Castilian: Sara

German: Sarah

Hebrew: שָׂרָה

Irish: Sorcha

Dutch: Sarah

Finnish: Saara

Japanese: 更 (さら, Sara)

Yiddish: Shóre

French: Sarah

Urdu: سائرة

Arabic: سارة

Bulgarian: Сара

Hungarian: Sára

Italian: Sara

Portuguese Sara

Serbian: Sara (Latin alphabet) / Сара (Cyrillic alphabet)

Catalan: Sara

Norwegian: Sarah or Sara

Persian: سارا

Greek: Sara

Czech: Sára

In Japanese, Sara is known as the tree where Buddha was born. It is also known as a very rare flower which blooms in Kyoto in the summer and lasts for only one day.

Lettish: Sāra

Slovene: Sara

woman of high rank or princess in Hebrew (variant of Sarah in the Bible)

Sara Montiel, a Spanish actress and singer

Saint Sara or Sarah

Sara (artist), a French artist and illustrator

Sara (disambiguation page)

Sara Parise, an Italian swimmer

Sarah (also spelled Sara) is a female name that has been used throughout history in numerous cultures and parts of the world. It can be found as a name in several languages including Hebrew, Arabic, Persian, Greek, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, English, Slovenian, and Serbian. It has historically been a popular name, and remains so today.

Sarah is a Biblical name, referring to a woman mentioned in the Book of Genesis in the Old Testament. After fleeing the town of Haran where she lived, the woman who was then known as Sarai, along with her husband Abram, fled to Egypt where they were then cast out by the Pharaoh. God came to Sarai and Abram, telling them that they would be the creators of the Promised Land of Israel. He then told them that from that day forth they would be known as Sarah and Abraham. It should be pointed out that while most name books list the meaning of Sarah as "princess", sometimes translated as Goddess, the literal translation of the name is "princess of all". Sarah's previous name of Sarai means simply "princess".

With the spread of Christianity to Europe, the name became part of the vernacular of several European languages. Famous bearers of the name throughout history include Saint Sarah, patron saint of Gypsies, the 1st Duchess of Marlborough, 19th century actress and courtesan Sarah Bernhardt, and 19th century American writer Sarah Josepha Hale.

Sarah has been a popular female name for centuries, particularly in Britain. In the United States, it proved to be immensely popular in the latter part of the 20th century. The spelling Sara is estimated to be used once for every five times the Sarah spelling is used. Though still popular, the name's usage in America has fallen dramatically in recent years. Contemporary Sarahs include the Duchess of York, singer Sarah Brightman, and actresses Sarah Michelle Gellar and Sarah Jessica Parker.

Sometimes the spelling Sara is used in English. This form is traditionally pronounced as /sɑrɑ/ (SAR-ah), as in French and Italian and Dutch. However it is now commonly pronounced by some English-speakers just like Sarah, that is, /sɛrɑ/ (SAIR-ah). In 2005, Sara was the 76th most popular name for newborn girls in the USA, behind Sarah at 15th most popular.

Sara Mendes da Costa, the voice of the UK Speaking Clock from 2 April 2007

Sara Kiersten Quin, Canadian singer-songwriter who performs with her identical twin sister Tegan in the band Tegan and Sara.