UK girl's name
Aleemah
A feminine Arabic name meaning "one who has knowledge".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2019. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Aleemah is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Aleemah popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2019 in this profile. In that release it ranked #5591, with 3 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2014, with 9 births.
This profile covers 78 England and Wales registrations across 18 recorded years from 1999 to 2019. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
The latest count is about 33% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 78 living people in the UK are called Aleemah. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2020 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Aleemah ranked #5591 for girls in England and Wales in 2019, with 3 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2014, when 9 girls were registered as Aleemah.
- • About 78 living people in the UK are estimated to have Aleemah as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#5591
2019
Births in 2019
3
Latest year
Peak year
2014
9 births
Estimated living
78
2026
Meaning
What does Aleemah mean?
The name Aleemah is an Arabic name with roots tracing back to the 7th century CE. It is derived from the Arabic word 'alim', which means 'knowledgeable' or 'learned'. The name is a feminine form of the masculine name Aleem.
Aleemah was a relatively uncommon name during the early years of Islam, but it gained popularity in the Middle Ages, particularly among the educated and scholarly classes. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Aleemah can be found in a 12th-century poetry collection from Persia, where it was used to describe a female scholar renowned for her knowledge of Islamic theology and philosophy.
In the 13th century, an influential Sufi mystic from Baghdad named Aleemah al-Baghdadi was known for her spiritual teachings and poetry. She is often cited as one of the earliest examples of a woman achieving prominence in the Islamic scholarly tradition.
During the Ottoman Empire, which spanned from the 14th to the 20th century, the name Aleemah was associated with several notable figures. Aleemah Hatun, a 16th-century Ottoman princess and the daughter of Sultan Selim II, was renowned for her patronage of the arts and her support for educational institutions.
In the 18th century, Aleemah Bint al-Hadi was a renowned scholar of Islamic jurisprudence from Mecca. Her writings and teachings on Islamic law were widely studied and respected throughout the Arabian Peninsula.
Another historical figure with the name Aleemah was Aleemah Ismat, a 19th-century Persian poet and writer from Tehran. Her collection of poems, titled "Gulistan-e-Ismat," was widely acclaimed and celebrated in literary circles of the time.
While the name Aleemah has retained its roots in the Arabic and Islamic traditions, it has also been adopted by various cultures and communities around the world, each with their own unique interpretations and associations.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Aleemah over time
The chart below shows babies named Aleemah registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1999 to 2019. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Aleemah, the clearest high point is 2014. The latest England and Wales figure is 3 births in 2019, compared with 9 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Aleemah by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Aleemah was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | #5098 | 36 | 9 |
| 2000s | #3792 | 36 | 8 |
| 1990s | #2444 | 6 | 1 |
Related
Names similar to Aleemah
- Amelia 94,830
- Ava 54,556
- Amy 52,495
- Alice 46,815
- Abigail 45,658
- Amber 31,922
- Anna 27,802
- Alexandra 19,455
- Amelie 18,051
- Abbie 15,971
- Aimee 15,158
- Annabelle 15,120
FAQ
Aleemah: questions and answers
How popular is the name Aleemah in the UK right now?
In 2019, Aleemah was ranked #5591 for girls in England and Wales, with 3 births registered.
When was Aleemah most popular?
The peak year on record was 2014, with 9 babies registered as Aleemah in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Aleemah?
A feminine Arabic name meaning "one who has knowledge".
How many people are called Aleemah in the UK?
A total of 78 babies have been registered as Aleemah across the 18 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.