Katara
Feminine
Katara came into American records from an animated series broadcast in the 2000s, and it has a real Arabic near-neighbor: qatara, drops of water, which suits the character rather neatly.
How old is the name Katara?
Katara first appears in US birth records in 1971 — 54 years ago. The typical Katara alive today was born around 2009, making them about 16 years old. About 1,500 people named Katara are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Katara most popular?
Katara peaked in 2024, reaching #2559 nationally. Today it ranks #3517, 958 places below that high. See the whole 2024 chart.
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Katara
Ours, offered as ours. Katara belongs to a small class of names with a datable arrival: an animated series that began in 2005 gave the name to a character who controls water, and it appears in the American records shortly afterwards. The Arabic word for a drop of water sits close enough to the sound that the choice looks deliberate, though nobody has confirmed it. Either way the name has a clear origin, a clear moment, and a good image behind it.
Meaningnot established
Not established
No source is documented for the name as coined. Arabic qatara and qatrah name a drop of liquid, and Qatar's own name may come from the same root; the resemblance is real and the derivation is not recorded. The name appears in American records after 2005.
Pronouncing Katara
kuh-TAR-ah
Three syllables with the stress in the middle. Some families say KAT-uh-rah.
Nicknames for Katara
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
- 1971
- Most girls named
- 202469 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2559reached in 2024
- Change vs 2024
- −37.7%43 in 2025, from 69
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.
Katara in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Qatrah in Arabic — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, North Carolina, Michigan.
Kataras among us
people named Katara are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 37,378 born in 2025 was named Katara
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 Alexas test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Katara's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Alexas climbed just as high around 1996, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Alexas's path sketches the road Katara is walking now.
Katara 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
Where Katara is headed
Katara looks set to keep climbing gently, with roughly 19% more babies a year by 2030 if the current curve holds.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Katara beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Katara in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Kat and Tara are both complete short forms that stand on their own.
- Open vowels make it easy to say in most languages.
- It has a documented moment of arrival, which few names can claim.
- The television association is total for people who watched the series.
- Katara, Catara and Qatara are all in use and none is dominant.
- There is no documented meaning, only a plausible Arabic neighbor.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Katara to the vote.
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What they receive
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Katara
Feminine · #3517 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Kataras are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,500 people named Katara are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Katara in 2025?
- Katara ranks #3517 among US girl names in 2025, with 43 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Katara?
- About 1 in every 37,378 US girls born in 2025 was named Katara — 43 in all.
- Will my child share the name Katara with classmates?
- Katara will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Katara
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Maida#3517 · Amada#3517 · Afton#3517 · Allura#3517 · Jaina#3517 · Hallee#3517 · Samora#3517 · Joella#3517
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Katara? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Katara and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
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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