Kora
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Meaning
variant of Cora, from Greek kore, maiden
The story
Kora is Cora with a K, the Greek kore, the maiden, worn with the century's favorite letter of intent, and it happens to share its sound with something lovely: the kora is the West African harp, twenty-one strings on a gourd, one of the great instruments of the griot tradition. Cora, the anchor, is a giant at about 144,400 with its own story here. Kora's own record is young and quick: about 420 in the 1990s, 1,100 in the 2000s, cresting at 4,100 in the 2010s, with 3,700 so far this decade, all girls, about 9,500 to none. A maiden in the Greek, a harp on another continent, a K on the certificate: the couples' ledger takes its line, and the line sings.
How popular is Kora around the world?
In the United States, 3,725 babies were named Kora between 2020 and 2025. In New Zealand, 36 girls named Kora were registered in 2025.
Kora is on the official records of the United States, New Zealand, Canada, South Australia, England and Wales, Poland, Spain and Brazil.
United States
1 in 5,800
In the United States, 3,725 babies were named Kora between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Kora peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
New Zealand
1 in 1,600
In New Zealand, 36 girls named Kora were registered in 2025.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Canada
1 in 15,000
In Canada, 24 girls named Kora were born in 2024, ranked 1,075th among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
South Australia
1 in 18,0002017
In South Australia, 1 girl was registered as Kora in 2017.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
England and Wales
1 in 25,000
In England and Wales, 23 girls named Kora were born in 2025, ranked 1,362nd among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Poland
1 in 35,000
In Poland, 7 girls named Kora were born in 2025, the 396th most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Spain
1 in 280,000
In Spain, 162 residents are named Kora, ranked 5,268th among women, with a mean age of 8.8 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Austria
last on record 2024
Kora is not on the 2025 record for Austria, which publishes every first name down to a single birth, so the name was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
Brazil
At the 2022 census, 50 people in Brazil were named Kora, ranked 66,656th, with a median age of 16.
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Ireland
last on record 2022
Kora is not on the 2025 record for Ireland, where names under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Scotland
last on record 2023
Kora is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
Not on the record in Mexico City, Argentina and Puerto Rico: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Kora
Most people given the name Kora in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
The Kora deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Kora truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Kora fits with your family’s names and surname.
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