| Eira | Carys | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Snow | Love |
| Origin | Welsh | welsh |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | AY-rah | KA-ris |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1979 | 1991 |
| Peak year | 2025 (116) | 2006 (196) |
| In 2025 | 116 | 32 |
| Trend | Near its peak | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Eira | Carys |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 474 | 189 |
| 2010s | 321 | 933 |
| 2000s | 51 | 1,123 |
| 1990s | 11 | 82 |
| 1980s | 16 | 0 |
| 1970s | 5 | 0 |
Eira is the Welsh word for “snow.”
A modern Welsh name formed from the stem of the verb caru 'to love' (compare car 'beloved friend', cariad 'love'). A genuine Welsh 'love' root; the variant Cerys is read the same way.
Eira is more popular than Carys today: about 116 US babies were given the name Eira in 2025, compared with 32 named Carys.
Eira means Snow (Welsh origin), while Carys means Love (welsh origin).
In US records, Eira first appears in 1979 and Carys in 1991, so Eira has the longer recorded history.