UK boy's name
Mousa
A masculine name of Arabic origin meaning "drawn from the water" or "born".
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.
Mousa is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Mousa popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #4270, with 4 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2014, with 8 births.
This profile covers 73 England and Wales registrations across 14 recorded years from 1999 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, 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 50% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 73 living people in the UK are called Mousa. 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
- • Mousa ranked #4270 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 4 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2014, when 8 boys were registered as Mousa.
- • About 73 living people in the UK are estimated to have Mousa as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#4270
2024
Births in 2024
4
Latest year
Peak year
2014
8 births
Estimated living
73
2026
Meaning
What does Mousa mean?
The name Mousa has its origins in the Arabic language and culture. It is derived from the Arabic root word 'Musa', which means 'drawn from the water' or 'saved from the water'. The name is closely associated with the biblical figure Moses, who was rescued from the Nile River as an infant.
In Arabic, the name Mousa is a variant spelling of the more common name Musa. It is widely used across the Middle East and among Muslim communities worldwide. The name appears in the Quran, the sacred text of Islam, as it refers to the prophet Moses, who is regarded as one of the most revered figures in Islamic tradition.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Mousa can be found in the 7th century AD, during the time of the Islamic conquests. Mousa ibn Nusair was a prominent Arab general who led the Muslim conquest of Iberia (modern-day Spain and Portugal) in 711 AD.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Mousa. Mousa al-Kazim (699-799 AD) was a revered Shia imam and scholar who made significant contributions to Islamic theology and jurisprudence. Ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi (780-850 AD) was a renowned Persian mathematician and astronomer, considered the father of algebra.
Another notable figure was Musa I of Mali (c. 1280-1337 AD), a powerful ruler of the Mali Empire in West Africa. He is famous for his pilgrimage to Mecca, during which he displayed the immense wealth of his kingdom, leaving a lasting impression on the cities he visited.
In the modern era, Mousa Al-Sadr (1928-1978) was a prominent Lebanese Shia Muslim philosopher and political leader who played a significant role in the Lebanese civil war before his mysterious disappearance in 1978.
Mousa Traore (1936-2020) was a Malian military officer and politician who served as the President of Mali from 1968 to 1991, during a period of political instability and economic challenges in the country.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Mousa over time
The chart below shows babies named Mousa registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1999 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 Mousa, the clearest high point is 2014. The latest England and Wales figure is 4 births in 2024, compared with 8 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mousa by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Mousa 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 | #3541 | 25 | 5 |
| 2010s | #3198 | 34 | 6 |
| 2000s | #2883 | 11 | 2 |
| 1990s | #2943 | 3 | 1 |
Related
Names similar to Mousa
- Matthew 80,931
- Mohammed 74,321
- Muhammad 72,235
- Max 59,807
- Michael 47,075
- Mason 38,935
- Mohammad 25,910
- Morgan 15,994
- Muhammed 11,527
- Mark 11,336
- Marcus 11,257
- Maxwell 10,006
FAQ
Mousa: questions and answers
How popular is the name Mousa in the UK right now?
In 2024, Mousa was ranked #4270 for boys in England and Wales, with 4 births registered.
When was Mousa most popular?
The peak year on record was 2014, with 8 babies registered as Mousa in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Mousa?
A masculine name of Arabic origin meaning "drawn from the water" or "born".
How many people are called Mousa in the UK?
A total of 73 babies have been registered as Mousa across the 14 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here.
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.