Yara has two separate sources: in Arabic it means "small butterfly", and in Brazil it is the Tupi name of Iara, a water spirit, "lady of the water". The actress Yara Shahidi, star of Black-ish and Grown-ish, has made it familiar to American audiences. Yara entered the US top 1000 in 2017 and has risen from number 987 that year to number 507 in 2025, its best rank yet.