The Baby Name Wizard

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Contribute to, or edit, this collection of community wisdom on the name Laura!

Comments and insights on the name Laura: | Edit

Graced with this name by my older sister, I used to hate it. Now, I realize how lucky I am to have something so completely timeless. I will admit that I don't think the name Laura conjures up images of pigtails and frilly pink dresses but it will definitely age well.

Laura was the "We both like it and can't find anything wrong with it" compromise name that has happily grown with me. The only drawbacks? Kids have trouble with 'L's or 'R's. My brother couldn't say 'r's as a kid and I got "Lola". It's been my nickname for 39 of 41 years. It's a lovely name in full. Frilly, but not too much so and still strong and completely feminine. It's been a pleasure to be named Laura.

I can really relate to the L's-and-R's issue! I was born in 1965 and given that name at the height of its huge swell of popularity. As I grew up, I noticed, with growing irritation, two things: one was that when teachers would call on me in class, there would always be at least one other Laura and quite often, TWO other Lauras that also thought they were being called on. This made for a distinct sense of non-uniqueness, which I think I set about to make up for by being as weird and offbeat as I could be in every other way. The other annoyance was phonics-based. My last name being "Carlson", I noticed that it sounded like a whole handful of marbles was rolling around in the mouth of anyone who spoke my full name. Unfortunately this tended to sound exactly like a recurring speech impediment in developmentally-disabled people. That is the kind of thing that mean kids that liked to pick on me jumped ALL over. As soon as I was away from home in college, I immediately changed my name to "Demimonde". A name is more important than most people realise. It's not just a person's identity; it is the very syllables that summon that person's attention, all through the years of his or her life! If you don't like how your own name sounds, you are going to end up possibly not feeling as good about yourself as you should. Make sure you give your child a euphonious name. And if s/he ends up finding it unsuitable, hopefully you'll do as my own dear mother has done for me. She calls me by the name I gave myself. It's really a very high honour.

Personal experiences with the name Laura: | Edit

I named my daughter Laura because it is a beautiful name, but also because it is nearly impossible to misspell or mispronounce. I spent my entire childhood answering to various incorrect pronounciations of my name and always having to sepll my name for people.

Nicknames for Laura: | Edit

Laurie, Lori, Lolly, Lola, Loz, Laus, Lozzy, Lausie, Lara, Lorelei, Lala

Meanings and history of the name Laura: | Edit

The source of this name is laurus, a Latin word meaning "the bay -- or laurel -- plant." The name is used in German, Dutch, English, Italian, French, Spanish, Finnish, Polish and Czech.

Famous real-life people named Laura: | Edit

Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of the Little House on the
Prairie books
Laura Dern, American actress
Laura Branningan, singer
Laura Bush, U.S. First Lady
Laura Prepon, American actress
"Dr. Laura" Schlessinger, conservative talk show host
Laura Linney, American actress

Laura in song, story & screen: | Edit

The Eyes of Laura Mars, American film
Laura, American film
Tell Laura I Love Her, American song
"Laura", a song by David Raksin and Johnny Mercer adapted from the 1944 film's theme
"Laura," a parody of the 1945 song performed by Spike Jones and His Other Orchestra
"Laura", the first charting single by American alternative band Scissor Sisters in 2003
"Laura (What's He Got That I Ain't Got)", a 1976 song by Kenny Rogers
"Laura Non C'è", a song by the Italian singer Nek in 1997
"Laura", a song performed by Billy Joel on his album The Nylon Curtain
"Laura", a song by the Celtic-Punk band Flogging Molly
"Laura", a song by the British shoegazing band Lush
"Laura", a song by the tejano band Mazz
"Laura", a 1986 song composed by Jean-Jacques Goldman
Laura's dream, a song by Astor Piazzolla from the album The New Tango
Think of Laura, a song by the American singer/songwriter Christopher Cross in 1983
Laura, of Luke and Laura from General Hospital
Laura Palmer, the mystery girl from Twin Peaks
Laura Winslow, a character on the '90s sitcom Family Matters
Laura Hardy, mother from the Hardy Boys series