UK name, mostly boys
Essa
A masculine Arabic name meaning "Jesus" or "protector".
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.
Essa is mostly registered for boys in the UK records. People looking for Essa popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #773, with 44 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2024, with 44 births.
This profile covers 555 England and Wales registrations across 27 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.
Essa is at its recorded peak in the England and Wales series.
We estimate that about 564 living people in the UK are called Essa. 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
- • Essa ranked #773 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 44 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2024, when 44 boys were registered as Essa.
- • Essa ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #482 in 2023.
- • About 564 living people in the UK are estimated to have Essa as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
- • Across the England and Wales records shown here, 99.3% of Essa registrations are for boys.
Latest rank (E&W)
#773
2024
Births in 2024
44
Latest year
Peak year
2024
44 births
Estimated living
564
2026
Gender
Boy and girl registrations for Essa
In England and Wales birth records, Essa has been registered for both boys and girls. Across the years shown here, 99.3% of registrations are for boys and 0.7% are for girls.
These figures use the sex categories in the published baby-name files. They are useful for spotting how the name is used at registration, but they are not a live measure of gender identity or everyone living with the name today.
Essa registered for boys
- Ranked #773 in 2024
- 44 boys registered in 2024
- Peak: 2024 (44 births)
Essa registered for girls
- Ranked #4,686 in 2019
- 4 girls registered in 2019
- Peak: 2019 (4 births)
Meaning
What does Essa mean?
The name Essa originates from the Arabic language and has been in use for centuries across the Middle East and parts of North Africa. It is derived from the Arabic word "Issa," which is a variant of the name Jesus. In Arabic, the name Essa means "God is salvation" or "God is the savior."
Historically, the name Essa has been associated with Islam and its holy scriptures, particularly the Quran, where it is used to refer to Jesus Christ. The Quran mentions Essa as a prophet and messenger of God who was given the ability to perform miracles and spread the word of God.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Essa can be found in the writings of Muslim scholars from the 7th and 8th centuries CE. These scholars often referred to Jesus Christ as Essa, in accordance with the Islamic tradition.
Throughout history, there have been several notable figures who bore the name Essa. One of the most famous was Essa ibn Musa al-Naushari, an 8th-century Arab mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the development of algebra and trigonometry.
Another prominent individual with the name Essa was Essa al-Muhallabi, a 9th-century Arab poet and scholar who was known for his mastery of Arabic literature and his contributions to the field of philology.
In the 12th century, Essa ibn Masah al-Jahiz was a renowned Arab philosopher and writer who addressed various topics, including theology, ethics, and zoology.
During the Ottoman Empire, Essa Pasha was a prominent 16th-century Ottoman statesman and military commander who served as the governor of several provinces and played a significant role in the expansion of Ottoman territories.
More recently, Essa Moosa was a South African anti-apartheid activist and religious leader who played a crucial role in the struggle against racial segregation in the 20th century.
These are just a few examples of the many notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Essa, reflecting its deep-rooted cultural and religious significance within the Arab and Islamic world.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Essa over time
The chart below compares boys and girls registered as Essa in England and Wales, 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 Essa, the clearest high point is 2024. The latest England and Wales figure is 44 births in 2024, compared with 44 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Essa by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Essa 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 | #875 | 178 | 5 |
| 2010s | #1067 | 272 | 10 |
| 2000s | #1995 | 96 | 10 |
| 1990s | #2258 | 9 | 2 |
Geography
Where Essa is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Essa. 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.
Essa ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #482 in 2023.
Across the UK
Essa in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#482 in 2023
3 years of NRS records, 12 total registered
Related
Names similar to Essa
- Ethan 77,394
- Edward 53,212
- Elliot 23,450
- Elijah 22,369
- Ellis 19,358
- Elliott 16,964
- Evan 14,535
- Ezra 11,838
- Ewan 10,685
- Eli 8,126
- Elias 7,049
- Eric 6,654
FAQ
Essa: questions and answers
How popular is the name Essa in the UK right now?
In 2024, Essa was ranked #773 for boys in England and Wales, with 44 births registered.
When was Essa most popular?
The peak year on record was 2024, with 44 babies registered as Essa in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Essa?
A masculine Arabic name meaning "Jesus" or "protector".
How many people are called Essa in the UK?
A total of 555 babies have been registered as Essa across the 27 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 12 more in Scotland.
Where is Essa most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Essa ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #482 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.