| Anika | Tara | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | brilliance, splendour; epithet of Durga | star |
| Origin | sanskrit | sanskrit |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | uh-NEE-kah | TAH-rah |
| Syllables | 3 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1961 | 1939 |
| Peak year | 2006 (642) | 1972 (7,234) |
| In 2025 | 269 | 322 |
| Trend | Declining | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Anika | Tara |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 1,895 | 1,432 |
| 2010s | 5,038 | 2,911 |
| 2000s | 5,591 | 8,572 |
| 1990s | 2,083 | 23,370 |
| 1980s | 949 | 56,338 |
| 1970s | 1,222 | 65,072 |
| 1960s | 26 | 14,543 |
| 1950s | 0 | 3,175 |
| 1940s | 0 | 392 |
| 1930s | 0 | 7 |
From Sanskrit anika (अनीक), 'splendour, brilliance; also a battle array or army'; used as an epithet of Goddess Durga. Cross-cultural: Anika is independently a Germanic/Scandinavian diminutive of Anna.
From Sanskrit tara (तारा), 'star'; also the name of a goddess in Hindu and Buddhist tradition. Cross-cultural: Tara is independently an Irish name (the Hill of Tara).
Tara is more popular than Anika today: about 322 US babies were given the name Tara in 2025, compared with 269 named Anika.
Anika means brilliance, splendour; epithet of Durga (sanskrit origin), while Tara means star (sanskrit origin).
In US records, Anika first appears in 1961 and Tara in 1939, so Tara has the longer recorded history.