NameCensus.

UK boy's name

Kareem

An Arabic name meaning "generous, noble, honorable".

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.

Kareem is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Kareem popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #468, with 85 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2024, with 85 births.

This profile covers 1,175 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.

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

We estimate that about 1,181 living people in the UK are called Kareem. 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

  • Kareem ranked #468 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 85 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2024, when 85 boys were registered as Kareem.
  • Kareem ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #727 in 2024.
  • About 1,181 living people in the UK are estimated to have Kareem as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#468

2024

Births in 2024

85

Latest year

Peak year

2024

85 births

Estimated living

1,181

2026

Meaning

What does Kareem mean?

Kareem is a male given name of Arabic origin, derived from the root word "karīm" which means "noble" or "generous." The name traces its roots back to the Arabian Peninsula and has been in use among Arab communities for centuries.

The earliest record of the name Kareem appears in Islamic literature, particularly the Quran, where it is mentioned as one of the attributes of God. In Arabic calligraphy and poetry, the word "kareem" is often used to describe someone of high moral character and virtue.

One of the earliest known individuals to bear the name Kareem was Kareem ibn Abi Qarrah, a 7th-century Arab poet and warrior from the Banu Kilab tribe. His poems and exploits were widely celebrated during his lifetime and have been preserved in various anthologies of Arabic literature.

Another notable figure in history with the name Kareem was Al-Kareem al-Ustadh, a renowned 10th-century calligrapher and scholar from Baghdad. His works are considered masterpieces of Arabic calligraphy and are housed in various museums and collections around the world.

In the 12th century, Kareem al-Din al-Harawi was a prominent Persian poet and mystic who made significant contributions to the development of Sufi literature. His poetic works, such as the "Anwar-i Suhaily," are still widely studied and appreciated in Persian-speaking regions.

During the Ottoman Empire, Kareem Pasha was a prominent military leader and statesman who served as the Grand Vizier (prime minister) from 1833 to 1839. He played a crucial role in implementing various reforms and modernizing the Ottoman military and administrative systems.

In more recent times, one of the most famous individuals with the name Kareem was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the legendary American basketball player. Born in 1947, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the NBA and held the record for the most career points scored until 2022.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Kareem over time

The chart below shows babies named Kareem 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 Kareem, the clearest high point is 2024. The latest England and Wales figure is 85 births in 2024, compared with 85 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Kareem
021436485199620102024

Decades

Kareem by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Kareem 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 #543 359 5
2010s #747 447 10
2000s #838 273 10
1990s #687 96 4

Geography

Where Kareem is most common

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

Kareem ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #727 in 2024.

Scotland
3

Across the UK

Kareem in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#727 in 2024

4 years of NRS records, 14 total registered

Notable bearers

Famous people named Kareem

  • Kareem Ahmed

    association football player

    Egyptian-English association football player

    2007-

  • Kareem Queeley

    basketball player

    kittitian-British basketball player

    2001-

Related

Names similar to Kareem

FAQ

Kareem: questions and answers

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

In 2024, Kareem was ranked #468 for boys in England and Wales, with 85 births registered.

When was Kareem most popular?

The peak year on record was 2024, with 85 babies registered as Kareem in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Kareem?

An Arabic name meaning "generous, noble, honorable".

How many people are called Kareem in the UK?

A total of 1,175 babies have been registered as Kareem across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 14 more in Scotland.

Where is Kareem most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Kareem ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #727 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.