Mara can be either a surname or a (usually female) first name. Mara is Irish for ocean.

As a surname, it may be:

  • Hungarian: from a pet form of the personal names Mária, Márkus (Hungarian form of Marcus or Mark) or Márton (Hungarian form of Martin), or from a short form of the old ecclesiastical name Marcel;
  • Irish: a shortened form of O’Mara;
  • Czech (Mára): from a pet form of the personal name Marek or Martin.

Mara as a female first name is pronounced MAHR-ah most of the time, but can be pronounced as rhyming with Sarah in Jewish-American and Southern United States culture. It is of Hebrew origin, and the meaning of Mara is "bitter", which carries the implication "strength". The biblical Naomi, mother-in-law of Ruth, claimed the name Mara (מרא) as an expression of grief after the deaths of her husband and sons. It also means "Lady" in Aramaic, because Mar means "Lord", and is a title of bishops in the Syriac Christian church.[1] It is also the name of a bitter lake in the Bible, and a title of the Kabbalistic sephira Binah. Mara means to be joyful in Arabic and can be a unisex name. (Ar:مرح),in ancient Egypt it meant "The truth of God Ra" Ma for Truth ('Ma-at') and Ra the God of the Sun.

The name may also be a Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Greek or East European variant of Mary, Marianna, Maria, Marzanna and as a short form of Tamara. It is a variant of Maura, an Anglicization of the Irish name Máire, the Irish name of Mary, or the Scottish name Moira. It can also be a feminine version of Mauro, meaning a dark-skinned person. In Hindu, and Southeast Asian Buddhist cultures, it is etymologically related to the Sanskrit terms Mala (rosary), Mallika (jasmine) or Mayura (peacock) and is a unisex name or a surname, etymologically unrelated to anything demonic in Sino-Tibetan and modern Indic languages because the letters R and L are sometimes conflated (cf. in Japanese). It is a popular name in Latin America and the United States, for it has been in the top 1000 in the United States since 1950.[2][3]

People with the surname

  • Aday Mara (born 2005), Spanish basketball player
  • Adele Mara (1923–2010), American actress
  • Alehana Mara (born 1989), New Zealand rugby league footballer
  • Audrey Crespo-Mara (born 1976), French journalist and television presenter
  • Bob Mara (1940–2014), Australian rugby league footballer
  • Bogdan Mara (born 1977), Romanian footballer
  • Celia Mara (born 1961), Brazilian singer-songwriter and producer
  • David Mara (or Mari; born 1995), Australian bobsledder
  • Dan Mara (born c. 1955), American college basketball coach
  • Elidion Mara (born 1997), Albanian footballer
  • Finau Mara (born 1960), Fijian lawyer, politician, and diplomat
  • Gary Mara (1962–2012), Australian rugby league footballer; son of Bob
  • George Mara (1921–2006), Canadian businessman and Olympian hockey player
  • Gertrud Elisabeth Mara (1749–1833), German operatic soprano
  • Hubert Mara (born 1975), Austrian professor for computer science and digital archaeology
  • Ignác František Mara (1709–1783), Bohemian cellist and composer
  • Jack Mara (1908–1965), American co-owner of the New York Giants
  • Jason O'Mara (born 1972), Irish-American actor
  • John Mara (born 1954), American New York Giants executive
  • John Andrew Mara (1840–1920), Canadian politician, rancher and merchant
  • Kamisese Mara (1920–2004), Fijian politician
  • Kate Mara (born 1983), American actress
  • Lala Mara (1931–2004), Fijian chief
  • Lya Mara (1897–1960), German actress of the silent era
  • Mary Mara (1960–2022), American TV and film actress
  • Michele Mara (1903–1983), Italian cyclist
  • Mohamed Mara (born 1996), Guinean international footballer
  • Moussa Mara (born 1975), Malian politician and Prime Minister of Mali from 2014 to 2015
  • Nick Mara (born 1997), American singer of boy band Prettymuch
  • Patrick Mara (born 1975), American elected member of the District of Columbia Board of Education
  • Paul Mara (born 1979), American ice hockey player
  • Peter Mara (born 1947), Canadian ice hockey player
  • P. J. Mara (1942–2016), Irish public affairs consultant
  • Peter O'Mara (born 1957), Australian-born jazz guitarist, composer and teacher
  • Rebecca O'Mara (born 1977), Irish actress
  • Rooney Mara (born 1985), American actress
  • Sékou Mara (born 2002), French footballer
  • Sri Mara (137–192 AD), Chinese founder of the kingdom of Champa
  • Tânia Mara (born 1983), Brazilian singer and actress
  • Tevita Mara (fl. 1980s–2010s), Fijian career soldier
  • Thalia Mara (1911–2003), American ballet dancer and educator
  • Tim Mara (1887–1959), American New York Giants executive
  • Timothy J. Mara (1935–1995), American businessman and part owner of the New York Giants football team
  • Uerdi Mara (born 1999), Albanian footballer
  • Václav Mára (born 1943), Czechoslovak sprint canoer
  • Wellington Mara (1916–2005), American New York Giants executive
  • Ann Mara (1929–2015), American businesswoman, philanthropist, wife and widow of Wellington Mara
  • Wil Mara (born 1966), American writer and novelist

People with the given name

Fictional characters

Nicknames

References

  1. ↑ "Philology, 'Mara,' And The 'Jesus Discovery' Book And Documentary". Asorblog.org. Retrieved 2015-05-28.
  2. ↑ "Popular Baby Names". Socialsecurity.gov. 2015-02-12. Retrieved 2015-05-28.
  3. ↑ "Mara Name Meaning & Mara Family History at". Ancestry.com. Retrieved 2015-05-28.

See also

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