Adeel Malik
For the first time, Muhammad is one of the top 10 most popular baby names for boys in the United States of America, according to data from the parenting website BabyCenter.
Allah says: “And We (Allah) have raised high your name (O Muhammad).” (Qur’an 94:4)
Muhammad ranks at No. 10, up four spots from last year. The name has been climbing steadily on BabyCenter’s rankings over the years and first entered the top 100 in 2013 as reported by CNN.
“Muslim families often choose Muhammad for firstborn sons to honor the prophet and bring blessings to the child,” Linda Murray, BabyCenter’s global editor in chief, said in a news release. “The name also has multiple spellings, and that helps a name get into the top 10.”
In the UK, Muhammad is ranked 1st in the most popular boys names, third year in a row.
BabyCenter says its data comes from almost 600,000 parents who shared their baby’s name with the organization in 2019. Its rankings also combine names that sound the same but have multiple spellings (like Mohammad and Muhammad).
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:
“Name yourselves with my name (use my name)…” (Sahih Bukhari 110)
The Social Security Administration also ranks the popularity of baby names using records of all babies born in the US, but the agency treats each unique spelling as a separate name.
The agency has not released its own list, but Social Security data shows Muhammad rose from No. 620 in 2000 to No. 345 in 2018. The agency does not include varied spellings in that ranking.
Names of Arabic origin are on the rise, according to BabyCenter. As Muhammad broke into the top 10 for boys, Aaliyah made the top 10 for girls.
Most popular names for boys in the USA
1) Liam
2) Jackson
3) Noah
4) Aiden
5) Grayson
6) Caden
7) Lucas
8) Elijah
9) Oliver
10) Muhammad
Most popular names for girls in the USA
1) Sophia
2) Olivia
3) Emma
4) Ava
5) Aria
6) Isabella
7) Amelia
8) Mia
9) Riley
10) Aaliyah
