Ra

#6,354 in 2025UnisexBoys' nameGirls' name

Sun or day

Ra has been given to 251 babies in the U.S. since 1972. In 2025 it ranked #6,354 of 13,926 boys’ names in use. Its peak year was 2023, with 30 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 92% boys, 8% girls all-time.

Babies named Ra, 2025

1 in 237,000

Ra over time, 1880–2025

BoysGirls

Based on births in the U.S. Babies given the name each year. Hover the chart — or focus it and use the arrow keys — for any year. Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.

Girls or boys — Ra over time

In 2025, Ra went to 0% girls and 100% boys.

19692025

A sex is only published in years it reached five applications, so a stretch at 0% or 100% means the other side stayed under that floor — not that it was never used.

Ra: meaning, origin, and history

Sun or day

Deeper origin not confirmed in the cited records

What Ra means

Ra means “sun or day”.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 231 boys were recorded with the name Ra between 1972 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 30 in 2023; its best national rank was #3,778 in 2023.

Over 5 years its rank fell, from #5,634 in 2020 to #6,354 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank rose, from #8,557 in 2015 to #6,354 in 2025.

In the United States, 20 girls were recorded with the name Ra between 1969 and 2010. Its highest annual count was 5 in 1969; its best national rank was #8,350 in 1969.

Sources & methodologyReferences, data & attribution

Meaning, origin, and language notes draw on the references below.

American popularity figures use published Social Security Administration records for this exact spelling. Counts below five for a name, sex, and year are omitted.

U.S. Social Security Administration: national name data and limitations

How common is Ra?

Everything below is computed from the 2025 data — the most recent year available.

Among all babies, 2025: 1 in 237,000; 14 of 3,315,165 births
Among boys only: 1 in 122,000; <0.01% of boys
Rank, 2025: #6,354; of 13,926 boys’ names in use
Coin-flip room size: 164,137 kids; Even odds of a second one

Where Ra sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Liam (20,818)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 2025 national name distribution. Real classrooms cluster by region and community, so treat these as a floor, not a ceiling.

Class of 20Under 1%

Class of 30Under 1%

Grade of 100Under 1%

School of 500Under 1%

Put another way: gather 164,137 children born in 2025 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Ra. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Ras were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Ra was born before 2019 — so the typical Ra is around 6 today.

Median birth year: 2019; About 6 years old
Biggest decade: 2020s; 43.3% of all use
Born in the last 25 years: 85.7%; A modern name
Recorded since 1950: 231; People you could plausibly meet

Choose a decade

2020s — 43.3% of all recorded uses (100).

Is Ra rising or falling?

Rank movement and count movement can disagree — the number of distinct names in use keeps growing, so a name holding a steady count still slides down the list. Both are shown.

Rank vs 1 year ago: +1,272; Places climbed
Rank vs 5 years ago: −720; Places dropped
Rank vs 10 years ago: +2,203; Places climbed
Births vs 10 years ago: 1.56×; More babies than then
Share of its own peak: 46.7%; Peak was 2023 (30)
Years since peak: 2; Years
Year-to-year steadiness: Volatile; 45.2% average annual change
Best rank ever: #3,778; 2023

Where Ra is used

Across 1910–2025, Ra was most concentrated in California — about 1 in — boys, against 1 in 1,381,736 across all states with data. It was least common in Florida (1 in —).

00 per 100,000

State popularity map

Most concentrated

1California1 in —
2Florida1 in —

Shading is the share of that state's recorded boys given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings. Ra has too little recent state data to map, so this covers all years from 1910.

Ra around the world

Where Ra ranks in official birth records elsewhere in the world. Rankings only — the number of births isn’t comparable between places, so it isn’t shown.

South Australia
1946–2003
#588
in 2003

Popularity data from Consumer and Business Services (South Australia). CBS SA data under CC BY 4.0.

Ra by the numbers

The raw record for each sex the name is used for.

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025: #6,354
Trend vs 5 yrs ago: Down 720
Best rank ever: #3,778; 2023
Peak year: 2023; 30 that year
First recorded: 1972
Last recorded: 2025
All-time count: 231
Count in 2025: 14

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025: Unranked
Trend vs 5 yrs ago: —
Best rank ever: #8,350; 1969
Peak year: 1969; 5 that year
First recorded: 1969
Last recorded: 2010
All-time count: 20
Count in 2025: Under 5

Names similar to Ra

Matched on shared beginnings and endings, similar length, and comparable popularity.

Rad Rai Rane Raad Rama Rana Rahm Raif Raef Raza Rafa Razi Raam Rae Rael Raed Ram Raife Rakai Rayn Rainn Rafay Radek Ras

Sibling names for Ra

Names from the same era and popularity tier — the two things that make a sibling set feel deliberate — skipping lookalike spellings and shared initials.

For a sister

Annabell Karleigh Adelle Leonor Keren Kendyl Anabel Hayleigh

For a brother

Evans Hamilton Kale Aaden Caesar Brennen Tobin Jerimiah

Explore around Ra

Top names of 2023, Ra's peak year The 2020s in full Other names that peaked in 2023 Boys' names starting with R Ancient Egyptian Names Ancient Names Outside the Top 1000 Two-Letter Names