Clara: meaning and UK use

What does Clara mean?

Clara is the feminine form of Latin Clarus. Clare, Claire and Klara belong to the same family but can be pronounced differently.

Language or name family covered

Latin name family

Meaning or derivation

Clear, bright or famous

Our browsing group

girl; vintage, classic

Browsing groups describe our editorial shortlist, not rules about who may use a name. A name can cross languages and genders.

Sources for this entry — reviewed 2026-10-07:

• Behind the Name — Clara

Pronunciation and related forms

KLAR-uh (British English)

English respellings are approximate; IPA is labelled where used. Follow the pronunciation a person or family chooses, and check it with a speaker of the intended language if that connection matters to you.

Related forms recorded in the reference: Clare, Claire, Klara. These may be full forms, diminutives or forms in another language; they are not necessarily pronounced alike or counted together in statistics.

How popular is Clara?

In 2025, 610 baby girls in England and Wales were registered as Clara, making it the 77th most popular girls’ name. That is up 7 places on 2024, when it ranked 84th. It has held a similar position for a decade (91st in 2015). 2025 is its highest ranking in the ONS series, which starts in 1996. These figures cover England and Wales, not the whole UK.

2025 rank (girls)

77th

2025 registrations

610

Best rank in this series

77th (2025)

Every year from 1996 to 2025

Clara: rank and number of baby girls by year (ONS)

Year	Rank	Babies
2025	77	610
2024	84	564
2023	90	527
2022	93	528
2021	94	574
2020	90	570
2019	91	586
2018	89	609
2017	87	614
2016	88	611
2015	91	605
2014	121	464
2013	139	381
2012	179	284
2011	212	236
2010	201	256
2009	239	200
2008	233	213
2007	242	211
2006	286	162
2005	289	145
2004	268	157
2003	272	152
2002	310	116
2001	305	120
2000	342	98
1999	289	123
1998	320	112
1997	319	110
1996	327	107

The sum of published counts in this 1996–2025 girls series is 10,045. This is a lower bound where years are suppressed, not the number of living people with the name. A best rank is the best position within this series; it does not establish an all-time record.

Sources: ONS release, 2025; girls' dataset; boys' dataset. Our 20 top-ten positions were checked against Table 1 in the 2025 workbooks. The history chart and spelling comparisons come from the separate ONS 1996–2025 workbook, checked 7 October 2026. Spelling variants are separate entries. Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate statistics.

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Names to compare with Clara

These suggestions share a browsing group and one or more of our style tags or source-context labels. They are taste comparisons, not etymological relatives or a popularity ranking.

• Florencevintage, classic · Prosperous or flourishing
• Beatriceclassic, vintage · A form of Beatrix
• Evelynvintage, classic · From the given name Aveline
• Matildavintage, classic · Strength in battle
• Penelopevintage, classic · Meaning uncertain
• Phoebeclassic, vintage · Bright or pure

Read the UK naming guide for the difference between inspiration lists and official statistics, or return to the full name finder.

Registering or changing the name

Once you decide on Clara, confirm the registration process for your UK nation with the register office. If you later want to change a registered name, the route depends on the circumstances and may require consent from people with parental responsibility.

Start with GOV.UK birth registration or GOV.UK guidance on changing a child’s name. Our registration guide and child name-change guide explain where to find the relevant official process.