girls' name ★ peaked 2018

Samara

Meaning Borrowed from Russian Сама́ра (Samára) Gender Girl Rank 2025 #320 Trend → Stable

Borrowed from Russian Сама́ра (Samára).

Rank 2025
#320
among girls · ↓11 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
957
named Samara · -4% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,679
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2018
1,270 babies
All-time total
22,769
#976 all-time among girls
First recorded
1949
in Social Security records

Samara popularity over time

22,769 babies have been named Samara since 1949, 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
0.250.50.75118801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 – – – – – –
1920s – – – – – –
1930s – – – – – –
1940s 5 – 5 1 – #5,921
1950s 68 – 68 7 +1260% #4,001
1960s 180 – 180 18 +165% #1,916
1970s 898 – 898 90 +399% #1,068
1980s 1,082 – 1,082 108 +20% #1,112
1990s 1,772 – 1,772 177 +64% #942
2000s 5,967 – 5,967 597 +237% #349
2010s 6,853 – 6,853 685 +15% #256
2020s (to 2025) 5,939 5 5,944 991 +45% #259

Where Samara 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 956 0.59 #321
2027 955 0.59 #322
2028 954 0.59 #322
2029 953 0.59 #322
2030 952 0.59 #322

Where Samara is most popular

Girls named Samara per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.623 per 1,000. Strongest in New Mexico, Maryland, 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 Samara 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
New Mexico 33 1.36 +118%
Maryland 127 1.20 +92%
Nevada 54 1.16 +87%
New Jersey 192 1.06 +71%
California 853 1.01 +63%
District of Columbia 12 1.01 +63%
Rhode Island 12 0.958 +54%
Texas 751 0.934 +50%
Arizona 128 0.912 +46%
Florida 385 0.900 +44%
Washington 122 0.845 +36%
New York 321 0.811 +30%
Kansas 46 0.797 +28%
Illinois 180 0.786 +26%
Georgia 178 0.784 +26%
Connecticut 45 0.773 +24%
Colorado 82 0.735 +18%
South Carolina 66 0.734 +18%
Massachusetts 87 0.720 +16%
Virginia 122 0.716 +15%
Oregon 46 0.706 +13%
North Carolina 158 0.694 +11%
Iowa 37 0.633 ≈ national
Nebraska 22 0.612 ≈ national
Oklahoma 45 0.611 ≈ national
Arkansas 31 0.587 -6%
Utah 48 0.577 -7%
Indiana 79 0.563 -10%
Louisiana 48 0.548 -12%
Tennessee 85 0.537 -14%
Delaware 6 0.529 -15%
Kentucky 44 0.514 -17%
Alabama 46 0.490 -21%
Missouri 57 0.473 -24%
Ohio 112 0.472 -24%
Pennsylvania 110 0.465 -25%
Wisconsin 44 0.427 -31%
Michigan 62 0.340 -45%
Minnesota 36 0.334 -46%
West Virginia 5 0.191 -69%
Mississippi 7 0.150 -76%
Idaho 5 0.149 -76%
Alaska – – –
Hawaii – – –
Maine – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
New Hampshire – – –
South Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
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 Samara

Samara is moderately common for girls in the United States, ranked #320 in 2025 with 957 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1949, 22,769 American babies have been named Samara. Its peak came in 2018, when 1,270 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2010s.

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 Samara stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Samara?

The median living Samara is about 13 years old; half are between 5 and 21. An estimated 23 thousand people named Samara are alive in the United States today.

median 13 020406080100

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

Samara 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 957 #320 – –
2024 998 #309 – –
2023 1,196 #259 5 #13,815
2022 1,068 #299 – –
2021 834 #374 – –
2020 886 #351 – –
2019 978 #328 – –
2018 1,270 #256 – –
2017 1,009 #324 – –
2016 670 #475 – –
2015 452 #633 – –
2014 452 #635 – –
2013 493 #583 – –
2012 516 #569 – –
2011 525 #557 – –
2010 488 #602 – –
2009 594 #509 – –
2008 629 #500 – –
2007 707 #456 – –
2006 948 #349 – –
2005 825 #380 – –
2004 857 #365 – –
2003 656 #456 – –
2002 242 #929 – –
2001 261 #883 – –
2000 248 #889 – –
1995 179 #1,022 – –
1990 150 #1,153 – –
1985 101 #1,320 – –
1980 104 #1,259 – –
1975 71 #1,456 – –
1970 60 #1,595 – –
1965 15 #3,379 – –
1960 6 #6,263 – –
1955 10 #4,001 – –
1950 5 #5,966 – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Samara

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

  1. 1 Samara Weaving Samara Weaving Australian actress and model (born 1992) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Samara?

The median living Samara is about 13 years old. Half of all living Samaras are between 5 and 21 years old.

How many people named Samara are alive today?

An estimated 23 thousand people named Samara are alive in the United States, based on 22,769 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Samara mean?

Borrowed from Russian Сама́ра (Samára).

How popular is the name Samara in 2025?

Samara ranked #320 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 957 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Samara?

22,769 babies have been named Samara in the United States since 1949, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Samara most popular?

Samara peaked in 2018, when 1,270 newborns received the name.

Is Samara a boy or girl name?

Samara is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Samara rising or falling?

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

Will Samara become more popular?

Samara looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 952 girls named Samara in 2030, ranking around #322. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Samara?

Well-known people named Samara include Samara Weaving (actor).

Names like Samara

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

Compare Samara with similar names → More names starting with S →