Lara

Lara is used as a short form of Larissa or Larisa, a name associated with the Greek place name Larissa and often interpreted as “citadel.” That route is separate from the mythological Lara who appears in Roman literature. The same compact spelling can therefore carry more than one history.

Lara in Doctor Zhivago and the video-game character Lara Croft have made the name familiar to many English speakers. Laura is a close visual comparison, but it belongs to a different name family. Parents choosing Lara can use it as a full name or retain Larissa as the formal version, depending on the connection they want to preserve.