NameCensus.

UK girl's name

Ruqayyah

A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "satisfied" or "having risen to great heights".

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.

Ruqayyah is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Ruqayyah popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #565, with 69 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2016, with 96 births.

This profile covers 1,609 England and Wales registrations across 29 recorded years from 1996 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 72% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 1,601 living people in the UK are called Ruqayyah. 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

  • Ruqayyah ranked #565 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 69 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2016, when 96 girls were registered as Ruqayyah.
  • About 1,601 living people in the UK are estimated to have Ruqayyah as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#565

2024

Births in 2024

69

Latest year

Peak year

2016

96 births

Estimated living

1,601

2026

Meaning

What does Ruqayyah mean?

The name Ruqayyah originates from the Arabic language and has roots in the Middle Eastern culture. It is derived from the Arabic word "raqa," which means "ascending" or "climbing." The name is believed to have been in use since the 7th century, during the time of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.

One of the earliest known references to the name Ruqayyah can be found in Islamic religious texts. Ruqayyah was the name of one of the daughters of Muhammad and his first wife, Khadijah. She was born around 604 CE in Mecca and passed away in 624 CE at the age of 20.

Throughout history, the name Ruqayyah has been carried by several notable figures. One of the most prominent was Ruqayyah bint Al-Husayn, a notable scholar and poet from the 8th century. She was the granddaughter of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad, and was known for her knowledge of Islamic jurisprudence and her contribution to literature.

Another famous bearer of the name was Ruqayyah Al-Rashid, a princess and daughter of the Abbasid caliph Harun Al-Rashid, who ruled the Abbasid Caliphate from 786 to 809 CE. She was known for her beauty, intelligence, and literary talents.

In the 10th century, Ruqayyah bint Ibrahim Al-Qurashiyyah was a renowned poet and scholar from Cordoba, Spain. She was celebrated for her mastery of Arabic literature and her contributions to the cultural life of the Umayyad Caliphate in Al-Andalus.

Ruqayyah Sultan Begum, born in 1608, was a Mughal princess and the daughter of Emperor Jahangir. She was known for her patronage of the arts and her support of charitable causes during her time.

The name Ruqayyah has maintained its significance and popularity within the Arabic and Islamic cultures, often chosen as a symbol of piety, grace, and intellectual pursuits.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Ruqayyah over time

The chart below shows babies named Ruqayyah 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 Ruqayyah, the clearest high point is 2016. The latest England and Wales figure is 69 births in 2024, compared with 96 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Ruqayyah
024487296199620102024

Decades

Ruqayyah by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Ruqayyah 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 #546 366 5
2010s #583 736 10
2000s #718 430 10
1990s #1141 77 4

Related

Names similar to Ruqayyah

FAQ

Ruqayyah: questions and answers

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

In 2024, Ruqayyah was ranked #565 for girls in England and Wales, with 69 births registered.

When was Ruqayyah most popular?

The peak year on record was 2016, with 96 babies registered as Ruqayyah in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Ruqayyah?

A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "satisfied" or "having risen to great heights".

How many people are called Ruqayyah in the UK?

A total of 1,609 babies have been registered as Ruqayyah across the 29 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.