Head to head · Girls' names
Anaya vs Mira
#336 vs #335 in 2025
Mira is a whisker ahead (#335 vs #336 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Mira is climbing the charts fast, Anaya is holding its place on the charts.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Mira leads 5 measures of 6; Anaya leads 1.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Anaya —, Mira #1190 — Mira higher
- 1890s: Anaya —, Mira #1166 — Mira higher
- 1900s: Anaya —, Mira #1400 — Mira higher
- 1910s: Anaya —, Mira #2619 — Mira higher
- 1920s: Anaya —, Mira #3187 — Mira higher
- 1930s: Anaya —, Mira #2824 — Mira higher
- 1940s: Anaya —, Mira #2403 — Mira higher
- 1950s: Anaya —, Mira #1798 — Mira higher
- 1960s: Anaya —, Mira #2074 — Mira higher
- 1970s: Anaya #8532, Mira #2216 — Mira higher
- 1980s: Anaya #8857, Mira #2341 — Mira higher
- 1990s: Anaya #4478, Mira #1974 — Mira higher
- 2000s: Anaya #569, Mira #960 — Anaya higher
- 2010s: Anaya #438, Mira #607 — Anaya higher
- 2020s: Anaya #390, Mira #428 — Anaya higher
Mira stood higher in 12 of 15 decades; Anaya has held the lead since the 2000s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Anaya | Mira |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #1190 |
| 1890s | — | #1166 |
| 1900s | — | #1400 |
| 1910s | — | #2619 |
| 1920s | — | #3187 |
| 1930s | — | #2824 |
| 1940s | — | #2403 |
| 1950s | — | #1798 |
| 1960s | — | #2074 |
| 1970s | #8532 | #2216 |
| 1980s | #8857 | #2341 |
| 1990s | #4478 | #1974 |
| 2000s | #569 | #960 |
| 2010s | #438 | #607 |
| 2020s | #390 | #428 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Anaya
Not established
No single meaning is established for the modern American name. What is documented: Anaiah is a man's name in the Hebrew Bible, appearing among the leaders in the book of Nehemiah, from a root meaning roughly 'the Lord has answered'; Anaya is a long-standing Spanish surname taken from a village name in the province of Segovia, with Basque connections; and Anaya is used as a girl's given name in India. Popular meaning lists confidently assign it 'caring' or 'without a superior' from Sanskrit, but those readings are not securely traceable.
How it traveled
The clearest documented threads are Spanish and Hebrew. In Spain, Anaya is a place name in Segovia that became a surname carried by notable Castilian families and later spread widely through Latin America, which is one reason the spelling looks entirely at home in Spanish-speaking households.
Mira
'Wonderful' in Latin; 'peace' or 'world' in Slavic; also a Sanskrit name
Several separate names have arrived at this spelling. The Latin root is mirus, 'wonderful, astonishing' — the source of the star name Mira. In Slavic languages Mira comes from mir, 'peace' or 'world', and works as a short form of Miroslava and Mirjana. In India, Mīrā (also written Meera) is a Sanskrit name most associated with the poet Mirabai. In Albanian it connects to mirë, 'good'. None of these cancels the others out.
How it traveled
There is no single road into this name. In the Slavic-speaking world Mira has served for generations as both a full name and the everyday form of Miroslava, Mirjana and Vladimira, built on mir, 'peace'.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Anaya
uh-NY-uh
That is the usual American reading, with the stressed middle syllable rhyming with 'eye'. In Spanish- and Hindi-speaking families it is commonly ah-NAH-yah, with a clear y-sound in the middle. Both are correct for their setting, so it helps to decide early which one you will use.
- Ana — The most obvious short form, and a standalone given name in Spanish, Portuguese and much of Europe.
- Naya — Informal, taken from the back half of the name; also used on its own as a given name in English.
- Ani — Informal, mostly family use.
- Nay — A very short, casual form used by friends and siblings.
Mira
MEER-ah
MEER-ah is the most common American reading. Some families say MY-rah, on the pattern of Myra, and Slavic speakers use a shorter first vowel, closer to MIH-rah. All three are legitimate; it helps to pick one early and say it first when introducing her.
- Mimi — The usual affectionate form in English-speaking families; also stands alone as a given name.
- Mira — Works the other way round too — Mira is itself the established short form of Miriam, Mirabel, Amira and Miroslava, and many bearers of those names answer to it.
- Mirka — A Czech, Slovak and Polish diminutive, informal and used mainly within families.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Anaya if you want…
- a name holding steadyAnaya is holding its place on the charts
- a name with more sound in itAnaya runs 3 syllables, Mira 2
Choose Mira if you want…
- a name on the way upup 148 places on the charts in five years
- a name with fewer syllablesMira is 2 syllables to Anaya's 3
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Anaya
Strengths
- Two ready-made short forms already live inside it: Ana, which stands alone across Europe, and Naya, which stands alone in English.
- Only five letters and no silent ones — easy for a young child to write out.
- At home in English, Spanish and Indian families alike, which matters in a household or extended family that speaks more than one language.
To consider
- The two pronunciations — uh-NY-uh and ah-NAH-yah — both have real claim to the name, so expect to correct people, and expect her to choose for herself eventually.
- It sits close to Amaya, Anya, Aniyah, Anaïs and Amara, so mix-ups and mishearings are likely, especially over the phone or on a roll call.
- The meaning is genuinely unsettled. Sites that offer a confident Sanskrit translation are guessing, and if a documented meaning matters to you, this name will not give you one.
Mira
Strengths
- Short, phonetic and already familiar in Slavic, South Asian, Hebrew, Arabic and Romance-speaking families — it crosses borders without needing to be respelled.
- Two syllables and five letters: easy to write early, and no nickname is required for it to work.
- Comes with a ready-made affectionate form in Mimi, and doubles as the short form of Miriam, Amira and Mirabel if a longer legal name appeals.
To consider
- The MEER-ah / MY-rah split is real, and she will be asked which one she is. Neither is wrong, which is exactly why the question keeps coming up.
- It sits in a crowded sound-field with Mila, Maya, Mia, Myra and Nora — expect occasional mishearing and the wrong name called across a playground.
- In Spanish, mira is the everyday imperative 'look', so in Spanish-speaking settings the name doubles as a common word. Familiar rather than odd, but worth knowing.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Anaya and Mira in full.
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Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Anaya and Mira?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
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More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists that carry both names
Every list here names both Anaya and Mira — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Anaya or Mira — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Anaya or Mira?
- Mira, in 2025: Mira ranked #335 with 916 babies; Anaya ranked #336 with 911 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Anaya or Mira?
- Mira. Over the last five years Anaya moved up 47 places; Mira moved up 148 places.
- Which is the older name, Anaya or Mira?
- Anaya entered the US charts in 1978; Mira entered the US charts in 1887. On the American record, Mira is the older name.
- How many people are named Anaya and Mira?
- About 18,000 people named Anaya are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 14,500 people named Mira are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Anayas or Miras in the classroom?
- Anaya will almost certainly be the only one in school. Mira will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
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