Nora

The name Nora is a girl's name of Irish origin meaning "light". Nora has two separate origin stories, as a derivative of both Honora and Eleanor. The Irish and Anglo-Norman version derives from Honora, based on the Latin word honor. The Hungarians spawned Nora as a short form of Eleonora, a variation of Eleanor. Nora is a lovely, refined name that conjures up images of Belle Epoch ladies in fur-trimmed coats skating in Central Park, the independent Ibsen heroine of A Doll's House, and the female half of the witty Nick and Nora Charles duo, adding up to a most desirable choice. Nora—long seen as a quintessentially Irish name—is a quietly stylish favorite tiptoeing up the popularity ladder. One of Nora's most prominent contemporary namesakes is the late witty writer Nora Ephron. Nora Durst was a character on the HBO show The Leftovers. It can also be spelled Norah, as in Norah Jones.