Hira (surname) explained

Hira is an Indian, Japanese, and Māori surname.

Origins

As a Japanese surname, it is written with a kanji meaning "even", "flat", or "peace" ; the same character is also used for the Japanese surname Taira as well as the Chinese surname spelled Píng in Hanyu Pinyin (reflecting the Standard Mandarin pronunciation).^[1] As an Indian name, it can also be spelled Heera, and originates from the Sanskrit word Sanskrit: hīraka meaning "diamond".^[2] Hira is also a Māori surname.^{[3] [4]}

Statistics

Statistics compiled by Patrick Hanks on the basis of the 2011 United Kingdom census and the 2011 census of Ireland found 293 people with the surname Hira on the island of Great Britain and one on the island of Ireland. The 1881 United Kingdom census did not record any bearers of this surname.^[2] The 2010 United States Census found 513 people with the surname Hira, making it the 42,308th-most-common name in the country. This represented an increase from 384 (51,024th-most-common) in the 2000 census. In both censuses, about eight-tenths of the bearers of the surname identified as Asian, while the proportion identifying as non-Hispanic white fell from 12% in the 2000 census to 6.4% in the 2010 census.^[5]

People

• Farida Akhter Hira, Bangladeshi Awami League politician
• Hitesh Hira (born 1971), Zimbabwean cricketer
• , Japanese actor
• Mannan Hira (1956–2020), Bangladeshi dramatist
• Nari Hira, Indian publisher
• Rehana Akter Hira, Bangladeshi Awami League politician
• Rasheda Begum Hira, Bangladesh Nationalist Party politician
• Rezaul Karim Hira (Bengali: রেজাউল করিম হীরা, born 1942), Bangladesh Awami League politician, Minister of Housing and Public Works
• Rhonda Hira (born 1965), New Zealand softball player
• Ronnie Hira (born 1987), New Zealand cricketer
• , Indian-born Japanese hotelier
• , Japanese footballer
• , Japanese actor

Notes and References

1. Book: Japanese names and how to read them. Koop. Albert J.. Inada. Hogitaro. London. Eastern Press. 1922. 192. 19 November 2020.
2. Book: The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland. Patrick. Hanks. Richard. Coates. Peter. McClure. Oxford University Press. 2016. 9780192527479. 1293.
3. Three Generations of Hiras. Melvin. Taylor. Te Ao Hou / The New World. 11. July 1955. 17. 19 October 2020.
4. Book: Fletcher, Henry James. Index of Māori Names. Henry Fletcher (missionary). University of Waikato. 1925. 19 November 2020.
5. Web site: How common is your last name?. Newsday. 19 November 2020.