Behind the Name
the etymology and history of first names
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View Name: Clara


CLARA
GENDER: Feminine
USAGE: Italian, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Romanian, English, Late Roman
PRONOUNCED: KLAH-rah (Italian, German, Spanish), KLER-ə (English), KLAR-ə (English)   [key]
Meaning & History
Feminine form of the Late Latin name Clarus which meant "clear, bright, famous". The name Clarus was borne by a few early saints. The feminine form was popularized by the 13th-century Saint Clare of Assisi (called Chiara in Italian), a friend and follower of Saint Francis, who left her wealthy family to found the order of nuns known as the Poor Clares. As an English name it has been in use since the Middle Ages, originally in the form Clare, though the Latinate spelling Clara became more popular in the 19th century.
Related Names
VARIANTS: Chiara (Italian), Klara (German), Claire, Clare, Kiara (English), Claritia (Late Roman)
DIMINUTIVES: Chiarina, Claretta (Italian), Claribel, Clarinda, Clarette (English)
MASCULINE FORMS: Clair (English), Clarus (Late Roman)
OTHER LANGUAGES: Klara (Croatian), Klára (Czech), Klara (Danish), Claire, Clarisse (French), Klára (Hungarian), Klāra (Latvian), Klara (Norwegian), Klara (Polish), Klara (Russian), Klára (Slovak), Klara (Slovene), Klara (Swedish), Klara (Ukrainian)
Popularity
United States  ranked #151 
Canada (BC)  ranked #83 
Austria  ranked #26 
Belgium  ranked #9 
Catalonia  ranked #36 
Denmark  ranked #16 
France  ranked #15 
Ireland  ranked #94 
Northern Ireland  - 
Spain  ranked #46 
Sweden  - 



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