Cora peaked at rank 84 in 2019 and is currently at #102. The name's American chart history is one of the cleaner vintage-revival arcs — Cora was top 50 in 1880, fell out of the top 500 by 1980, and climbed back to peak inside the top 100 a century later. The 100-year hiatus places Cora alongside Iris in revival-arc length.
The Greek root and the literary anchor
Cora derives from the Greek korē, meaning "maiden" or "young woman." The Greek term was used as an epithet for Persephone, the daughter of Demeter and queen of the underworld in Greek mythology, particularly in her aspect as a young, pre-Hades figure. The first-name use in modern English contexts is largely literary in origin.
James Fenimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans (1826) features Cora Munro as one of the two heroines, and the novel's mid-19th century cultural saturation gave the name its first significant American adoption. Cora's 1880 peak inside the top 50 reflected the Cooper-era literary register, and the name remained popular through the late 19th century before fading as American taste shifted away from Romantic literary names.
The Downton Abbey effect
Downton Abbey (2010-2015) featured Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham (played by Elizabeth McGovern), as one of the central characters. The show's cultural saturation through the early 2010s coincided with Cora's strongest growth period — the name climbed from rank 313 in 2009 to #84 by 2019, a roughly 230-rank jump in a decade that tracks the show's cultural arc closely.
The show's broader influence on the vintage-revival cluster (Edith, Violet, and other Downton-adjacent names also climbed during the same period) reinforces the chart correlation. Cora was the most direct beneficiary because the character was one of the show's American leads.
The cluster and the post-peak settling
The counter-reading worth flagging: Cora's settling from #84 in 2019 to #102 today is the typical post-peak pattern for names anchored to a specific cultural moment. The Downton Abbey era has passed, and the name's continued appeal will depend on its broader vintage-cluster register rather than the show's specific anchor. Parents picking Cora in 2025 are usually drawing on the broader vintage aesthetic that includes Clara, Violet, and similar picks.
The Greek phonetic profile (two syllables, both open vowels, single consonant) reads as crisp and modern despite the vintage register. Cora is unusually short for a Greek-origin name, which gives it accessibility that longer Greek picks lack.
Sibling pairings on naming forums favor the strong-vintage cluster: Cora and Violet, Cora and Ruby, Cora and Hazel, Cora and Iris. Middle names tend short and classic: Cora Rose, Cora Mae, Cora Grace, Cora Jane.