Muhammad ranks as top baby boy name in England, Wales for third straight year

By Jon Brown, Christian Post Reporter Friday, July 10, 2026

Muhammad ranked as the most popular name for boys born in England and Wales in 2025 for the third consecutive year, according to newly released government statistics.

Of the 300,715 live male births last year in England and Wales, 5,957 of them were named Muhammad, according to data from the United Kingdom's Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Because ONS ranks different English spellings of Muhammad separately, variations of the name appeared again on the list, with Mohammed ranking 20th at 1,712 and Mohammad 55th at 895.

Muhammad was followed by Noah, which ranked second with 4,075; Leo, which was third with 3,278; and Luca, which was fourth at 3,266. Traditionally English boys' names such as Arthur, Oliver and George did not appear on the list until fifth, sixth and seventh place, respectively.

ONS also observed regional differences across England and Wales, noting Muhammad was the most popular boys' name in four of England's nine regions, including London.

The ONS data also listed popular girls' names, with Olivia taking the top spot for the 10th consecutive year as the name for 2,386 baby girls. Over the same decade since 2015, Muhammad has risen 11 spots on the list of popularity.

The growing number of young boys named after the founder of Islam comes amid growing civil unrest in the U.K. over immigration from mostly Islamic countries.

After a Sudanese man who claimed asylum prompted riots after attempting to behead a man in Belfast, Northern Ireland, last month, MP Gavin Robinson called on authorities to come to terms with the negative effects of mass immigration.

Robinson called the attack "chilling" and "medieval" and urged the government to realize that "uncontrolled immigration needs to end."

According to the last census in 2021, there were 3.9 million Muslims in the U.K., or 6.5% of the population, marking a sharp rise of approximately 44% from the 2.7 million Muslims in 2011. In 1960, there were only 105,000 Muslims in the U.K.

According to a Policy Exchange report published in 2016, 53% of the Muslims in the U.K. a decade ago were not born there, and 93% had parents who were born outside the country. Pew Research estimates that based on moderate immigration, 17% of the U.K. population will be Muslim by 2050.

Christianity in the U.K. has also dwindled over recent decades, and a survey of Evangelical Christians in the country last year found that nearly half (48%) reported concern that expressing their religious beliefs in public has become more difficult over the past five years.

In an interview with The Christian Post in 2024, British-born Catholic cleric Calvin Robinson warned the U.K. is on the brink of civil war, and placed its simmering tensions in the context of a wider spiritual decline in the country since World War I.

In response to a story that white British children have become a minority at schools in their own capital city, Robinson wrote last month: "London has been completely taken over. Established in 43/47 A.D., London is one of the oldest and greatest cities. Formally the capital city since 1066. Lost in a manner of decades thanks to consecutive Conservative & Labour governments. We do not hate our government enough."