| Ira | Ananya | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | the earth; goddess of speech | unique, matchless |
| Origin | sanskrit | sanskrit |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | EE-rah | uh-NUN-yah |
| Syllables | 2 | 3 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1995 |
| Peak year | 2025 (222) | 2008 (214) |
| In 2025 | 222 | 52 |
| Trend | Near its peak | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Ira | Ananya |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 1,053 | 538 |
| 2010s | 980 | 1,679 |
| 2000s | 131 | 1,652 |
| 1990s | 96 | 141 |
| 1980s | 151 | 0 |
| 1970s | 191 | 0 |
| 1960s | 318 | 0 |
| 1950s | 553 | 0 |
| 1940s | 657 | 0 |
| 1930s | 657 | 0 |
| 1920s | 900 | 0 |
| 1910s | 652 | 0 |
| 1900s | 359 | 0 |
| 1890s | 255 | 0 |
| 1880s | 172 | 0 |
From Sanskrit ira (इरा), 'the earth; waters; speech', and a name of the goddess of speech and learning (linked to Saraswati). Cross-cultural: Ira is also a Hebrew male name and a Slavic short form of Irina.
From Sanskrit ananya (अनन्य), 'without another, unique, matchless'; also 'undivided' in the sense of single-minded devotion. Well established.
Ira is more popular than Ananya today: about 222 US babies were given the name Ira in 2025, compared with 52 named Ananya.
Ira means the earth; goddess of speech (sanskrit origin), while Ananya means unique, matchless (sanskrit origin).
In US records, Ira first appears in 1880 and Ananya in 1995, so Ira has the longer recorded history.