Home › Baby Names Directory › Jawara

Jawara

♂ Boy

How to Pronounce Jawara

Pronounced jah-WAH-rah /dʒɑːˈwɑː.rɑː/Medium

Meaning: Jawara is a Mandinka name and clan name of the Gambia and wider West Africa. In the United States it was taken up largely as a heritage name during the Black cultural pride of the nineteen-seventies, and it carries an echo of Sir Dawda Jawara, the Gambia's first leader after independence.Low

In 30 seconds: Jawara is a Mandinka name of the Gambia and West Africa, brought into American use as a heritage name and a nod to statesman Dawda Jawara. It appeared for United States boys in the early nineteen-seventies (said jah-WAH-rah).

💕 Browse more names

Origin LowWest African, Mandinka

MeaningJawara is a Mandinka name and clan name of the Gambia and wider West Africa. In the United States it was taken up largely as a heritage name during the Black cultural pride of the nineteen-seventies, and it carries an echo of Sir Dawda Jawara, the Gambia's first leader after independence.

U.S. rank (2002)#9948 ↘ Falling

2002 U.S. births6 boys (0.00% of U.S. boys)

Peak year1992

Total births (all-time)≈ 274

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Jawara is a Mandinka name and clan name rooted in the Gambia and neighboring parts of West Africa. It reached United States birth records in the early nineteen-seventies, when many Black American families were choosing names that reached back to African languages and figures. The best-known bearer of the surname, Sir Dawda Jawara, led the Gambia for decades, lending the name a dignified public association.

It remained rare in America, given to only a couple dozen boys a year even at its high in the early nineteen-nineties, so a boy named Jawara then would be about thirty today. It reads firmly as a heritage name rather than a passing trend.

Did you know? Jawara points across the Atlantic to the Gambia, where Sir Dawda Jawara led the country after independence — one reason the name traveled into African American families during the heritage-naming wave.

Overall data confidence 45%

References - Jawara — Mandinka name/clan name; Dawda Jawara of The Gambia

Variations

JawarahJuwara

Nicknames

JahWara

Famous Bearers

★Dawda Jawara (1924-2019)
Gambian statesman who led the country after independence; his surname anchors the name's public association

If you like Jawara…

Jelani— a like African-heritage boy's name

Kwame— another West African pick of the era

Malik— shares the warm open vowels

Amari— a similar three-beat heritage name

Explore names like Jawara

By themerare heritage west-african place-linked

All themes →All meanings →All origins →

Frequently Asked

What does the name Jawara mean?

It is a Mandinka name and clan name of the Gambia and West Africa, carried partly in honor of statesman Dawda Jawara.

How do you pronounce Jawara?

It's said jah-WAH-rah /dʒɑːˈwɑː.rɑː/, three syllables with the stress in the middle.

Is Jawara a boy or girl name?

Jawara is used as a boy's name.

How popular is Jawara?

It has always been rare, given to only a couple dozen boys a year at its peak in the early nineteen-nineties.