UK girl's name
Debora
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "bee".
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.
Debora is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Debora popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #2771, with 9 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2019, with 19 births.
This profile covers 180 England and Wales registrations across 21 recorded years from 2000 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.
The latest count is about 47% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 198 living people in the UK are called Debora. 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
- • Debora ranked #2771 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 9 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2019, when 19 girls were registered as Debora.
- • Debora ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #565 in 1985.
- • About 198 living people in the UK are estimated to have Debora as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#2771
2024
Births in 2024
9
Latest year
Peak year
2019
19 births
Estimated living
198
2026
Meaning
What does Debora mean?
The name Debora has its origins in the Hebrew language and culture, believed to date back to biblical times. It is derived from the Hebrew word "devorah," which means "bee." This association with bees and honey may have been a reference to sweetness or industriousness.
In the Old Testament of the Bible, Deborah was a prophetess and the only female judge mentioned in the Book of Judges. She is celebrated as a respected leader who guided the Israelites to victory against the Canaanites around 1200 BC. The biblical account of Deborah's life provides some of the earliest known historical references to this name.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Debora was Debora Huana, a 16th-century Spanish playwright and poet. She was born around 1500 and is recognized for her works that challenged gender norms and advocated for women's rights during the Renaissance period.
In the 17th century, Debora Barnes, an English writer and educator, became known for her literary works and advocacy for women's education. She wrote several books, including "A Gentleman Instructed in the Conduct of a Virtuous and Happy Life" and "A Treatise on the Nature and Excellency of the Female Sex."
Debora Kodwo Adomako-Ansah, born in 1926, was a Ghanaian educator and women's rights activist. She played a significant role in promoting education for girls and women in Ghana and served as the first female director of education in the country.
Debora Weintraub, born in 1915, was an American sculptor and artist known for her abstract and figurative works. She studied at the Art Students League in New York and had exhibitions in various galleries and museums throughout her career.
Debora Spar, born in 1963, is an American academic and author. She served as the president of Barnard College from 2008 to 2017 and has written several books on gender issues, including "Wonder Women: Sex, Power, and the Quest for Perfection" and "The Baby Struggle: How Modern Work Culture Reinvented Motherhood."
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Debora over time
The chart below shows babies named Debora registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 2000 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 Debora, the clearest high point is 2019. The latest England and Wales figure is 9 births in 2024, compared with 19 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Debora by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Debora 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 | #2462 | 54 | 5 |
| 2010s | #3112 | 97 | 10 |
| 2000s | #3628 | 29 | 6 |
Geography
Where Debora is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Debora. 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.
Debora ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #565 in 1985.
Across the UK
Debora in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#565 in 1985
6 years of NRS records, 19 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Debora
-
Debora Kayembe
activist; lawyer
Scottish human rights lawyer and political activist
1975-
Related
Names similar to Debora
- Daisy 49,435
- Danielle 13,507
- Darcie 11,010
- Darcy 10,516
- Darcey 9,708
- Delilah 9,098
- Demi 9,052
- Daniella 4,324
- Destiny 3,732
- Diana 3,258
- Dorothy 3,104
- Dolly 2,246
FAQ
Debora: questions and answers
How popular is the name Debora in the UK right now?
In 2024, Debora was ranked #2771 for girls in England and Wales, with 9 births registered.
When was Debora most popular?
The peak year on record was 2019, with 19 babies registered as Debora in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Debora?
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "bee".
How many people are called Debora in the UK?
A total of 180 babies have been registered as Debora across the 21 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 19 more in Scotland.
Where is Debora most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Debora ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #565 in 1985. 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.