| Liora | Shira | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | my light | song |
| Origin | hebrew | hebrew |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | lee-OR-ah | SHEE-rah |
| Syllables | 3 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1982 | 1941 |
| Peak year | 2025 (295) | 2009 (159) |
| In 2025 | 295 | 79 |
| Trend | Near its peak | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Liora | Shira |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 749 | 430 |
| 2010s | 589 | 861 |
| 2000s | 237 | 1,324 |
| 1990s | 79 | 988 |
| 1980s | 29 | 1,182 |
| 1970s | 0 | 650 |
| 1960s | 0 | 224 |
| 1950s | 0 | 131 |
| 1940s | 0 | 25 |
Modern Hebrew, the feminine of Lior: li 'for me / my' + or 'light,' hence 'my light' or 'light for me.' A coined given name rather than a biblical one, built transparently from everyday Hebrew words.
Modern Hebrew shira, 'song, singing, poetry' (root sh-y-r). A popular contemporary given name; a concrete noun with no theophoric element.
Liora is more popular than Shira today: about 295 US babies were given the name Liora in 2025, compared with 79 named Shira.
Liora means my light (hebrew origin), while Shira means song (hebrew origin).
In US records, Liora first appears in 1982 and Shira in 1941, so Shira has the longer recorded history.