Fun Facts About the Name Yarah
- 361 babies named Yarah: U.S. records list 361 babies given the name Yarah from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Yarah Mean?
Yarah is a feminine given name, most often spelled Yara in English. Its meaning is not firmly documented, and the explanations that circulate come from more than one language.
The usual explanation connects it to Hebrew. The root y-r-h (ירה) carries the basic sense "to throw" or "to shoot," and in a causative form "to teach" or "to instruct." That root stands behind the Hebrew words torah ("instruction, teaching") and moreh ("teacher"). Read this way, Yarah could be taken to mean "she teaches" or "teaching" - an interpretation drawn from the root rather than a definition recorded for the name itself.
A second meaning often listed is "honeycomb." It appears to come from a different Hebrew word that looks almost the same once transliterated, ya'arah, used in the Bible for a honeycomb (the honey Jonathan ate in 1 Samuel). Because the two Hebrew words are spelled differently but resemble each other in English letters, the honeycomb meaning is probably a blending of separate roots and should not be assigned to the y-r-h name.
Names spelled the same way in other languages are separate in origin. Arabic Yārā (يارا) is a modern girl's name whose meaning is likewise uncertain, and Brazilian Yara or Iara comes from Tupi-Guarani tradition, in which Iara is a water spirit.
Yarah Name History & Origins
In current use, Yarah is a girl's name, with Yara the more common spelling in English. The final -h follows a Hebrew transliteration style. Hebrew feminine names frequently end in -ah, as in Sarah, Deborah, and Yonah, and Yarah is formed the same way.
A separate tradition belongs to Brazil, where Yara (also Iara) is widely used. It is tied to the Tupi-Guarani legend of Iara, a water spirit said to live in rivers and to lure men with her song. The story is traditional and mythical, and the name is often explained as "lady of the waters."
The Arabic name Yārā is another unrelated strand, used in the Middle East as a modern girl's name. These three uses - Hebrew, Brazilian, and Arabic - share a spelling but not a common origin.
How Popular is the Name Yarah?
Yarah 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 2025. Its best rank was #4,982 in 2025.
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 | #4,982 | 27 | 0.0017% |
| 2024 | #5,271 | 25 | 0.0015% |
| 2023 | #5,943 | 21 | 0.0013% |
| 2022 | #5,017 | 27 | 0.0016% |
| 2021 | #5,562 | 23 | 0.0014% |
| 2020 | #6,307 | 19 | 0.0012% |
| 2019 | #5,975 | 21 | 0.0013% |
| 2018 | #7,390 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2017 | #8,755 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2016 | #10,084 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2015 | #10,118 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2014 | #10,922 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2013 | #10,210 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2012 | #7,443 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 2011 | #9,700 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2010 | #11,209 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2009 | #10,644 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2008 | #12,539 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2007 | #8,993 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 2006 | #12,388 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2005 | #16,391 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2004 | #18,741 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2003 | #18,347 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2002 | #13,556 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2001 | #15,298 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2000 | #17,567 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1999 | #16,882 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1996 | #15,828 | 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.
Explore More Lists with Name Yarah
Most Popular Girl Names That Start with Y
Short Girl Names That Start with Y
How the Name Yarah Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You have a strong need for freedom - physical, mental and spiritual. You hate bondage in any form. You have love of beauty and philosophy, and you desire achievement. You are willing to take spiritual matters on faith instead of subjecting them to mental analysis. You are inventive, intuitive and extremely methodical. Since your will is so strong, you are hard to convince. You also dislike advice. You love beauty and philosophy, and you desire achievement. You have a strong need for freedom - physical, mental and spiritual.
Position and social status is very important for you and you are always looking for way to improve your position in society. You have power and ability to chose your own destiny and achieve anything you want in life. You can expand in any direction according to your will and the set of values. You have passion for justice and belong to the position of authority. You have an inherent courage and endurance to accomplish "The Impossible Dream". With the power comes responsibility. You hold keys to the material world, but with this gift comes high spiritual responsibility to be fair and true to others. You are philosophical and mature, determined and intense with a desire to endure, often religious.
✦ Yarah's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Yarah's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.