Laira
A feminine name of uncertain origin and meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 155 living Americans carry the first name Laira. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Laira today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Laira births was 2010 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Laira. 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 Laira with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
155
~ 1 in 2,211,318 Americans
Peak year
2010
13 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2024 SSA rank
#14,409
Tracked since 1979
Census
Laira in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 241 people with the first name Laira, which placed it at #34,040 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
#34,040
National first-name rank
People counted
241
241 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
64.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Laira
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Laira is White at 64.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (23.2%) and Black (4.1%). 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 Laira 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 Laira at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White64.7% · 156
- Hispanic or Latino23.2% · 56
- Black or African American4.1% · 10
- Two or more races4.1% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 3
Popularity
Laira: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Laira 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 61 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Laira remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Laira 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 Laira during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Laira
The name Laira is believed to have its origins in ancient Greek mythology. It is thought to be derived from the Greek word "lairos," which means "left-handed" or "on the left side." In Greek mythology, Laira was the name of a nymph who was said to be the daughter of the river god Alfeios.
The earliest recorded use of the name Laira dates back to ancient Greece, where it was occasionally given to girls born in the region. However, the name remained relatively obscure and was not widely used outside of certain Greek communities.
One of the earliest known historical figures to bear the name Laira was Laira of Corinth, a Greek philosopher who lived in the 5th century BCE. She was known for her teachings on the nature of the soul and the importance of virtue.
In the Middle Ages, the name Laira made a brief appearance in some European regions, particularly in Italy and Spain. One notable figure from this time period was Laira de Montefalco (1268-1308), an Italian mystic and Franciscan nun who was later canonized as a saint in the Catholic Church.
During the Renaissance, the name Laira experienced a slight resurgence in popularity, particularly among the artistic and intellectual circles of Italy. One famous bearer of the name from this period was Laira Corvini (1455-1525), an Italian poet and humanist who was celebrated for her eloquence and learning.
In more recent history, the name Laira has remained relatively uncommon, but there have been a few notable individuals who have borne this name. These include Laira Velázquez (1886-1968), a Cuban painter and activist who was known for her vibrant depictions of Caribbean life and her advocacy for women's rights.
Another notable figure was Laira Peixoto (1940-2019), a Brazilian architect and urban planner who was recognized for her innovative designs and her work in promoting sustainable urban development.
While the name Laira has ancient roots and a rich history, it has remained a relatively rare and uncommon name throughout most of recorded history. Nevertheless, it has been borne by a number of notable individuals from various cultures and time periods, each of whom has left their mark in their respective fields.
People
Laira + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Laira as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Laira: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Laira?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 155 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Laira 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 2,211,318 US residents.
Is Laira a common name?
We classify Laira as "Very Rare". It ranks above 70.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 157 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Laira most popular?
The single biggest year for Laira was 2010, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Laira is about 17 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Laira in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 241 people with the name Laira, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #34,040 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 Laira 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 Laira?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Laira leans strongly female. 242 people counted with this name were female (98.4%), compared with 4 male bearers (1.6%). 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 Laira?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Laira is White at 64.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (23.2%) and Black (4.1%). 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 Laira most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Laira in the 2020 Census, accounting for 64.7% (156 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 Laira in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Laira a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Laira 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 Laira still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Laira 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 Laira 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 common is the name Laira?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Laira at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.