Kora
A feminine name meaning "child" in Lakota Native American language.
Name Census estimates that about 8,838 living Americans carry the first name Kora. It sits at #490 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Kora today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kora births was 2022 (682 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kora. 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 Kora with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Kora is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 11 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
8.8K
~ 1 in 38,782 Americans
Peak year
2022
682 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#490
Tracked since 1942
Census
Kora in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 5,524 people with the first name Kora, which placed it at #3,681 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
#3,681
National first-name rank
People counted
5.5K
5,524 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
1.8
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
74.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kora
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kora is White at 74.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.8%) and Two or More Races (8.5%). 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 Kora 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 Kora at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White74.9% · 4,136
- Hispanic or Latino9.8% · 543
- Two or more races8.5% · 472
- Black or African American3.1% · 172
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 142
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 59
Popularity
Kora: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kora from the 1940s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 4,092 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Kora remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kora 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 Kora during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Koras live
The SSA's state-level files cover 46 states and territories. California, Texas, Ohio recorded the most babies named Kora, while Delaware, Alaska, New Mexico recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 156 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kora
The name Kora has its origins in various cultures and languages around the world. It is believed to have derived from the Sanskrit word "Kora," which means "delightful" or "beautiful." This name was popular among ancient Hindu communities in India and was often given to girls as a symbol of their beauty and grace.
In ancient Greece, the name Kora was associated with the goddess Persephone, who was also known as Kore, meaning "maiden" or "young girl." This name was commonly used by Greek families to honor the goddess and her role as the bringer of spring and the renewal of life.
The name Kora also has roots in the Arabic language, where it is spelled "Kora" or "Qura." In this context, the name is derived from the word "Qur'an," which is the holy book of Islam. It was sometimes given to girls as a way of expressing their parents' reverence for the Islamic faith.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kora can be found in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics, where it was spelled "Kora" and was often associated with the goddess Isis, who was revered as the ideal mother and wife. This connection suggests that the name may have been given to girls as a symbol of femininity and nurturing qualities.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Kora. One of the most famous was Kora Kadidja (1807-1857), a Senegalese princess and activist who played a significant role in the resistance against French colonial rule in West Africa. Another notable figure was Kora Tomiko (1920-1957), a Japanese artist and printmaker who was renowned for her woodblock prints depicting traditional Japanese life.
In the realm of literature, Kora Bitkova (1877-1942) was a Bulgarian writer and poet who was celebrated for her contributions to the country's literary heritage. Kora Militza (1859-1934), on the other hand, was a Russian-born American pianist and composer who was highly regarded for her virtuosity and innovative compositions.
Kora Bektashi (1867-1927) was an Albanian writer and journalist who played a crucial role in the Albanian National Awakening movement, advocating for the country's independence and cultural identity.
These are just a few examples of the many notable individuals who have carried the name Kora throughout history, each contributing to their respective fields and cultures in unique and meaningful ways.
People
Kora + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kora 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
Kora: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kora?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 8,838 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kora 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 38,782 US residents.
Is Kora a common name?
We classify Kora as "Rare". It ranks above 97.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 8,932 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kora most popular?
The single biggest year for Kora was 2022, when 682 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kora is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Kora in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 5,524 people with the name Kora, or 1.83 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #3,681 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 Kora 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 Kora?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Kora appears almost entirely female. Of the 5,518 people counted with this name, 99.6% 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 Kora?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kora is White at 74.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.8%) and Two or More Races (8.5%). 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 Kora most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Kora in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.9% (4,136 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 Kora in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kora a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kora 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 Kora still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kora 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 Kora 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 Americans are named Kora?
See how many Americans are named Kora on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.