 BCE), who ruled the Achaemenid Empire from 522 to 486 BCE and is credited with numerous military conquests and administrative reforms.
Another notable figure with the name Dara was Dara Shikoh (1615-1659), the eldest son of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. Dara Shikoh was a patron of the arts and a scholar who wrote several works on Sufism and mysticism. He was also a proponent of religious tolerance and sought to bridge the gap between Islam and Hinduism.
In the 19th century, Dara Singh Arora (1837-1913) was a renowned Sikh warrior and leader who played a pivotal role in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against British colonial rule. He was known for his bravery and military tactics.
More recently, Dara Singh (1928-2012) was an Indian actor, wrestler, and former champion of the Commonwealth Games. He was a prominent figure in the Indian film industry and is considered one of the greatest wrestlers in India's history.
While the name Dara has its roots in ancient Persia, it has also been adopted in various cultures and languages around the world, including Arabic, Turkish, and Indian languages like Hindi and Punjabi.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Dara over time
The chart below compares boys and girls registered as Dara in England and Wales, from 1996 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 Dara, the clearest high point is 2023. The latest England and Wales figure is 29 births in 2024, compared with 42 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Dara by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Dara 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 | #970 | 157 | 5 |
| 2010s | #1153 | 242 | 10 |
| 2000s | #1706 | 120 | 10 |
| 1990s | #1707 | 21 | 3 |
Geography
Where Dara is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Dara. 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.
Dara ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #89 in 2024.
Across the UK
Dara in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#535 in 2024
16 years of NRS records, 79 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#89 in 2024
28 years of NISRA records, 752 total registered
Related
Names similar to Dara
- Daniel 120,900
- Dylan 60,836
- David 37,852
- Dominic 20,480
- Declan 11,657
- Dexter 11,627
- Danny 8,434
- Dean 5,329
- Dillon 4,113
- Douglas 3,773
- Dominik 3,494
- Damian 3,486
FAQ
Dara: questions and answers
How popular is the name Dara in the UK right now?
In 2024, Dara was ranked #1025 for boys in England and Wales, with 29 births registered.
When was Dara most popular?
The peak year on record was 2023, with 42 babies registered as Dara in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Dara?
A Persian name meaning "possessor of wealth or noble.".
How many people are called Dara in the UK?
A total of 540 babies have been registered as Dara across the 28 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 79 more in Scotland and 752 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Dara most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Dara ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #89 in 2024. 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.