Chara
Feminine · “joy”
The ch in Chara is not the ch of church. It is the Greek letter chi, which English transliterates with two letters and then says as a plain k — the same convention that gives us chorus, character and chaos. So the name is KAH-rah, and the word it comes from is one of the warmest in the Greek New Testament: joy.
How old is the name Chara?
Chara first appears in US birth records in 1956 — 69 years ago. The typical Chara alive today was born around 1984, making them about 41 years old. About 1,000 people named Chara are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Chara most popular?
Chara peaked in 1976, reaching #2255 nationally. Today it ranks #13208, 10,953 places below that high. See the whole 1976 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From chara to Chara
The story of Chara
Greek abstract nouns have been used as women's names since antiquity, and the Christian tradition added its own: Elpis for hope, Agape for love, Chara for joy. Greek families have used them steadily, and Greek Orthodox communities carried them to America. There is a second route in as well — Chara appears in American records alongside Cara, Chera and Kara, and some of it is certainly a spelling of those rather than the Greek word. Both readings are honest, and the pronunciation is the thing that separates them.
Meaning
joy
From the Greek chara, joy or gladness, related to charis, which means grace or favor and gives English charisma. The pair of words runs through the Greek New Testament constantly, and the connection between them — joy and grace built on the same root — is one of the neater facts in the language.
How the name formed
- chara
- Chara
Related forms: Chara · Charoula
Pronouncing Chara
KAH-rah
Two syllables, stress on the first, both vowels open. Greek says the ch as a rough breath further back in the throat than English has; English speakers substitute a k, which is the standard convention. Americans meeting the spelling cold often say CHAIR-uh, with the ch of chair, which is the one genuinely wrong reading.
Nicknames for Chara
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1956
- Most girls named
- 198239 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2255reached in 1976
- Change vs 2023
- −14.3%6 in 2025, from 7
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Chara in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Chara in Greek — transliteration
- Charoula in Greek — related form
Charas among us
people named Chara are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 267,878 born in 2025 was named Chara
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Reeva test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Chara's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Reeva climbed just as high around 1915, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Reeva's path sketches the road Chara is walking now.
Chara sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Chara beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Chara in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The meaning is a single warm word and needs no explanation in any language.
- Five letters, two open syllables, and easy in any accent once the ch is settled.
- It has a documented place in Greek naming rather than being a modern coinage.
- It sits well after long or consonant-heavy surnames.
- English readers will say the ch as in chair unless told, and the correction is permanent.
- Cara, Kara and Chera all sound similar and will be written instead.
- The Greek route and the respelling route give the name two different pronunciations, and families have to choose.
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What they receive
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Chara
Feminine · #13208 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Charas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,000 people named Chara are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Chara in 2025?
- Chara ranks #13208 among US girl names in 2025, with 6 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Chara?
- About 1 in every 267,878 US girls born in 2025 was named Chara — 6 in all.
- Will my child share the name Chara with classmates?
- Chara will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Chara
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
John#13208 · Vinnie#13208 · Margery#13208 · Jossie#13208 · Tressa#13208 · Erie#13208 · Euna#13208 · Jack#13208
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Chara? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Chara and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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