Entry № 1334 · Russian, Latin origin

Lara Lara — Meaning, Origin & Baby Name Popularity

/ LAH-rah /
Gender
Girl
Origin
Russian, Latin
Meaning
"Cheerful (Lara Dutta Miss Universe; Lara Croft; Lara Flynn Boyle)"
Syllables
2
Rank · US 2025
№ 280
First recorded
Medieval (Russian)

A name that means "cheerful (lara dutta miss universe; lara croft; lara flynn boyle)".

Lara is the Russian short form of Larisa — possibly from the Greek *Larissa* (a city in Thessaly) or the Latin *lares* (household gods). **Lara Dutta (born 1978)** — **Indian actress; Miss Universe 2000, the second Indian woman to win the title (after Sushmita Sen in 1994); the highest individual score in the swimsuit competition in Miss Universe history at the time**. **Filmfare Best Female Debut for *Andaaz* (2003); Padma Shri (2024)**. **Lara Croft** — protagonist of the *Tomb Raider* video games (1996-present) — the most iconic female video-game character in history; the franchise has sold over 95 million units. **Lara Flynn Boyle (born 1970)** — American actress; *Twin Peaks*, *The Practice* (Emmy nomination 1997). **Lara Logan** — American journalist. **Lara of Doctor Zhivago** — by Boris Pasternak (1957). **Top-300 US baby name continuously since 2018**.

Featured throughout cinema and gaming.

Cheerful. Lara Dutta Miss Universe 2000; Lara Croft is the most iconic female video-game character ever.

The name in its native script.

Лара
Transliteration
Lara
Pronunciation
/ ˈlɑː.rə /
Root
Grammatical form

Where Lara stands.

Current rank · 2025
№ 280 in the U.S.
All-time peak
№ 280 in 2023
Babies named Lara · last year
1,100 in the U.S.
First entered SSA top-1000
1991
Rank, 1995–2025 Lower = more popular
№25 №75 №150 №250 1995 2005 2015 2020 2025 PEAK · #280 NOW · #280

Laras before her.

Real people
Lara Dutta
Indian Miss Universe 2000.
born 1978
Lara Flynn Boyle
American actress.
born 1970
In fiction
Lara Croft
Tomb Raider.
1996
Lara
Doctor Zhivago.
1957

Names connected to Lara.

The number behind Lara.

6

The Nurturer

Lara reduces to six — the number of cheerful.

Why families chose this name.

"Croft's cheerful. Four letters. Lara."
Priya · Mother of one · Bengaluru