Fun Facts About the Name Amarah
- More than 2 thousand babies named Amarah: U.S. records list 2,639 babies given the name Amarah from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Amarah Mean?
Amarah is a feminine name used in Arabic-speaking countries and, in recent decades, in English-speaking ones. In Arabic it is tied to the root ʿ-m-r (ع م ر), whose central senses are "to live long" and "to build up" or "to make flourish." Words formed from that root include ʿumr, "life" or "lifespan," and ʿimārah, "building" or "construction." Names from the same root, such as ʿUmar and ʿAmmār, carry the idea of a long and prosperous life, and Amarah is generally understood in the same sense, roughly "long-lived" or "flourishing." Some reference works simplify this to "eternal." The precise Arabic form behind the name - ʿamārah or the intensive ʿammārah - is not settled.
In English the name is also written as a spelling of Amara, a name with more than one unrelated origin: in Igbo it is amara, "grace," and in Italian and Spanish amara is the feminine form of the adjective "bitter." Those meanings belong to Amara and do not come from the Arabic root. Amarah is also unrelated to the similar-looking Amirah, which derives from Arabic amīr, "commander" or "prince."
Amarah Name History & Origins
Amarah belongs to the group of Arabic names built on ʿ-m-r. The root's link to long life appears in the masculine name ʿUmar, borne by ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, the second caliph, and in ʿAmmār, the name of ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir, one of the earliest companions of Muhammad. Its other sense, "to build" or "to settle," shows up in Arabic words for buildings and inhabited places, and in the name of the Iraqi city of Amarah on the Tigris, which comes from the same root. Feminine names formed from this root take the usual Arabic feminine ending -ah.
In English-language use, Amarah also appears as a spelling of Amara; the added -ah follows the common English way of writing Arabic feminine names, as in Fatimah for Fāṭimah or Ayeshah for ʿĀʾishah. Because Amara is also an Igbo name meaning "grace," one English spelling can stand for more than one name, and the separate origins should not be merged.
How Popular is the Name Amarah?
Amarah has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2019. Its best rank was #1,161 in 2019.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,186 | 195 | 0.0121% |
| 2024 | #1,343 | 169 | 0.0105% |
| 2023 | #1,548 | 137 | 0.0085% |
| 2022 | #1,460 | 151 | 0.0092% |
| 2021 | #1,379 | 159 | 0.0097% |
| 2020 | #1,342 | 164 | 0.0102% |
| 2019 | #1,161 | 206 | 0.0123% |
| 2018 | #1,299 | 175 | 0.0103% |
| 2017 | #1,400 | 164 | 0.0095% |
| 2016 | #1,694 | 126 | 0.0071% |
| 2015 | #2,113 | 91 | 0.0051% |
| 2014 | #2,195 | 86 | 0.0048% |
| 2013 | #2,408 | 75 | 0.0043% |
| 2012 | #2,772 | 63 | 0.0036% |
| 2011 | #2,869 | 60 | 0.0034% |
| 2010 | #2,674 | 67 | 0.0038% |
| 2009 | #2,618 | 70 | 0.0038% |
| 2008 | #3,123 | 54 | 0.0029% |
| 2007 | #3,052 | 57 | 0.0030% |
| 2006 | #2,940 | 58 | 0.0031% |
| 2005 | #3,011 | 53 | 0.0029% |
| 2004 | #3,634 | 40 | 0.0022% |
| 2003 | #3,736 | 37 | 0.0020% |
| 2002 | #3,815 | 34 | 0.0019% |
| 2001 | #6,633 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2000 | #6,224 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 1999 | #7,749 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1998 | #4,967 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 1997 | #9,851 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1996 | #5,782 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1995 | #5,974 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 1994 | #7,124 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1992 | #8,094 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1991 | #9,366 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1990 | #9,280 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1989 | #12,438 | 5 | 0.0003% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Amarah Shapes Your Personality and Life?
Powerful and complete. You are good intellectually and require several outlets for your energies. You are not a builder but a planner, and you want others to carry out your plans. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
You find the best contentment in life when you own your own home and provide well for your family and loved ones. You have a great sense of responsibility and duty. You are comforting, appreciative and affectionate. Your obligation in life is to hold justice and truth, and if you follow the Law, you can find the great happiness and satisfaction.
✦ Amarah's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Amarah's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.