NameCensus.

UK boy's name

Azan

An Arabic masculine name meaning "the call to prayer".

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.

Azan is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Azan popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #1517, with 17 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2022, with 30 births.

This profile covers 345 England and Wales registrations across 25 recorded years from 1998 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.

The latest count is about 57% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 356 living people in the UK are called Azan. 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

  • Azan ranked #1517 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 17 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2022, when 30 boys were registered as Azan.
  • Azan ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #614 in 2023.
  • About 356 living people in the UK are estimated to have Azan as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#1517

2024

Births in 2024

17

Latest year

Peak year

2022

30 births

Estimated living

356

2026

Meaning

What does Azan mean?

The name Azan has its origins in the Arabic language and culture, tracing back to the 7th century CE. It is derived from the Arabic word "adhan," which means "call to prayer" in Islam. The adhan is the melodious recitation that summons Muslims to perform their obligatory prayers five times a day.

In the early days of Islam, during the time of Prophet Muhammad, a man named Bilal ibn Rabah al-Habashi was chosen to be the first muezzin, the one who calls out the adhan. This historic event took place in the city of Medina, where the first Muslim community was established. Bilal's powerful and melodious voice became synonymous with the adhan, and his name is revered among Muslims worldwide.

The name Azan has been used throughout Islamic history, often given to boys born into devout Muslim families. One of the earliest recorded instances of this name dates back to the 8th century CE, when Azan ibn Abi Azan al-Lukhmi, a renowned Arab poet and scholar, lived during the Abbasid Caliphate.

In the 11th century CE, Azan ibn Abbas al-Qurashi, a celebrated Islamic scholar and jurist from Cordoba, Spain, made significant contributions to the study of Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh) and hadith (traditions of Prophet Muhammad).

Another notable figure with the name Azan was Azan al-Baghdadi, a 13th century CE Arab mathematician and astronomer from Baghdad, who wrote extensively on geometric and algebraic problems.

During the 14th century CE, Azan al-Zanjani, a Persian poet and mystic from Zanjan, Iran, composed beautiful lyrical poetry that explored themes of love, spirituality, and the divine.

In more recent history, Azan Qurayshi, born in 1928 in India, was a prominent Islamic scholar and author who wrote extensively on Islamic theology, jurisprudence, and the Qur'an.

While the name Azan has been predominantly used in the Muslim world, its melodious sound and deep connection to the call to prayer have made it a popular choice for parents across various cultures and regions.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Azan over time

The chart below shows babies named Azan registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1998 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 Azan, the clearest high point is 2022. The latest England and Wales figure is 17 births in 2024, compared with 30 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Azan
08152330199820112024

Decades

Azan by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Azan 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 #1316 103 5
2010s #1723 144 10
2000s #1801 95 9
1990s #2901 3 1

Geography

Where Azan is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Azan. 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.

Azan ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #614 in 2023.

Scotland
4

Across the UK

Azan in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#614 in 2023

4 years of NRS records, 13 total registered

Related

Names similar to Azan

FAQ

Azan: questions and answers

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

In 2024, Azan was ranked #1517 for boys in England and Wales, with 17 births registered.

When was Azan most popular?

The peak year on record was 2022, with 30 babies registered as Azan in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Azan?

An Arabic masculine name meaning "the call to prayer".

How many people are called Azan in the UK?

A total of 345 babies have been registered as Azan across the 25 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 13 more in Scotland.

Where is Azan most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Azan ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #614 in 2023. 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.