Zara

About Zara

Zara has more than one history. In English it is a literary name, possibly inspired by Arabic Zahra, while Bulgarian Zara is a short form of Zaharina. Its compact ZAH-ruh sound has become much more familiar in recent American naming. Equestrian Zara Tindall supplies a modern royal and sporting connection.

Two routes to Zara

William Congreve used Zara for a captive North African queen in his tragedy The Mourning Bride, published in 1697. He may have based the character's name on Arabic Zahra, but that connection is not certain.

The proposed Arabic source Zahra comes from a word meaning “shining,” “brilliant,” or “bright.” It gives one possible background to the English literary name rather than a definitive translation for every Zara.

A separate Bulgarian Zara, written Зара, is a diminutive of Zaharina. Zaharina is the Bulgarian and Macedonian feminine form of Zechariah. This family is independent of the name's English theatrical history.

Zara in English drama

In The Mourning Bride, Zara falls in love with a man she knows as Osmyn. His affection lies elsewhere, with Almeria, and the conflict turns Zara's love toward jealousy. Her role gives the name a place in a tragedy of captivity, concealed identities, and divided loyalties.

The name appeared again when Aaron Hill adapted Voltaire's French tragedy Zaïre. Voltaire's play dates from 1732, and Hill used Zara for its English adaptation in 1736.

The two characters belong to different plays, rather than to successive versions of one story. Zara therefore has an English theatrical history involving more than one writer and heroine.

Zara Tindall and eventing

Princess Anne named her daughter Zara in 1981, bringing the name renewed attention in Britain. Known in her early sporting career as Zara Phillips and later as Zara Tindall, she became an accomplished eventing rider.

At the 2006 World Equestrian Games in Aachen, she won individual gold and team silver. The individual result made her world champion in eventing.

At the London Olympics in 2012 she won a silver medal as part of Great Britain's eventing team. That Olympic result was a team medal, distinct from her individual world title.

Her name is consequently associated with competitive achievement as well as with the royal family. Results recorded under both Phillips and Tindall preserve Zara as the constant first name across her sporting career.

Pronunciation and American popularity

English Zara is pronounced ZAH-ruh, with stress on the first syllable. Its initial z gives the four-letter spelling a clearly voiced opening, followed by the softer final vowel.

In the United States, 121 girls were named Zara in 2000 and 393 in 2010. The largest annual female total came in 2022, with 1,441 girls and a rank of 201st.

In 2025, 1,432 girls received the name and it ranked 212th. Recent American use remains much higher than at the beginning of the century.

How popular is Zara?

In 2025, Zara ranked #212 among girls in the United States, with 1,432 recorded uses. The U.S. birth records first list this spelling for girls in 1896; its largest annual count was 1,441 in 2022. Rankings count each spelling separately. They describe national use, so local familiarity can differ. The popularity chart shows whether the name has remained common, returned after a quieter period, or risen recently.