UK boy's name
Musa
A masculine name of Arabic origin meaning "the born one".
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.
Musa is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Musa popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #73, with 731 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2024, with 731 births.
This profile covers 7,252 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.
Musa is at its recorded peak in the England and Wales series.
We estimate that about 7,408 living people in the UK are called Musa. 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
- • Musa ranked #73 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 731 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2024, when 731 boys were registered as Musa.
- • Musa ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #199 in 2024.
- • About 7,408 living people in the UK are estimated to have Musa as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#73
2024
Births in 2024
731
Latest year
Peak year
2024
731 births
Estimated living
7,408
2026
Meaning
What does Musa mean?
Musa is a masculine given name of Arabic origin, derived from the root word "mws" meaning "to draw out" or "to pull." It is closely associated with the name Moses, who is revered as a prophet in Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.
The name Musa can be traced back to the ancient Semitic languages, such as Arabic, Hebrew, and Aramaic. In the Arabic language, "Musa" is the equivalent of the Hebrew name "Moshe," which is the biblical name for Moses.
In the Quran, the holy book of Islam, Musa is mentioned numerous times as a prophet who received divine revelations and led the Israelites out of Egypt. The story of Musa's encounter with Pharaoh and his subsequent exodus from Egypt is a significant narrative in the Quran.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Musa can be found in the Quran itself, where it is used to refer to the prophet Moses. This association with the biblical figure has made the name popular among Muslims worldwide.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Musa. One of the most famous was Musa al-Kazim (699-799 CE), the seventh Imam of Shia Islam, renowned for his piety and knowledge.
Another prominent figure was Musa bin Nusair (640-718 CE), an Arab general and governor who led the Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula, establishing Islamic rule in what is now Spain and Portugal.
In the realm of science, Musa al-Khwarizmi (780-850 CE) was a renowned Persian mathematician, astronomer, and geographer who made significant contributions to the development of algebra and introduced the concept of algorithms.
Musa I of Mali (1280-1337 CE), also known as Kankan Musa, was an influential ruler of the Mali Empire in West Africa. He is famous for his prosperous reign and his famous pilgrimage to Mecca, which showcased the wealth and power of his empire.
In literature, Musa Jalil (1906-1944) was a prominent Tatar poet and writer who played a significant role in the development of Tatar literature during the Soviet era.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Musa over time
The chart below shows babies named Musa 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 Musa, the clearest high point is 2024. The latest England and Wales figure is 731 births in 2024, compared with 731 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Musa by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Musa 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 | #97 | 2,919 | 5 |
| 2010s | #176 | 3,383 | 10 |
| 2000s | #407 | 885 | 10 |
| 1990s | #919 | 65 | 4 |
Geography
Where Musa is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Musa. 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.
Musa ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #199 in 2024.
Across the UK
Musa in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#199 in 2024
20 years of NRS records, 199 total registered
Related
Names similar to Musa
- 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
Musa: questions and answers
How popular is the name Musa in the UK right now?
In 2024, Musa was ranked #73 for boys in England and Wales, with 731 births registered.
When was Musa most popular?
The peak year on record was 2024, with 731 babies registered as Musa in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Musa?
A masculine name of Arabic origin meaning "the born one".
How many people are called Musa in the UK?
A total of 7,252 babies have been registered as Musa across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 199 more in Scotland.
Where is Musa most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Musa ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #199 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.