UK girl's name
Samera
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "intoxicating" or "protected by the moon".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2017. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Samera is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Samera popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2017 in this profile. In that release it ranked #4763, with 4 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 1996, with 25 births.
This profile covers 162 England and Wales registrations across 19 recorded years from 1996 to 2017. 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 16% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 165 living people in the UK are called Samera. 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 2018 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Samera ranked #4763 for girls in England and Wales in 2017, with 4 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 1996, when 25 girls were registered as Samera.
- • Samera ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #487 in 1985.
- • About 165 living people in the UK are estimated to have Samera as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#4763
2017
Births in 2017
4
Latest year
Peak year
1996
25 births
Estimated living
165
2026
Meaning
What does Samera mean?
The name Samera is believed to have originated from the Arabic language. It is a feminine name derived from the root word "samara," which means "fruit" or "seed" in Arabic. The name is thought to have emerged around the 7th century CE, during the rise of Islamic civilization in the Middle East and North Africa.
The earliest known reference to the name Samera can be found in ancient Arabic poetry and literature. Poets and writers often used nature-inspired names as metaphors or symbols in their works, and the name Samera may have been inspired by the idea of fertility, growth, and new beginnings associated with the imagery of a fruit or seed.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Samera was a renowned Arab poet and scholar who lived in the 8th century CE. Samera bint Yahya al-Qurashi was known for her expertise in Arabic literature and her contributions to the field of poetry during the Abbasid Caliphate.
In the 10th century CE, another notable figure named Samera emerged in the historical records. Samera al-Fihriya was a wealthy woman from Tunisia who commissioned the construction of the Al-Qarawiyyin Mosque and University in Fez, Morocco, which is considered one of the oldest continuously operating universities in the world.
During the medieval period, the name Samera was also found in various Islamic texts and historical documents. Samera bint Salim al-Kindi, a 9th-century scholar and philosopher from Baghdad, was known for her expertise in mathematics and astronomy.
In more recent times, the name Samera has been carried by several influential individuals. Samera Esmeir, born in 1971, is a prominent scholar and professor of Middle Eastern studies at the University of California, Berkeley. Samera Younis, born in 1983, is an acclaimed Palestinian actress and filmmaker known for her work in both Arabic and English-language productions.
Throughout history, the name Samera has been associated with individuals from various cultural and intellectual backgrounds, reflecting the rich diversity and heritage of the Arabic-speaking world. While the name's exact origins may be rooted in ancient poetry and literature, it has transcended time and geography to become a timeless symbol of growth, fertility, and cultural significance.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Samera over time
The chart below shows babies named Samera registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2017. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Samera, the clearest high point is 1996. The latest England and Wales figure is 4 births in 2017, compared with 25 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Samera by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Samera 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | #4298 | 25 | 5 |
| 2000s | #2791 | 76 | 10 |
| 1990s | #1354 | 61 | 4 |
Geography
Where Samera is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Samera. 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.
Samera ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #487 in 1985.
Across the UK
Samera in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#487 in 1985
1 years of NRS records, 4 total registered
Related
Names similar to Samera
- Sophie 103,803
- Sophia 46,936
- Scarlett 34,261
- Sienna 32,418
- Sofia 29,136
- Sarah 27,961
- Shannon 25,510
- Summer 24,167
- Sara 14,205
- Skye 13,654
- Samantha 12,697
- Stephanie 9,309
FAQ
Samera: questions and answers
How popular is the name Samera in the UK right now?
In 2017, Samera was ranked #4763 for girls in England and Wales, with 4 births registered.
When was Samera most popular?
The peak year on record was 1996, with 25 babies registered as Samera in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Samera?
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "intoxicating" or "protected by the moon".
How many people are called Samera in the UK?
A total of 162 babies have been registered as Samera across the 19 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 4 more in Scotland.
Where is Samera most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Samera ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #487 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.