Cara (given name)

Cara is an Irish feminine given name meaning "friend". It is also an English, German and Italian language feminine given name from the Latin cārus meaning “darling, beloved, dear, loved one”. It is also a Danish, Norwegian and Swedish feminine given name that is an alternate form of Kara as well as a short form of Carola, Carolina, and Oscara.

Cara means beloved in Latin, and the names Carina, Cherie and Cheryl derive from it.

Kara, an alternative spelling, is from the Cornish word kara, meaning love. This is likely cognate to the popular Welsh girls' name Carys. The name is also that of an island in the Inner Hebrides island group, Scotland; Cara Island, lying just off the southern tip of the Isle of Gigha.

In Egyptian language, the term Kara can be translated as "the spirit of Ra".

In Turkey, the word Kara means "dark", which may or may not be related to the Gaelic Ciara of the same meaning.

In Greece, the name Kara means "pure", and is related to the names Katharina, Katherine, and Katrina. In Ancient (and sometimes in modern) Greek language, Kara means Head.

In Japan, the word Kara means "empty", and is the basis of the name of the Karate martial art.

In Norse mythology, Kára was a valkyrie; in the Scandinavian languages, the name Kára either means "the wild, stormy one" (based on Old Norse afkárr, meaning "wild") or "curl" or "the curly one" (from Old Norse kárr).

People named Cara

 * Cara Judea Alhadeff, American artist, writer, and yoga teacher
 * Cara Black, Zimbabwean professional tennis player
 * Cara Black (author), American mystery writer
 * Cara Blue Adams, American author
 * Cara Buono, American actress
 * Cara Butler, Irish American stepdancer and choreographer
 * Cara Capuano, American sports anchor for ESPNU
 * Cara Carriveau (born 1966), Chicago radio personality
 * Cara Delevingne (born 1992), British fashion model and actress
 * Cara DeLizia (born 1984), American television actress
 * Cara DeVito (born 1951), American video artist
 * Cara Dillon, Irish folk singer
 * Cara Duff-MacCormick, Canadian actress
 * Cara Dunne-Yates (1970–2004), American scholar-athlete
 * Cara Gee (born 1982), Canadian actress
 * Cara Gorges (born 1987), beauty queen from Clearwater, Kansas
 * Cara Heads (born 1977), American Olympic weightlifter
 * Cara Hilton, Scottish Labour Party politician and Member of the Scottish Parliament
 * Cara Hoffman, New York City-based novelist and journalist
 * Cara Horgan, English actress
 * Cara Jones, American singer, songwriter, and voice actor
 * Cara Knott (1966–1986), American murder victim
 * Cara Lockwood, American novelist
 * Cara Lott, pornographic actress
 * Cara Loughran (2003–2018), one of the 17 victims who was killed in the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting
 * Cara Luft, Canadian musician
 * Cara Pifko (born 1976), Canadian actress
 * Cara Quici (born 1985), American singer/songwriter
 * Cara Readle (born 1991), Welsh actress
 * Cara Seymour (born 1964), English actress
 * Cara Theobold (born 1990), English actress
 * Cara Tivey, English pianist/keyboardist and vocalist
 * Cara Wakelin, Canadian model and actress
 * Cara Williams (1925–2021), American film and television actress
 * Cara Zavaleta, American model and reality show guest
 * Cara Zavaleta, American model and reality show guest