NameCensus.

UK boy's name

Talha

A masculine Arabic name meaning "green plant, fresh branch".

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.

Talha is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Talha popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #664, with 56 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2023, with 73 births.

This profile covers 1,353 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.

The latest count is about 77% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 1,360 living people in the UK are called Talha. 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

  • Talha ranked #664 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 56 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2023, when 73 boys were registered as Talha.
  • Talha ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #704 in 2018.
  • About 1,360 living people in the UK are estimated to have Talha as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#664

2024

Births in 2024

56

Latest year

Peak year

2023

73 births

Estimated living

1,360

2026

Meaning

What does Talha mean?

The name Talha has its origins in the Arabic language and is derived from the word "talhun" which means "fresh and green branch." It is believed to have been in use since ancient times in the Middle East and the Arabian Peninsula.

Talha was the name of a prominent companion of the Prophet Muhammad, known as Talha ibn Ubaidullah. He was one of the early converts to Islam and fought in several battles alongside the Prophet. Talha was also one of the six people chosen by Umar ibn al-Khattab to form the council that would elect the third caliph after his death.

In Islamic history, Talha is also associated with a famous battle known as the Battle of the Camel, which took place in 656 CE. This battle was fought between the forces of Ali ibn Abi Talib, the fourth caliph, and those of Aisha, the wife of the Prophet Muhammad, who was supported by Talha and Zubayr ibn al-Awwam.

One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Talha can be found in the Quran, where it is mentioned in the context of a tree in Paradise. The verse states, "And the shade thereof is close upon them and the bunches of fruit thereof will hang low and near." (Quran 76:14)

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Talha, including:

1. Talha ibn Ubaidullah (594-656 CE), a companion of the Prophet Muhammad and one of the six people chosen to form the council for electing the third caliph.

2. Talha ibn Tahir (805-868 CE), an Abbasid prince and governor of several provinces in modern-day Iran and Iraq.

3. Talha ibn Mutarrif (d. 776 CE), a celebrated Arab poet and scholar from Basra, Iraq, known for his works on grammar and poetry.

4. Talha ibn Nasr (d. 976 CE), a prominent Fatimid scholar and writer from Egypt, known for his works on history and jurisprudence.

5. Talha ibn Muhammad al-Azdi (d. 1020 CE), a renowned Andalusian poet and literary figure from Cordoba, Spain, known for his contributions to Arabic poetry and literature.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Talha over time

The chart below shows babies named Talha 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 Talha, the clearest high point is 2023. The latest England and Wales figure is 56 births in 2024, compared with 73 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Talha
018375573199620102024

Decades

Talha by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Talha 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 #616 302 5
2010s #641 544 10
2000s #612 419 10
1990s #744 88 4

Geography

Where Talha is most common

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

Talha ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #704 in 2018.

Scotland
3

Across the UK

Talha in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#704 in 2018

4 years of NRS records, 16 total registered

Related

Names similar to Talha

FAQ

Talha: questions and answers

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

In 2024, Talha was ranked #664 for boys in England and Wales, with 56 births registered.

When was Talha most popular?

The peak year on record was 2023, with 73 babies registered as Talha in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Talha?

A masculine Arabic name meaning "green plant, fresh branch".

How many people are called Talha in the UK?

A total of 1,353 babies have been registered as Talha across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 16 more in Scotland.

Where is Talha most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Talha ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #704 in 2018. 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.