Sarah
Sarah was the 90th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 2,710 babies. Its best year was 1993, when it ranked 3rd; the most babies were born in 1982 (28,483). Over the last ten years it has moved down 33 places. More babies were named Sarah in the 1980s than in any other decade.
Meaning princess, noblewoman · Hebrew
Say it SAIR-uh /ˈsɛrə/
- Rank in 2025
- #90 girls, down 4 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 2,710girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 198228,483 babies
- Total since 1880
- 1,101,838babies recorded
What does the name Sarah mean?
Sarah is the Hebrew name of Abraham's wife, the mother of Isaac. Wiktionary glosses it 'lady, princess'; in Genesis 17:15 God changes her name from Sarai, an older form of similar meaning, to Sarah. Wikipedia notes that the name is used by Jews, Christians and Muslims alike, and Wiktionary records Sara as an Arabic given name from the same source. Sara is the usual spelling in many European languages.
שָׂרָה (Biblical Hebrew, “Sarah, princess, noblewoman”)שָׂרָי (Biblical Hebrew, “Sarai, earlier form”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Sara, Sarai, Sally, Sadie, Zara, Sarita.
See also: Hebrew names, names that mean king or queen.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Sarah', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Hebrew Bible, Genesis 17:15, JPS translation with notes (via Sefaria), Sefaria; verse reference and facts only, not quoted
- Wikipedia, 'Sarah (given name)', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
Nicknames for Sarah
The usual nicknames for Sarah are Sally and Sadie. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Sarah in the last five years, 130 were named Sadie, against 12 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sally · Sally was the medieval English pet form of Sarah · also for Salvatore | Traditional | #1,158 | 965 |
| Sadie | Traditional | #50 | 18,029 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Sarahs go by each one.
Sarah popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 3,340 since 1883.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #90 | 2,710 |
| 2020 | #86 | 3,070 |
| 2010 | #26 | 6,341 |
| 2000 | #5 | 17,715 |
| 1990 | #6 | 25,824 |
| 1980 | #5 | 25,757 |
| 1970 | #65 | 5,614 |
| 1960 | #116 | 4,205 |
| 1950 | #88 | 4,143 |
| 1940 | #60 | 3,869 |
| 1930 | #70 | 3,920 |
| 1920 | #50 | 5,031 |
| 1910 | #40 | 2,173 |
| 1900 | #37 | 2,054 |
| 1890 | #21 | 1,786 |
| 1880 | #10 | 1,288 |
How popular is Sarah, counting every spelling?
Sarah is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #60 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #90 for Sarah on its own. Together these spellings went to 4,324 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sarah | 2,710 | #90 | 13,874 |
| Sara | 1,568 | #198 | 7,981 |
| Saara | 13 | #8,257 | 50 |
| Serra | 10 | #9,997 | 44 |
| Cera | 8 | #11,142 | 34 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Sarah?
2,710 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Sarah (0.75 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Sarah born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 3 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Sarah.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Sarah?
About 883,000 people born in the US named Sarah are alive today, with a median age of 38; half are between 28 and 46. That makes Sarah mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Sarah by state
How common Sarah was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in New York (2.9×), New Jersey (2.8×), Alaska (2.2×), Florida (1.6×), Massachusetts (1.5×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in South Dakota, Montana, Maine.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Sarah: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Sarah, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Sarah · Sibling names for Sarah
Questions about the name Sarah
What does Sarah mean?
Sarah means “princess, noblewoman” (Hebrew origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Sarah?
Sarah was the 90th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 2,710 babies. Its best year was 1993, when it ranked 3rd; the most babies were born in 1982 (28,483). Over the last ten years it has moved down 33 places. More babies were named Sarah in the 1980s than in any other decade.
Is Sarah a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Sarah in the US.
Where is Sarah most popular?
In 2021–2025, Sarah was most common in New York (4.87 per 1,000 girls), followed by New Jersey and Alaska.