Kirra
A feminine name of Australian Aboriginal origin meaning "leaf" or "tree bark".
Name Census estimates that about 2,535 living Americans carry the first name Kirra. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Kirra today is around 18 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kirra births was 2008 (203 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kirra. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Kirra with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
2.5K
~ 1 in 135,209 Americans
Peak year
2008
203 babies that year
Average age
18
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,943
Tracked since 1975
Census
Kirra in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 2,221 people with the first name Kirra, which placed it at #7,019 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#7,019
National first-name rank
People counted
2.2K
2,221 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.7
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
66.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kirra
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kirra is White at 66.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (11.7%) and Two or More Races (10.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Kirra described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Kirra at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White66.5% · 1,477
- Hispanic or Latino11.7% · 259
- Two or more races10.4% · 230
- Black or African American7.1% · 157
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.2% · 70
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 28
Popularity
Kirra: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kirra from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 1,076 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kirra by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Kirra during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kirras live
The SSA's state-level files cover 24 states and territories. California, Florida, Texas recorded the most babies named Kirra, while New York, Minnesota, Kansas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 49 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kirra
The name Kirra has its origins in the Aboriginal Australian language, specifically the Yugambeh language spoken by the Yugambeh people of the Gold Coast region in Queensland, Australia. It is believed to have emerged as a name sometime in the 19th century, although its earliest recorded use is unclear.
Kirra is derived from the word "kirra," which means "leaf" or "foliage" in the Yugambeh language. This connection to nature and the plant world suggests that the name may have been given to children as a symbolic representation of growth, renewal, and the cycle of life.
While the name does not appear to have any direct historical references in ancient texts or religious scriptures, its Aboriginal Australian roots provide a rich cultural context. The Yugambeh people have a deep spiritual connection to the land and its natural elements, and the name Kirra may have been influenced by these beliefs and traditions.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kirra can be found in the late 19th century, with the birth of Kirra Mango (1876-1962), a respected elder and community leader of the Yugambeh people. Mango played a crucial role in preserving and passing down the Yugambeh language and cultural traditions to younger generations.
Another notable figure with the name Kirra is Kirra Nivingie (1910-1986), an Aboriginal Australian artist renowned for her vibrant paintings depicting the landscapes and dreamtime stories of her people. Nivingie's works are celebrated for their cultural significance and have been exhibited in prestigious galleries around the world.
In the realm of sports, Kirra Warburton (born 1988) is a professional Australian surfer who has achieved numerous titles and accolades. Her name, derived from the Yugambeh language, adds a unique and meaningful touch to her identity as a surfer, connecting her to the coastal regions of her heritage.
The name Kirra has also been used in literature, with Kirra Somers being a character in the novel "The Rainbow Serpent" by Australian author Pauline McLeod (1933-2018). The book explores the themes of Aboriginal Australian culture and the struggle for reconciliation.
Another historical figure worth mentioning is Kirra Munro (1902-1988), a prominent Aboriginal Australian activist and advocate for land rights. Munro played a crucial role in the fight for recognition and equal rights for her people, and her name carried the weight of her cultural heritage and resilience.
Overall, the name Kirra has a rich and meaningful history rooted in the Aboriginal Australian culture and language. Its connection to nature, growth, and the cycle of life resonates with the traditions and beliefs of the Yugambeh people, making it a unique and culturally significant name.
People
Kirra + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kirra as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Kirra: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kirra?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,535 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kirra going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 135,209 US residents.
Is Kirra a common name?
We classify Kirra as "Rare". It ranks above 94.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,574 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kirra most popular?
The single biggest year for Kirra was 2008, when 203 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kirra is about 18 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Kirra in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 2,221 people with the name Kirra, or 0.74 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #7,019 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Kirra in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Kirra?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Kirra appears almost entirely female. Of the 2,219 people counted with this name, 99.7% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Kirra?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kirra is White at 66.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (11.7%) and Two or More Races (10.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Kirra most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Kirra in the 2020 Census, accounting for 66.5% (1,477 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Kirra in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kirra a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kirra in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Kirra still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kirra in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Kirra can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are named Kirra?
Find out how many Americans are named Kirra on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.