Dora
Short form of longer Greek-derived names such as Dorothea and Theodora, both of which contain doron, gift, paired with a word for god.
Dora in 2025
Dora was given to 75 babies in the United States in 2025, making it the 4,289th most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 44,205 babies born.
The history of Dora
Dora reached its highest point in 1921, when 2,031 babies were given the name, ranking 219th that year. Its best-ever ranking was 66th, in 1887.
Across the 146 years of records since 1880, 106,480 babies have been named Dora. Half of them were born before 1927, which places the name's centre of gravity with the Greatest Generation.
Dora by decade
| Decade | Babies named Dora | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 7,341 | 66 |
| 1890s | 8,731 | 76 |
| 1900s | 8,046 | 105 |
| 1910s | 14,082 | 149 |
| 1920s | 18,441 | 219 |
| 1930s | 12,483 | 263 |
| 1940s | 9,766 | 339 |
| 1950s | 9,323 | 441 |
| 1960s | 7,451 | 561 |
| 1970s | 3,959 | 766 |
| 1980s | 2,383 | 1,081 |
| 1990s | 1,734 | 1,670 |
| 2000s | 1,384 | 2,123 |
| 2010s | 919 | 3,320 |
| 2020s | 437 | 4,017 |
Where Dora is heading
Dora has fallen 26% over the past decade, from 101 babies in 2015 to 75 in 2025.
That is less than 5% of its 1921 peak — Dora is now a rare name in the United States.
Names like Dora
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Dora.