NameCensus.

UK girl's name

Raeesah

A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "leader" or "leader of women".

For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2023. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.

Raeesah is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Raeesah popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2023 in this profile. In that release it ranked #4709, with 4 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2005, with 28 births.

This profile covers 309 England and Wales registrations across 26 recorded years from 1996 to 2023. 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 14% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 307 living people in the UK are called Raeesah. 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 2024 or 2026.

Key insights

  • Raeesah ranked #4709 for girls in England and Wales in 2023, with 4 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2005, when 28 girls were registered as Raeesah.
  • About 307 living people in the UK are estimated to have Raeesah as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#4709

2023

Births in 2023

4

Latest year

Peak year

2005

28 births

Estimated living

307

2026

Meaning

What does Raeesah mean?

The name Raeesah is of Arabic origin and is derived from the word "ra'is," which means "leader" or "chief." It is a feminine variation of the masculine name Rais or Raees. The name first appeared in the Arabian Peninsula and the Middle East region during the Islamic Golden Age, which spanned from the 8th to the 13th century.

The earliest recorded usage of the name Raeesah can be traced back to the 9th century, when it was mentioned in several Arabic literary works and historical records. One notable example is the "Book of Songs" by the famous Arab poet and scholar Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani, where he mentioned a female character named Raeesah.

In Islamic history, the name Raeesah is associated with several notable figures. One of the most prominent was Raeesah bint Abi Bakr, who lived in the 7th century and was the daughter of Abu Bakr, one of the closest companions of the Prophet Muhammad and the first Caliph of the Islamic Empire.

Another historical figure with the name Raeesah was Raeesah al-Andalusiyah, a renowned poet and scholar who lived in the 10th century in the Umayyad Caliphate, which ruled over parts of modern-day Spain and Portugal. Her poetry and literary works were highly acclaimed during her lifetime and have been preserved throughout the centuries.

During the Abbasid Caliphate, which ruled over large parts of the Middle East and North Africa from the 8th to the 13th century, there was a prominent female scholar and jurist named Raeesah al-Baghdadiyah. She was known for her expertise in Islamic jurisprudence and her contributions to the field of Islamic law.

In the 12th century, there was a famous Sufi mystic and poet from Persia named Raeesah al-Qunawi. She was known for her spiritual poems and writings, which explored the concepts of divine love and union with God. Her works were widely read and appreciated in the Persian-speaking world.

Another notable figure with the name Raeesah was Raeesah bint Ibrahim al-Dirawi, a 16th-century Arab scholar and writer from the Ottoman Empire. She was renowned for her knowledge of Islamic sciences, literature, and poetry, and her works were widely circulated in the scholarly circles of her time.

These are just a few examples of the historical figures who bore the name Raeesah. The name has a rich cultural heritage and has been associated with leadership, scholarship, and literary achievements throughout the centuries in the Islamic world.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Raeesah over time

The chart below shows babies named Raeesah registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2023. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.

For Raeesah, the clearest high point is 2005. The latest England and Wales figure is 4 births in 2023, compared with 28 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Raeesah
07142128199620092023

Decades

Raeesah by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Raeesah 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 #3850 17 3
2010s #3789 60 9
2000s #1488 176 10
1990s #1469 56 4

Related

Names similar to Raeesah

FAQ

Raeesah: questions and answers

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

In 2023, Raeesah was ranked #4709 for girls in England and Wales, with 4 births registered.

When was Raeesah most popular?

The peak year on record was 2005, with 28 babies registered as Raeesah in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Raeesah?

A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "leader" or "leader of women".

How many people are called Raeesah in the UK?

A total of 309 babies have been registered as Raeesah across the 26 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.