Lara

/L-AA-R-AA/

Girl ChristianAtheist Russian origin SpanishEuropean

Cheerful, citadel — Doctor Zhivago's Lara crossed Russia; the name crossed the world

See Lara scored for your family

Meaning & origin

Lara is a girl's name of Russian origin, traditionally used in Christian families. The name means "Cheerful, citadel — Doctor Zhivago's Lara crossed Russia; the name crossed the world" and belongs to the Joy cluster — names that celebrate happiness and lightness of spirit.

Beyond its Christian heritage, Lara is also used in Atheist traditions, reflecting how this name has traveled across cultures.

Common among Spanish, European, Latino, Russian families, Lara carries cultural weight that goes beyond its dictionary definition — it's a name with a story and a community.

Numerology of Lara

Numerology assigns each name a single-digit destiny number by summing its letter values. Different schools use different mappings — NameRoot computes both so you can see how Lara resonates in either tradition.

Pythagorean
5
freedom and adventurous change
Chaldean
7
introspection and spiritual wisdom

How Lara sounds

NameRoot scores the phonetic fit of every name against the sound of your last name. The pronunciation of Lara breaks down into 4 phonemes: /L-AA-R-AA/. In the app, you'll see how those sounds flow with your family name across rhythm, stress, and consonant clusters.

The six signals, applied to Lara

NameRoot scores every name across six independent dimensions. Here's how Lara maps to each — install the app to see the full compatibility score for your specific family.

01 — Birth Star
Nakshatra match
Enter your baby's birth date in the app and we'll compute the nakshatra compatibility score.
02 — Numerology
Destiny alignment
Pythagorean and Chaldean life-path calculations (destiny 5) matched against your family's own numerology profile.
03 — Phonetics
Last-name fit
Rhythm, stress, and consonant clusters measured with IPA to see how Lara flows with your family name.
04 — Meaning
Joy
Lara belongs to the Joy cluster — names that celebrate happiness and lightness of spirit.
05 — Cultural & Tradition
Christian
As a Christian name, Lara carries religious and cultural weight scored against your family's heritage — plus grandparent-name matches, saint's-day alignment, and generational naming patterns scored against your family tree.
06 — Uniqueness
Popularity balance
How common Lara is today versus historically — finding the sweet spot between familiar and forgotten.

Names similar to Lara

If Lara resonates with you, these names live in the same world — drawn from the same tradition, sharing the same meaning, or echoing a similar sound.

From the same tradition

Other Christian girl names, common in Spanish families

Olivia
The olive branch symbolises peace, wisdom, and enduring beauty.
Emma
Whole, universal, from Germanic ermen (whole, universal). Borne by 11th-century Queen Emma of Normandy
Amelia
Industrious, striving, the name that has topped English baby name charts for a decade — Amelia carries the Germanic root for work and effort, naming a child for the quality of determined application that turns talent into achievement. Amelia Earhart transformed it into a symbol of boundary-breaking adventure
Isla
Island, the serene landmass surrounded by water on every side — Isla takes its name from the Scottish island of Islay and carries the self-contained beauty of a place that is complete in itself, needing no bridge to the mainland to justify its existence

Sharing the same meaning

Other Christian girl names from the Joy cluster

Aria
A melody for a single voice, the soaring operatic solo that silences an entire theatre — Aria is the Italian word for air and for the most emotionally intense moment in opera, when one voice rises above the orchestra to express what words alone cannot
Evie
Life, the living one — the playful English form of Eve. Evie captures the joyful energy of childhood itself, all bounce and brightness and beginning.
Harper
Harp player, one who makes music on the harp

Names that sound similar

Christian girl names that open with the same syllables as Lara

Lauren
Crowned with laurel, from Latin Laurentius (from Laurentum)
Larisa
Cheerful, light-hearted — Larisa (Russian Лариса, from Greek Larissa, the city in Thessaly) is the Russian feminine name. Some etymologies trace it to laros 'cheerful, sweet.' Honored for St. Larisa of the Goths (4th century), an early martyr in the Goth conversion to Christianity.
Larissa
Of Larissa (Greek city) — Larissa (Portuguese, from Greek city Larissa in Thessaly) is a popular Brazilian feminine name with Greek classical roots. The Greek city Larissa is one of the oldest continuously-inhabited cities in Europe.

Common questions about Lara

What does the name Lara mean?

Lara means "Cheerful, citadel — Doctor Zhivago's Lara crossed Russia; the name crossed the world." It is a girl name of Russian origin, traditionally used in Christian families.

Is Lara a boy or girl name?

Lara is most commonly used as a girl name.

What is the origin of the name Lara?

Lara is of Russian origin, used in Christian, Atheist traditions, commonly among Spanish, European, Latino families.

What is the numerology of Lara?

Lara has a Pythagorean destiny number of 5 — freedom and adventurous change.

See how Lara scores for your family

NameRoot is the only baby-name app that scores every name across 6 signals against your specific family context. Download free — Lara is waiting.

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