Mohammed tops the list of baby names in England and Wales for the third year
A growing presence reflects demographic and cultural shifts.
Written by Omnia Hassan
The name «Mohammed» continued to top the list of the most common male baby names in England and Wales for the third year in a row, according to the latest data released by the UK's Office for National Statistics. This indicates the continued growth of the Muslim community and its influence on the demographic and cultural landscape of the United Kingdom.
Numbers confirm continued leadership
Statistics showed that the name «Muhammad» was given to 5,957 newborns in 2025, an increase of 236 newborns compared to 2024, maintaining its top position with a difference of nearly two thousand newborns from the name «Noah,» which ranked second.
The two names have held the first and second positions since 2023, while the gap between them in previous years was smaller, reaching about 1580 births, reflecting the widening difference in favor of the name «Mohammed.».
Broadcast in various writing formats
Despite the British National Statistics Office recording each spelling variation of the name separately, the spelling «Muhammad» was the most used among all variations. The spellings «Mohamed» and «Mohamad» also entered the list of the most 100 common names, ranking twentieth and fifty-fifth respectively.
The office points out that the variations in name spelling are due to the diversity of methods for transliterating Arabic names into the Latin alphabet, as well as differences in dialects and the cultural backgrounds of Muslim communities residing in Britain.
Continuous presence for decades
The name «Muhammad» has not been absent from the list of the ten most popular names since 2016, and it has also remained on the list of the hundred most common names since 1997, which reflects its continued popularity for nearly three decades.
Growth of the Muslim community behind the phenomenon
The Office for National Statistics believes that the rise of the name "Mohammed" is linked to several factors, foremost among them the continued growth of the Muslim community in the United Kingdom, which is estimated at about four million people—approximately 6% of the total population.
The name remains a preferred choice for many Muslim families, whether of Arab or Asian origin, as it carries religious and symbolic value, reflecting families' keenness to preserve their cultural and religious identity across generations, even as they settle in British society.
