Laura
From Latin laurus, the laurel, whose leaves crowned victors and poets. Petrarch's sonnets to a woman of this name spread it across Europe.
Laura in 2025
Laura was given to 805 babies in the United States in 2025, making it the 796th most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 4,118 babies born.
The history of Laura
Laura reached its highest point in 1964, when 19,008 babies were given the name, ranking 37th that year. Its best-ever ranking was 33rd, in 1882.
Across the 146 years of records since 1880, 804,390 babies have been named Laura. Half of them were born before 1967, which places the name's centre of gravity with Generation X.
Laura by decade
| Decade | Babies named Laura | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 12,833 | 33 |
| 1890s | 16,486 | 40 |
| 1900s | 15,578 | 57 |
| 1910s | 30,646 | 73 |
| 1920s | 36,141 | 111 |
| 1930s | 25,240 | 157 |
| 1940s | 35,176 | 129 |
| 1950s | 95,743 | 62 |
| 1960s | 174,634 | 33 |
| 1970s | 118,658 | 39 |
| 1980s | 135,207 | 41 |
| 1990s | 67,445 | 74 |
| 2000s | 25,081 | 187 |
| 2010s | 10,447 | 554 |
| 2020s | 5,075 | 721 |
Where Laura is heading
Laura has fallen 21% over the past decade, from 1,016 babies in 2015 to 805 in 2025.
That is less than 5% of its 1964 peak — Laura is now a rare name in the United States.
Names like Laura
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Laura.