Nora: Meaning, Pronunciation and Origin
Nora is an Irish girl's name meaning “honour, reputation.” Here’s how to say it, where it comes from, and names that go well with it.
Updated September 2026
- Meaning
- Honour, reputation
- Gender
- Girl
- Also spelled
- Norah, Noreen
- Popularity in Ireland
- No. 76 for girls (2025)
How do you pronounce Nora?
Nora is pronounced NOR-a. It has two syllables, with the stress on the first. Other spellings: Norah and Noreen.
What does Nora mean?
A classic Irish name, it could be a shortened form of Eleanor meaning “torch” or could be from the Latin Honora meaning “honor, reputation” and became so popular in Ireland in the Middle Ages that many people assumed it was Irish. Noreen is the diminutive of Nora and means “little honourable one.”
How popular is Nora in Ireland?
In 2025, 65 baby girls in Ireland were named Nora, which made it No. 76 that year. Another 17 were registered as Nóra. That's up from No. 199 ten years earlier. It was most popular in 1965, when 310 baby girls were named Nora, No. 22 that year. The records go back to 1964, when 264 baby girls were given the name.
See the numbers by year
| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 82 | No. 76 (Nora) |
| 2024 | 73 | No. 84 (Nora) |
| 2023 | 68 | No. 95 (Nora) |
| 2022 | 64 | No. 103 (Nora) |
| 2021 | 51 | No. 130 (Nora) |
| 2020 | 50 | No. 126 (Nora) |
| 2019 | 47 | No. 131 (Nora) |
| 2018 | 51 | No. 131 (Nora) |
| 2017 | 40 | No. 142 (Nora) |
| 2016 | 36 | No. 153 (Nora) |
| 2015 | 27 | No. 199 (Nora) |
| 2014 | 26 | No. 203 (Nora) |
| 2013 | 33 | No. 172 (Nora) |
| 2012 | 19 | No. 264 (Nora) |
| 2011 | 25 | No. 215 (Nora) |
| 2010 | 20 | No. 267 (Nora) |
| 2009 | 22 | No. 239 (Nora) |
| 2008 | 22 | No. 241 (Nora) |
| 2007 | 25 | No. 202 (Nora) |
| 2006 | 24 | No. 191 (Nora) |
| 2005 | 23 | No. 188 (Nora) |
| 2004 | 17 | No. 222 (Nora) |
| 2003 | 19 | No. 200 (Nora) |
| 2002 | 15 | No. 238 (Nora) |
| 2001 | 7 | No. 369 (Nora) |
| 2000 | 8 | No. 324 (Nora) |
| 1999 | 18 | No. 194 (Nora) |
| 1998 | 14 | No. 213 (Nora) |
| 1997 | 30 | No. 156 (Nora) |
| 1996 | 33 | No. 150 (Nora) |
| 1995 | 31 | No. 146 (Nora) |
| 1994 | 33 | No. 145 (Nora) |
| 1993 | 27 | No. 164 (Nora) |
| 1992 | 34 | No. 152 (Nora) |
| 1991 | 40 | No. 130 (Nora) |
| 1990 | 43 | No. 124 (Nora) |
| 1989 | 34 | No. 148 (Nora) |
| 1988 | 50 | No. 116 (Nora) |
| 1987 | 47 | No. 129 (Nora) |
| 1986 | 46 | No. 129 (Nora) |
| 1985 | 44 | No. 135 (Nora) |
| 1984 | 41 | No. 152 (Nora) |
| 1983 | 60 | No. 115 (Nora) |
| 1982 | 63 | No. 127 (Nora) |
| 1981 | 73 | No. 108 (Nora) |
| 1980 | 71 | No. 112 (Nora) |
| 1979 | 63 | No. 124 (Nora) |
| 1978 | 84 | No. 93 (Nora) |
| 1977 | 70 | No. 111 (Nora) |
| 1976 | 109 | No. 78 (Nora) |
| 1975 | 105 | No. 80 (Nora) |
| 1974 | 121 | No. 74 (Nora) |
| 1973 | 136 | No. 69 (Nora) |
| 1972 | 128 | No. 66 (Nora) |
| 1971 | 183 | No. 47 (Nora) |
| 1970 | 176 | No. 49 (Nora) |
| 1969 | 199 | No. 38 (Nora) |
| 1968 | 193 | No. 37 (Nora) |
| 1967 | 218 | No. 33 (Nora) |
| 1966 | 261 | No. 29 (Nora) |
| 1965 | 310 | No. 22 (Nora) |
| 1964 | 264 | No. 30 (Nora) |
Nora in Ogham
Ogham is the oldest way of writing Irish. It was carved along the edges of standing stones, mostly between the 4th and 6th centuries, and read from the bottom up. In later tradition each letter was named after a tree or plant. Here’s Nora, letter by letter.
- NNion, ash
- OOnn, gorse
- RRuis, elder
- AAilm, pine
Write any name in Ogham with our Ogham translator
Names that go with Nora
Questions about Nora
- How do you pronounce Nora?
- Nora is pronounced NOR-a. Two syllables, stress on the first.
- What does Nora mean?
- Nora means “honour, reputation.”
- Is Nora a girl's name or a boy's name?
- Nora is a girl's name.
- How popular is Nora in Ireland?
- In 2025, Nora was No. 76 for girls in Ireland, with 65 babies, according to the Central Statistics Office. It was most popular in 1965, at No. 22.