Baby Names US
Unisex name ★ peaked 2008

Akira

Meaning Borrowed from Japanese あきら (Akira) Gender Unisex · 79% girls Rank 2025 #983 Trend ↑ Rising 28%

Borrowed from Japanese あきら (Akira).

Rank 2025
#983
among girls · ↓31 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
309
named Akira · -6% vs 2024
How common
1 in 6,254
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2008
453 babies
All-time total
9,837
#1,935 all-time among girls
First recorded
1913
in Social Security records

Akira popularity over time

9,837 babies have been named Akira since 1913, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.060.130.190.2518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – 119 119 12 – –
1920s – 342 342 34 +187% –
1930s – 119 119 12 -65% –
1940s – – – – – –
1950s – – – – – –
1960s – 15 15 2 – –
1970s 50 54 104 10 +593% #4,461
1980s 288 160 448 45 +331% #2,022
1990s 955 242 1,197 120 +167% #1,066
2000s 2,625 367 2,992 299 +150% #707
2010s 2,521 313 2,834 283 -5% #835
2020s (to 2025) 1,378 289 1,667 278 -2% #952

Where Akira is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 267 0.17 outside top 500
2027 275 0.17 outside top 500
2028 283 0.18 outside top 500
2029 289 0.18 outside top 500
2030 295 0.18 outside top 500

Where Akira is most popular

Girls named Akira per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.145 per 1,000. Strongest in Washington, Arizona, and Nevada.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Akira born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Washington 40 0.277 +92%
Arizona 38 0.271 +87%
Nevada 11 0.237 +64%
Georgia 52 0.229 +58%
Virginia 39 0.229 +58%
Illinois 49 0.214 +48%
Tennessee 33 0.208 +44%
California 172 0.205 +42%
New York 74 0.187 +29%
Michigan 33 0.181 +25%
Missouri 21 0.174 +21%
Florida 72 0.168 +16%
North Carolina 38 0.167 +15%
Ohio 38 0.160 +11%
Pennsylvania 35 0.148 ≈ national
Texas 109 0.136 -6%
Colorado 12 0.108 -26%
Oklahoma 7 0.095 -34%
Louisiana 7 0.080 -45%
New Jersey 13 0.072 -50%
Kentucky 6 0.070 -51%
Massachusetts 6 0.050 -66%
Wisconsin 5 0.049 -66%
Maryland 5 0.047 -67%
Minnesota 5 0.046 -68%
Indiana 5 0.036 -75%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Kansas – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Utah – – –
Vermont – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Akira

Akira is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #983 in 2025 with 257 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1913, 9,837 American babies have been named Akira, about 79% girls and 21% boys, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 2008, when 453 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2000s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Akira stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Akira?

The median living Akira is about 16 years old; half are between 8 and 23. An estimated 9,200 people named Akira are alive in the United States today.

median 16 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Akira year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 257 #983 52 #2,539
2024 274 #952 54 #2,504
2023 248 #1,018 49 #2,660
2022 190 #1,259 45 #2,830
2021 204 #1,191 43 #2,864
2020 205 #1,152 46 #2,689
2019 210 #1,145 30 #3,641
2018 215 #1,135 45 #2,711
2017 251 #1,030 25 #4,108
2016 261 #1,014 24 #4,202
2015 260 #1,026 34 #3,299
2014 233 #1,092 35 #3,154
2013 229 #1,080 24 #4,067
2012 265 #958 27 #3,809
2011 275 #938 35 #3,167
2010 322 #835 34 #3,242
2009 345 #819 32 #3,400
2008 424 #707 29 #3,649
2007 336 #845 35 #3,188
2006 270 #970 37 #2,981
2005 229 #1,043 28 #3,450
2004 199 #1,144 45 #2,453
2003 213 #1,057 42 #2,471
2002 242 #923 45 #2,295
2001 202 #1,056 37 #2,563
2000 165 #1,203 37 #2,526
1995 82 #1,763 23 #3,022
1990 47 #2,523 17 #3,469
1985 29 #3,086 18 #2,711
1980 6 #9,117 6 #5,540
1975 8 #6,494 8 #3,949
1970 – – 7 #3,842
1965 – – – –
1960 – – – –
1955 – – – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – 10 #2,396
1930 – – 18 #1,755
1925 – – 29 #1,360
1920 – – 20 #1,748
1915 – – 14 #1,969
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Akira

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa Japanese filmmaker (1910–1998) Contemporary
  2. 2 Akira Toriyama Akira Toriyama Japanese manga artist (1955–2024) Contemporary
  3. 3 Akira Yamaoka Akira Yamaoka Japanese composer and sound designer (born 1968) Contemporary
  4. 4 Akira Ishida Akira Ishida Japanese voice actor b. 1967 · Contemporary
  5. 5 Akira Tozawa Akira Tozawa Japanese professional wrestler (born 1985) Contemporary
  6. 6 Akira Amano Akira Amano Japanese mangaka b. 1973 · Contemporary
  7. 7 Akira Nishino Akira Nishino Japanese football manager (born 1955) Contemporary
  8. 8 Akira Ifukube Akira Ifukube Japanese composer (1914–2006) Contemporary
  9. 9 Akira Yoshino Akira Yoshino Japanese chemist (born 1948) Contemporary
  10. 10 Akira Terao Musical artist b. 1947 · Contemporary
  11. 11 Akira Yoshizawa Akira Yoshizawa Japanese origamist 1911–2005 · Contemporary
  12. 12 Akira Endo Akira Endo Japanese biochemist (1933–2024) Contemporary
  13. 13 Akira Suzuki Akira Suzuki Japanese chemist (born 1930) Contemporary
  14. 14 Akira Kaji Akira Kaji Japanese footballer b. 1980 · Contemporary
  15. 15 Akira Narahashi Japanese footballer (born 1971) Contemporary
  16. 16 Akira Matsunaga Akira Matsunaga Japanese footballer 1914–1943 · Contemporary
  17. 17 Akira Akao Japanese footballer b. 1988 · Contemporary
  18. 18 Akira Ito Japanese footballer b. 1972 · Contemporary
  19. 19 Akira Oba Japanese footballer b. 1976 · Contemporary
  20. 20 Akira Ibayashi Japanese footballer b. 1990 · Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Akira, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Akira?

The median living Akira is about 16 years old. Half of all living Akiras are between 8 and 23 years old.

How many people named Akira are alive today?

An estimated 9,200 people named Akira are alive in the United States, based on 9,837 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Akira mean?

Borrowed from Japanese あきら (Akira).

How popular is the name Akira in 2025?

Akira ranked #983 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 257 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Akira?

9,837 babies have been named Akira in the United States since 1913, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Akira most popular?

Akira peaked in 2008, when 453 newborns received the name.

Is Akira a boy or girl name?

Akira is used for both: about 79% of babies named Akira have been girls and 21% boys.

Is the name Akira rising or falling?

Akira is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Akira become more popular?

Akira is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 295 girls named Akira in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Akira?

Well-known people named Akira include Akira Kurosawa (film director), Akira Toriyama (comic artist), Akira Yamaoka (composer).

Names like Akira

Names that sound and feel close to Akira: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Akira with similar names → More names starting with A →