Farah, or Farrah, is a feminine given name in Arabic and Persian, among other languages. Derived from the concept of Khvarenah (divine radiance, halo) in Zoroastrianism[dubious – discuss], it has more recently risen in popularity in the Anglosphere due to association with the American celebrities Farrah Fawcett (1947–2009) and Farrah Abraham (born 1991); the name Farrah was among the top 1,000 names for newborn girls in the United States between 1976 and 1980, between 1987 and 1988, and again between 2010 and 2016.[1][2][3]
Gender | Female |
---|---|
Origin | |
Word/name | Arabic, Persian, English, Irish, Urdu, etc. |
Meaning | Radiance, happiness, joy |
Other names | |
Variant form(s) | Fareeha, Farha, Afrah, Farhan, etc. |
Arabic
editFarah (Arabic: فَرَح, faraḥ) is an Arabic female given name and sometimes male given name meaning "happiness, joy, gladness, gleefulness, joyful, joyfulness, merriment, rejoice"
The name is based on the Arabic root ف ر ح (f-r-ḥ), variants from the root are:
- Faruh/ Farouh (Arabic: فَرُوح, farūḥ) - male given name
- Farhat/ Farhaat (Arabic: فَرْحَات, farḥāt) - male given name (but the written form is in the female plural form), the female form below is Farhah.
- Farhan/ Farhaan (Arabic: فَرْحَان, farḥān) - male given name
- Afrah/ Afraah (Arabic: أَفْرَاح, afrāḥ) - female given name in the plural or superlative form
- Fariha/ Fareeha (Arabic: فَرِيحَة, farīḥah) - female given name
- Farhah (Arabic: فَرْحَة, farḥah) - female given name, the female form of Farhaat above
- Farhah/ Faarhah (Arabic: فَارْحَة, fārḥah) - gender-neutral form, uncommonly used
- Farah/ Faarah (Arabic: فَارَح, fāraḥ) - gender-neutral form, uncommonly used
Persian
editFarah (Arabic: فَرَح, faraḥ), the same as the Arabic meaning as mentioned above.
Farrah/ Khwarrah (Pahlavi: xwarrah) or Khvaraenah (Avestan: (Farah salman),xᵛarənah), in Avestan or Pahlavi meaning 'glory'. The Avestan or Pahlavi word-name used in Zoroastrian texts or name and is completely different from the Arabic.
People with the nickname
edit- Oisín Gallen (born 1999/2000), Gaelic footballer
People with the given name
editFarah
edit- Farah (actress) (fl. 1984), Indian actress
- Farah Zeynep Abdullah (born 1989), Turkish actress
- Farah Damji (born 1966), British criminal
- Farah Fath (born 1984), American actress
- Farah Guled 3rd Grand Sultan of the Isaaq clan
- Farah Hussein (born 2001), Egyptian gymnast
- Farah Ali Jama, Somali economist and politician
- Farah Jacquet (born 1985), Belgian politician
- Farah Khan (born 1965), Indian choreographer and director
- Farah Mendlesohn (born 1968), British academic
- Farah Nur (1862-1932), warrior and poet of the Isaaq clan
- Farah Pahlavi (born 1938), Iranian empress consort
- Farah Shah (born 1972), Pakistani actress and host
Farrah
edit- Farrah Abraham (born 1991), American television personality
- Farrah Fawcett (1947–2009), American actress
- Farrah Franklin (born 1981), American singer
- Farrah Forke (born 1968), American actress
- Farrah Hall (born 1981), American sports sailor
- Farrah Moan (born 1993), American drag queen and entertainer
- Farrah Yousef (born 1989), Syrian singer
People with the surname
editFarah
edit- Abdulrahim Abby Farah (1919–2018), Somali diplomat and politician
- Caesar E. Farah (1929–2009), American scholar and historian
- Cynthia Farah (born 1949), American writer and photographer
- Elias Farah (1928–2013), Syrian writer and thinker
- Hassan Farah, 3rd Grand Sultan of the Isaaq Somali clan
- Hassan Abshir Farah (1945–2020), Somali politician
- Joseph Farah (born 1954), American journalist and writer
- Kenza Farah (born 1986), French-Algerian singer
- Martha Farah (born 1955), American psychologist
- Mo Farah (born 1983), Somali-British track and field athlete
- Nuruddin Farah (born 1945), Somali writer
- Robbie Farah (born 1984), Australian rugby league footballer
- Robert Farah (tennis) (born 1987), Colombian tennis player
Farrah
edit- Abd'Elkader Farrah (1926–2005), Algerian painter and stage designer
- Georges Farrah (born 1957), Canadian politician
- John Farrah (1849–1907), British grocer, confectioner, biologist and meteorologist
- Pat Farrah, American retail executive
- Saleh Ali Farrah, Tanzanian politician
- Shamek Farrah (fl. 1972), American saxophone player
Fictional characters
edit- Farah, a character in the American television series Sleeper Cell, played by Sarah Shahi
- Farah Black, a character in the American television series Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, played by Jade Eshete
- Farah, a character in the video game series Prince of Persia
- Farah Oersted, a character in the video game Tales of Eternia
- Fareeha Amari, known as Pharah, a character in the videogame Overwatch
- Farah Karim, a character in the video game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019)
- Amy Farrah Fowler, a character in the American television series The Big Bang Theory, played by Mayim Bialik