NameCensus.

UK girl's name

Arwa

An Arabic feminine name meaning "loftiness" or "high rank".

For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.

Arwa is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Arwa popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #341, with 127 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2024, with 127 births.

This profile covers 1,046 England and Wales registrations across 29 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales and NRS Scotland, 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.

Arwa is at its recorded peak in the England and Wales series.

We estimate that about 1,086 living people in the UK are called Arwa. 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 2025 or 2026.

Key insights

  • Arwa ranked #341 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 127 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2024, when 127 girls were registered as Arwa.
  • Arwa ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #384 in 2024.
  • About 1,086 living people in the UK are estimated to have Arwa as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#341

2024

Births in 2024

127

Latest year

Peak year

2024

127 births

Estimated living

1,086

2026

Meaning

What does Arwa mean?

The name Arwa originates from the Arabic language and has its roots in the ancient Semitic cultures of the Middle East. It is derived from the Arabic word "arwah," which means "soul" or "spirit." The name has been in use for centuries and is believed to have first emerged during the early Islamic era, around the 7th century CE.

Arwa is a name with deep historical significance in the Arab world. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the writings of the renowned Arab historian and scholar, al-Tabari, who mentioned a notable woman named Arwa bint Ahmad al-Sulamiyya in his work, "The History of the Prophets and Kings." She lived in the 9th century CE and was known for her piety and knowledge of Islamic jurisprudence.

Another prominent figure with the name Arwa was Arwa al-Sulayhi, a powerful Queen of Yemen who ruled from 1067 to 1138 CE. She was renowned for her military prowess, political acumen, and patronage of the arts and sciences. Her reign marked a golden age for Yemen, and she is celebrated as one of the most influential female rulers in Islamic history.

In the realm of literature, Arwa is the name of a character in the famous Arabic literary work, "The Book of Songs" by Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani, written in the 10th century CE. The character Arwa is depicted as a beautiful and intelligent woman, renowned for her wit and charm.

Moving forward in time, Arwa was also the name of a prominent 13th-century Sufi mystic and poet from Persia, known as Arwa al-Zanjani. Her poetic works, which reflected her deep spiritual insights and devotion to the mystical path, have been widely studied and appreciated throughout the Islamic world.

Another notable figure named Arwa was Arwa Qadri, a celebrated Pakistani poet and writer who lived from 1936 to 2020. Her literary contributions, which explored themes of love, spirituality, and social issues, earned her numerous accolades, including the prestigious Pride of Performance award from the Pakistani government.

These are just a few examples of the historical and literary significance of the name Arwa, which has been borne by remarkable individuals across various fields and eras, reflecting its enduring appeal and the richness of its cultural heritage.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Arwa over time

The chart below shows babies named Arwa registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.

For Arwa, the clearest high point is 2024. The latest England and Wales figure is 127 births in 2024, compared with 127 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Arwa
0326495127199620102024

Decades

Arwa by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Arwa 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
2020s #472 452 5
2010s #943 405 10
2000s #1751 164 10
1990s #2649 25 4

Geography

Where Arwa is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Arwa. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.

Arwa ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #384 in 2024.

Scotland
8

Across the UK

Arwa in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#384 in 2024

9 years of NRS records, 45 total registered

Notable bearers

Famous people named Arwa

  • Arwa Mahdawi

    non-fiction writer; journalist

    British journalist

    1980-

Related

Names similar to Arwa

FAQ

Arwa: questions and answers

How popular is the name Arwa in the UK right now?

In 2024, Arwa was ranked #341 for girls in England and Wales, with 127 births registered.

When was Arwa most popular?

The peak year on record was 2024, with 127 babies registered as Arwa in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Arwa?

An Arabic feminine name meaning "loftiness" or "high rank".

How many people are called Arwa in the UK?

A total of 1,046 babies have been registered as Arwa across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 45 more in Scotland.

Where is Arwa most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Arwa ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #384 in 2024. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.

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.