Thirty years of Zara
Zara in numbers
Zara has risen from 265 girls in 1996 to 625 in 2025, though it is below its peak of 938 in 2008. Its biggest three-year rise came between 2004 and 2007, from 538 to 897. It ranked 168th in 1996, reached 66th in 2019 and ranks 73rd now. On average it was given to 319 girls a year in the late 1990s, 644 in the 2000s, 820 in the 2010s and 682 in the 2020s so far.
† Shapes, averages and turning points are Baby Data calculations from the ONS counts.
Milestones
First year in each bandChange
- On last year-6%666 to 625
- 5 years-12%712 to 625
- 10 years-22%799 to 625
- 20 years-2%640 to 625
- Since 1996×2265 to 625
- Total, 1996 to 202520,002girls
† All changes and totals are Baby Data calculations from ONS counts. A total adds only the published years.
Across the three nations, 2025
Each from its own statistics office, never added togetherRank 73 · ONS · 666 in 2024
Rank 56 · NRS · 98 in 2024
Rank 55 · NISRA · 32 in 2024
England and Wales (ONS) count births in the calendar year; Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland (NISRA) count births registered in the year. Each comes from its own statistics office and they are never added together.
Year by year, 1996 to 2025 Show all 30 yearsHide the table
| Year | Rank | Babies | Change† | 1 in X† |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 73 | 625 | -6% | 1 in 455 |
| 2024 | =69 | 666 | +6% | 1 in 435 |
| 2023 | 73 | 631 | -8% | 1 in 456 |
| 2022 | 70 | 685 | -11% | 1 in 430 |
| 2021 | 69 | 773 | +9% | 1 in 394 |
| 2020 | 73 | 712 | -12% | 1 in 421 |
| 2019 | 66 | 805 | +5% | 1 in 387 |
| 2018 | 68 | 765 | -9% | 1 in 418 |
| 2017 | 70 | 842 | -4% | 1 in 393 |
| 2016 | 68 | 876 | +10% | 1 in 387 |
| 2015 | 72 | 799 | -5% | 1 in 425 |
| 2014 | 67 | 838 | +7% | 1 in 404 |
| 2013 * | 70 | 780 | -12% | 1 in 438 |
| 2012 | 71 | 886 | +12% | 1 in 401 |
| 2011 | 73 | 790 | -3% | 1 in 447 |
| 2010 | 76 | 815 | -2% | 1 in 432 |
| 2009 | 75 | 832 | -11% | 1 in 414 |
| 2008 | 71 | 938 | +5% | 1 in 369 |
| 2007 | =70 | 897 | +23% | 1 in 374 |
| 2006 | =80 | 727 | +14% | 1 in 450 |
| 2005 | 85 | 640 | +19% | 1 in 493 |
| 2004 | 96 | 538 | +7% | 1 in 579 |
| 2003 | 99 | 505 | +11% | 1 in 600 |
| 2002 | =100 | 456 | -3% | 1 in 636 |
| 2001 | 104 | 471 | +8% | 1 in 616 |
| 2000 | 113 | 436 | +9% | 1 in 676 |
| 1999 | 123 | 399 | +24% | 1 in 758 |
| 1998 | 141 | 321 | +11% | n/a |
| 1997 | =158 | 289 | +9% | 1 in 1,085 |
| 1996 | =168 | 265 | 1 in 1,192 |
* ONS’s girls’ 2013 file repeats the May total as April, so the 2013 births total is about 1,360 too high and 1 in X for 2013 is slightly too high. 1 in X is not shown for girls in 1998: one monthly total is missing from the ONS girls’ 1998 file. Rank follows ONS: names with the same count share a rank (shown with =). “Under 3” means the name was given to fewer than 3 babies that year, so ONS did not publish it.
Compare Zara
Draws the second name on the chart above, on a shared scale.
Share and download
Zara is in the free dataset (CSV and JSON), with the method and how to cite it.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0; National Records of Scotland; NISRA. Exact spellings are counted separately and names given to fewer than 3 babies are not published. Figures marked † are Baby Data calculations. How we calculate
Zara is in our lists: Short baby names.