UK boy's name
Danyal
An Arabic name derived from the biblical prophet Daniel, meaning "God is my judge".
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.
Danyal is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Danyal popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #814, with 40 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2002, with 98 births.
This profile covers 1,542 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.
The latest count is about 41% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 1,584 living people in the UK are called Danyal. 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
- • Danyal ranked #814 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 40 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2002, when 98 boys were registered as Danyal.
- • Danyal ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #609 in 2019.
- • About 1,584 living people in the UK are estimated to have Danyal as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#814
2024
Births in 2024
40
Latest year
Peak year
2002
98 births
Estimated living
1,584
2026
Meaning
What does Danyal mean?
The name Danyal has its origins in Arabic and is derived from the Hebrew name Daniel, which means "God is my judge" or "God has judged me". The name gained popularity during the 6th century BC when the Prophet Daniel lived in Babylon during the Jewish exile.
The Book of Daniel in the Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament of the Christian Bible contains stories of Daniel's life and experiences as a Jewish exile in Babylon. The book is a significant part of both Jewish and Christian religious traditions, contributing to the widespread use of the name Daniel and its variations, including Danyal.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Danyal can be found in the 9th century when Danyal al-Rahawi, a Persian physician and philosopher, lived in Baghdad during the Abbasid Caliphate. He made significant contributions to the fields of medicine and philosophy.
In the 12th century, Danyal al-Adib, an Arab scholar and poet from Damascus, gained recognition for his literary works and his expertise in Arabic language and literature.
During the late 13th and early 14th centuries, Danyal ibn Ibrahim al-Akbar, a Sufi mystic and philosopher from Persia, became known for his influential writings on Islamic mysticism and spirituality.
In the 16th century, Danyal Mirza, a Persian prince and governor of Shiraz during the Safavid dynasty, was renowned for his patronage of arts and literature, attracting many scholars and artists to his court.
Another notable figure was Danyal Beg, a 17th-century Mughal nobleman and military commander who served under Emperor Aurangzeb and played a crucial role in the Mughal conquest of the Deccan region in India.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Danyal over time
The chart below shows babies named Danyal 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 Danyal, the clearest high point is 2002. The latest England and Wales figure is 40 births in 2024, compared with 98 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Danyal by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Danyal 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 | #813 | 195 | 5 |
| 2010s | #829 | 384 | 10 |
| 2000s | #406 | 757 | 10 |
| 1990s | #418 | 206 | 4 |
Geography
Where Danyal is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Danyal. 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.
Danyal ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #609 in 2019.
Across the UK
Danyal in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#609 in 2019
14 years of NRS records, 55 total registered
Related
Names similar to Danyal
- Daniel 120,900
- Dylan 60,836
- David 37,852
- Dominic 20,480
- Declan 11,657
- Dexter 11,627
- Danny 8,434
- Dean 5,329
- Dillon 4,113
- Douglas 3,773
- Dominik 3,494
- Damian 3,486
FAQ
Danyal: questions and answers
How popular is the name Danyal in the UK right now?
In 2024, Danyal was ranked #814 for boys in England and Wales, with 40 births registered.
When was Danyal most popular?
The peak year on record was 2002, with 98 babies registered as Danyal in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Danyal?
An Arabic name derived from the biblical prophet Daniel, meaning "God is my judge".
How many people are called Danyal in the UK?
A total of 1,542 babies have been registered as Danyal across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 55 more in Scotland.
Where is Danyal most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Danyal ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #609 in 2019. 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.