Names That Mean Lyre

Lyra is a name with ancient and celestial roots that's found new popularity thanks to its starring role in Philip Pullman's book series, His Dark Materials and its subsequent movie and TV adaptions. Simple yet starry, Lyra is familiar but not overused in the US, where it ranks in the Top 500. 
 
Lyra is a constellation name taken from the lyre of Orpheus. It contains the star Vega and thus could make a melodic choice for a parent interested in music, astronomy, or mythology. It has more history than the similar, more wordy Lyric, and is more unusual in the US than the similar sounding Lyla, Leah, and Laura.
 
Given to nearly 640 American girls in a recent year, it is worth keeping in mind that it is considerably more popular in the UK where it entered the Top 100 back 2020. Additionally, while LIE-ruh is the most familiar pronunciation, LEE-ruh and LEER-uh are also used. 
 
Borne by Lyra Belacqua, the heroine of the aforementioned His Dark Materials, Lyra has also been chosen by celeb couples Ed Sheeran and Cherry Seaborn, Anna Lundberg and Michael Sheen, and Sophie Dahl and Jamie Cullum.

Lyra

Associated with poetry, pop music, and the Greek lyre, Lyric has a light and zippy sound to it and joins the likes of Melody, Harmony, Cadence, and Aria as musical names that have become baby names. A unisex name, it is currently three times more popular for girls in the US where it sits in the Top 600. It has declined in use since its 2014 peak, but was still given to around 560 girls in a recent year.


Lyric

Associated with poetry, pop music, and the Greek lyre, Lyric has a light and zippy sound to it. Currently more popular for girls in the US, it was in the Top 1000 for boys between 2007 and 2020. Currently given to around 170 boys each year, for every baby boy called Lyric, there are three girls given the name. 


Lyrica has a nice, melodious sound — which is exactly what Pfizer thought when coming up with their trade name for the drug Pregabalin.

Names That Mean Lyre

The names

Lyra

Lyric

Lyric

Lyrica