Muslim baby names and their meanings: popular boys’ and girls’ names in the UK

Why does a name matter in Islam?

A name is a parent’s first gift to a child, and the Sunnah shows it should have a good meaning. The Prophet (peace be upon him) recommended good names, changed names with bad meanings and took a good name as a hopeful sign.

• The most beloved names. “The most beloved of your names to Allah are ʿAbdullah and ʿAbd al-Rahman” (Sahih Muslim 2132).
• Changing a bad meaning. ʿUmar’s daughter was called ʿĀṣiyah, “disobedient”, and the Prophet renamed her Jamilah, “beautiful” (Sahih Muslim 2139). He also changed the name Barrah, “pious”, to Zaynab, because the name praised the person who carried it (Sahih Muslim 2142).
• Naming on the seventh day. “A boy is in pledge for his ʿaqiqah; sacrifice is made for him on the seventh day, his head is shaved and he is given a name” (Sunan Abi Dawud 2838, graded sahih by al-Albani; Jamiʿ al-Tirmidhi 1522, graded sahih). The Prophet also named his son Ibrahim on the night he was born (Sahih Muslim 2315), so scholars accept naming on the day of birth or on the seventh day. See our guide to Aqiqah gifts and traditions.
• A hopeful sign. At Hudaybiyyah, when Suhayl ibn ʿAmr came to negotiate (his name comes from sahl, “easy”), the Prophet said, “Now the matter has become easy” (Sahih al-Bukhari 2731, reported by ʿIkrimah).

You may have heard “You will be called on the Day of Resurrection by your names and your fathers’ names, so make your names good” (Sunan Abi Dawud 4948). Al-Albani and other scholars grade it weak (daʿif), because its chain is broken, as Abu Dawud himself noted. The advice to choose good names stands on the authentic hadith above.

Can a name shape a child?

A name does not decide who a child becomes, but a name with a story gives them someone to look up to. This is Islamic tradition and parental wisdom, not a scientific claim.

Naming after the righteous is an old practice. When people in Najran asked why Maryam is called “sister of Harun” (19:28), the Prophet (peace be upon him) explained that people used to give names after the Prophets and righteous people who had gone before them (Sahih Muslim 2135). He named his own son after “my father Ibrahim” (Sahih Muslim 2315) and said, “Name yourselves after me, but do not call yourselves by my kunyah” (Sahih al-Bukhari 3539).

A child called Yusuf can hear how the Prophet Yusuf forgave his brothers; a Maryam, how she worshipped in the prayer niche (3:37); a Bilal, how he held firm and became the first muezzin; a Sumayyah, how bravely she kept her faith. Children love hearing about “their” namesake and often want to live up to them, so tell the story at bedtime and retell it as they grow. Our stories of the Prophets for kids and tips for teaching children about the Prophets are a good place to start.

Children also love hearing their own name in a story. Hudhud, a UK personalised Islamic storybook, makes the child’s own name the hero’s name: it replaces “Yusuf”, the sample hero, as the child flies with a talking hoopoe through the stories of five Prophets.

How do I choose a Muslim baby name?

Check the meaning first, then how the name sounds and is spelt in every language your family speaks. Work through these ten points before you register the birth, which must be done within 42 days in England, Wales and Northern Ireland (21 days in Scotland).

1. Check the meaning in Arabic. One letter can change a word: ʿĀṣiyah (عاصية) means “disobedient”, while Āsiyah (آسية), the wife of Pharaoh, is an honoured name. Malak (ملاك) is “angel”, but Malik (مالك) is “king, owner”. Look up the Arabic root, not only a baby-name app.
2. Say it in English. Sounds such as ʿayn (ع), ḥa (ح) and qaf (ق) have no English equivalent. Will a teacher or a GP receptionist say it close enough? Try calling it across a park.
3. Say it in your family’s languages. Check it with grandparents who speak Urdu, Bengali, Somali, Turkish or Arabic, and make sure it doesn’t mean something odd in any of them.
4. Choose one spelling. Yusuf, Yousuf and Yousef are all the same name. Pick the spelling that English readers will pronounce best, and use it on every document. Apostrophes can be dropped by computer systems, so most families register Isa, not ʿIsa.
5. No servitude to anyone but Allah. Scholars agree a child should not be named the servant (ʿabd) of anyone other than Allah, so names such as ʿAbd al-Nabi (“servant of the Prophet”) are avoided.
6. Leave Allah’s own names to Him. Names such as al-Rahman and al-Khaliq are used only with ʿAbd (ʿAbd al-Rahman). The Prophet called “King of Kings” (Malik al-Amlak) the worst name in Allah’s sight (Sahih al-Bukhari 6205). Shared words without “al-”, such as Karim or Rahim, are widely used.
7. Avoid bad meanings and self-praise, following the examples in Sahih Muslim 2139 and 2142 above.
8. Say ʿAbd- names in full. “Abdul” alone means “servant of the”, so call him Abdul-Karim or Karim, not Abdul.
9. Think about brothers and sisters. Pairs with a story work well: Musa and Harun, Hasan and Husayn, Fatima and Zainab, Ibrahim and Ismaʿil.
10. Check middle names and initials. In many South Asian families a boy is registered Muhammad with a second name used every day, such as Muhammad Ali; this is a cultural custom, not a religious rule. Read the initials together before you decide.

Names of the Prophets for boys: the 25 named in the Qur’an

Twenty-five Prophets and Messengers are named in the Qur’an, peace be upon them all. Most came into Arabic from Hebrew or other languages, so their meanings are traditional and often uncertain; the reference shows where to read about each. (Scholars differ on whether Dhul-Kifl was a Prophet.)

Names of the Sahaba: boys’ names from the Prophet’s Companions

The Sahaba, may Allah be pleased with them, were the men who knew the Prophet and believed in him. Each name comes with a life story to share with your son.

Names of the Sahabiyat and the women of the Prophet’s family for girls

The Sahabiyat, may Allah be pleased with them, were the women who knew the Prophet and believed in him. Here they are with his mother, his wives and daughters, and the honoured women of the Qur’an.

Qur’anic names: words from the Qur’an used as names

These names are words or people found in the Qur’an. Taha and Yasin are the opening letters of Surahs 20 and 36; their meaning is known to Allah, and while they are widely used, some scholars discourage them as names.

Cute short Muslim baby names

Short names travel well between languages and suit a baby and an adult alike. Many Prophets’ names are short too: Isa, Nuh, Adam, Ilyas and Yunus.

Nature and light names

The Qur’an often points to the moon, the stars, the rain and the dawn as signs of Allah, and these names carry that sense of wonder.

Muslim names that work well in English

These names are easy to say and spell in English, so they rarely need explaining at nursery or school, yet they keep a clear Arabic meaning.

Unique Muslim names that are still easy to say

Want a name your child won’t share with three classmates? These are less common in the UK but simple to pronounce.

Names of good character, and ʿAbd- names

A name that describes good character is a quiet reminder of who a child can be. ʿAbd- names join “servant of” to one of Allah’s Names, following Sahih Muslim 2132.

What are the most popular Muslim baby names in the UK?

Muhammad was the most popular boys’ name in England and Wales in 2025, for the third year running, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures released on 9 July 2026. The ONS counts each spelling separately: Muhammad (5,957 babies), Mohammed (1,712) and Mohammad (895) together come to 8,564 boys. Nur and Noor are counted separately in the same way.

Ranks are for exact spellings; equal counts share a rank. The ONS covers England and Wales only: Scotland (National Records of Scotland) and Northern Ireland (NISRA) publish their own lists. In September 2026 the ONS stopped its written baby names bulletin and now publishes the figures as datasets.

In-depth guides to 25 popular names

Meaning, origin, pronunciation and story, one page per name.

Boys’ names

• Muhammad محمد“Praised, praiseworthy”: the name of the final Prophet
• Yusuf يوسف“God will increase”: the Prophet of Surah Yusuf
• Musa موسىThe Arabic form of Moses, the Prophet who spoke with Allah
• Ibrahim إبراهيمThe Arabic form of Abraham, “the friend of Allah”
• Isa عيسىThe Qur’anic name of Jesus, son of Maryam
• Nuh نوحThe Arabic form of Noah, the Prophet of the Ark
• Adam آدم“Of the earth”: the first human and first Prophet
• Yahya يحيى“He lives”: a name announced by Allah in the Qur’an
• Zakariya زكريا“God has remembered”: the Prophet whose dua was answered
• Ali علي“High, exalted”: the name of the Prophet’s cousin
• Hamza حمزة“Strong, steadfast”: the Prophet’s uncle, the Lion of Allah
• Zayn زين“Beauty, grace”: a short name with a long history
• Omar عمر“Long life, flourishing”: the name of the second caliph

Girls’ names

• Maryam مريمThe mother of Isa, the only woman named in the Qur’an
• Layla ليلى“Night”: a top-50 girls’ name in England and Wales
• Fatima فاطمةThe name of the Prophet’s beloved daughter
• Zara زاراA name with several roots, often linked to Zahra, “radiant”
• Aisha عائشة“Alive, living”: the name of a great scholar of Islam
• Sara سارة“Princess”: the wife of the Prophet Ibrahim
• Amira أميرة“Princess, leader”: the feminine of Amir
• Zainab زينبA name of the Prophet’s daughter, granddaughter and two wives
• Aaliyah عالية“High, exalted”: the feminine of Aali
• Hana هناء“Happiness, bliss”: a short Arabic name with a sunny meaning
• Khadijah خديجةThe first person to believe in the Prophet
• Inaya عناية“Care, concern, protection”

How we checked these meanings

Meanings come from the Arabic root, using standard dictionaries; where a name is from another language, or its meaning is uncertain or disputed, the table says so. Qur’an references are surah:verse, and hadith outside Bukhari and Muslim carry their grading. For questions of practice, ask a qualified imam.