Akira

Spellings & scripts●

Spellings marked ● are how people bearing the name write it in our records; ○ marks a model's transliteration. Click a spelling to open its page.

Meaning & origin●

Attested across 2 languages in the etymology graph.

Languages●

Language is read off each record's context, not declared by the bearer; a share is of all records for this spelling.

Other names spelled this way◐

Akira is also recorded as 2 other names, grouped separately because the records behind them do not connect to the one described above.

• English given name31K records spelled Akira10 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in United States, Australia, Brazil, Canada

  Languages: English, German, Dutch

  Also written A'Kira, Akiřa, Åkira, Äkïrä, Akïra

• Thai given name1.8K records spelled Akira54 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in Thailand, United States, Laos, Finland

  Languages: Thai, Lao

  Also written อัครา, Akara, Aki, อคิราห์, อคิรา

64 further groups record this spelling and are not listed here.

Grouping is the name graph's, not a register's: two spellings join a group when the evidence links them, so a group is a claim about the records rather than about the people.

Other recorded senses●

Akira is also recorded in one other lexicon, as a different name or as an ordinary word. These are senses of the spelling, not of the name above.

• In German, männl. Vom. japanischer Herkunft, der »hell, klar« bedeutet.

  as a name·DUDEN Lexikon der Vornamen

Ordered by how much of this spelling's record each language holds, so a sense from a language the name is barely used in sits last rather than first.

Over time●

US SSA — National Baby Names (1880–present) — 84 years between 1913–2025. One register's own figures, never a sum across registers: two registers counting the same people would double them.

Notable people with this name●

• Akira Kurosawab. 1910JPJapanese filmmaker (1910–1998)
• Akira Yoshizawab. 1911JPJapanese origamist (1911-2005)
• Akira Suzukib. 1930JPJapanese chemist (1930 - )
• Akira Takaradab. 1934JPJapanese actor (1934-2022)
• Leiji Matsumotob. 1938JPnot in their usual nameJapanese manga artist (1938–2023)
• Akira Kamiyab. 1946JPJapanese voice actor
• Akira Teraob. 1947JPJapanese actor and musician (born 1947)
• Akira Yoshinob. 1948JPJapanese engineer and researcher (1948-), known as an inventor of lithium-ion battery
• Akira Toriyamab. 1955JPJapanese manga artist and character designer (1955-2024)
• Akira Yamaokab. 1968JPJapanese composer

The ten people covered by the most Wikipedia language editions — a proxy for cross-cultural notability, which favours historical and Western figures over equally prominent contemporary ones — shown by birth year. Source: Wikidata (CC0).

Evidence●

Register rows as of the 2026-09-12 data build · 564 rows in the corpus for this spelling.

Frequently asked questions

How common is the name Akira?

We estimate roughly 7.2 thousand people bear Akira (counting its spellings and scripts) across 10 countries in our records.

In which country does Akira have the most bearers?

Akira is most frequently recorded in Japan, where it is most often spelled akira.

How common is Akira compared with other names?

In Japan, Akira is the 14th most common given name of 355,102 given names recorded there.

Is Akira a male or female name?

Akira is recorded for both men and women. We don't publish a percentage split: a record's gender belongs to the person and is attached to every given name on that record, so names in cultures where a name string also carries a parent's or spouse's given name pick up large cross-gender counts.

What does the name Akira mean?

Recorded meaning: , 2 ‘Clear’, ‘bright’; ‘dawn’.