Norah is a girl name with a modern feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Norah means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Norah across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Norah has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Norah is a girl name of Latin, Greek origin meaning “honor or light”. A variant of Nora, short for Honora or Eleanor.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 33,998 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 2,032 births |
| Scotland since 1974 | 246 births |
| Northern Ireland since 1997 | 89 births |
| Ireland since 1964 | 718 births |
Counts come from official national birth-registration statistics: U.S. Social Security Administration, England & Wales (Office for National Statistics), Scotland (National Records of Scotland), Northern Ireland (NISRA), Ireland (Central Statistics Office) and New Zealand (Dept. of Internal Affairs). Coverage spans differ, so totals aren't directly comparable across countries.
Babies named Norah per year, United States (1880 to 2025). United States peaked in 2017 (2,156/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 2022 (202/yr) · Ireland peaked in 1967 (37/yr) · Scotland peaked in 2025 (27/yr) · Northern Ireland peaked in 2024 (12/yr).
Norah has been a fairly common baby name in the United States. It was most common in 2017, when it ranked #334 nationally (given to 2,330 babies that year).
Nora · Nira · Neriah · Nyra · Nori · Nariah · Nariyah · Noura
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