Mustafa
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- MOOS-ta-fa
- Origin
- Arabic
- UK rank, 2025
- #183 for boys
- US rank, 2025
- #760 for boys
Mustafa is a boys' name of Arabic origin, meaning “chosen”. In 2025 it ranked 183rd for boys in the UK (308 babies) and 760th for boys in the US (339 babies).
What does Mustafa mean?
Arabic
“chosen”
Al-Mustafa, 'the chosen one', is a title of the Prophet Muhammad; Mustafa Kemal Ataturk founded modern Turkey.
More on Wiktionary.
Is Mustafa a girl's or a boy's name?
Mustafa is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 308 boys in the UK and 339 boys in the US. Too few girls were given it to be listed.
How popular is Mustafa in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- 183rd among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 308 about 1 in 970 boys
- Five-year trend
- Rising up 25% in five years
- Same name in a class
- 1.4% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 308 boys in the UK were named Mustafa, making it the 183rd most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 235th. Its busiest year was 2024, with 321 boys.
Half of all the boys named Mustafa in the UK since 1996 were born between 2007 and 2020, the years shaded on the chart below.
Among boys in 2025, it was 170th in England and Wales and 333rd in Scotland.
Mustafa in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 308 | #183 |
| 2024 | 321 | #179 |
| 2023 | 267 | #210 |
| 2022 | 245 | #225 |
| 2021 | 229 | #248 |
| 2020 | 238 | #235 |
| 2019 | 248 | #237 |
| 2018 | 229 | #252 |
| 2017 | 235 | #253 |
| 2016 | 265 | #233 |
| 2015 | 253 | #248 |
| 2014 | 235 | #258 |
| 2013 | 272 | #220 |
| 2012 | 243 | #233 |
| 2011 | 216 | #248 |
| 2010 | 220 | #247 |
| 2009 | 210 | #243 |
| 2008 | 227 | #230 |
| 2007 | 196 | #240 |
| 2006 | 180 | #242 |
| 2005 | 161 | #244 |
| 2004 | 154 | #247 |
| 2003 | 127 | #270 |
| 2002 | 125 | #263 |
| 2001 | 97 | #315 |
| 2000 | 98 | #311 |
| 1999 | 92 | #327 |
| 1998 | 91 | #318 |
| 1997 | 90 | #320 |
| 1996 | 76 | #342 |
How popular is Mustafa in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 760th among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 339 about 1 in 5,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Rising up 40% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 339 boys in the US were named Mustafa, making it the 760th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,044th. It first appears in the records in 1963.
2025 had the most boys named Mustafa of any year since it first appeared, in 1963.
Half of all the boys named Mustafa in the US since 1880 were born between 1999 and 2019, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 355 boys in the US were given Mustafa or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #697, up from #760 for this spelling alone.
- Mustafa 339
- Mustapha 16
Mustafa in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 339 | #760 |
| 2024 | 304 | #822 |
| 2023 | 263 | #884 |
| 2022 | 275 | #875 |
| 2021 | 261 | #885 |
| 2020 | 194 | #1,044 |
| 2019 | 211 | #995 |
| 2018 | 240 | #902 |
| 2017 | 235 | #909 |
| 2016 | 234 | #919 |
| 2015 | 238 | #907 |
| 2014 | 235 | #913 |
| 2013 | 231 | #902 |
| 2012 | 228 | #908 |
| 2011 | 215 | #928 |
| 2010 | 176 | #1,092 |
| 2009 | 197 | #998 |
| 2008 | 147 | #1,198 |
| 2007 | 187 | #1,017 |
| 2006 | 157 | #1,112 |
| 2005 | 152 | #1,080 |
| 2004 | 146 | #1,085 |
| 2003 | 150 | #1,040 |
| 2002 | 170 | #944 |
| 2001 | 154 | #991 |
| 2000 | 145 | #1,007 |
| 1999 | 121 | #1,098 |
| 1998 | 136 | #1,002 |
| 1997 | 119 | #1,063 |
| 1996 | 117 | #1,040 |
| 1995 | 100 | #1,140 |
| 1994 | 107 | #1,074 |
| 1993 | 86 | #1,211 |
| 1992 | 72 | #1,323 |
| 1991 | 82 | #1,221 |
| 1990 | 76 | #1,265 |
| 1989 | 75 | #1,238 |
| 1988 | 63 | #1,292 |
| 1987 | 63 | #1,216 |
| 1986 | 55 | #1,319 |
| 1985 | 64 | #1,169 |
| 1984 | 55 | #1,239 |
| 1983 | 63 | #1,130 |
| 1982 | 69 | #1,096 |
| 1981 | 67 | #1,111 |
| 1980 | 59 | #1,187 |
| 1979 | 44 | #1,407 |
| 1978 | 47 | #1,326 |
| 1977 | 42 | #1,407 |
| 1976 | 23 | #2,053 |
| 1975 | 20 | #2,204 |
| 1974 | 9 | #3,556 |
| 1973 | 7 | #4,052 |
| 1972 | 6 | #4,438 |
| 1971 | 13 | #2,685 |
| 1970 | 8 | #3,519 |
| 1969 | 0 | – |
| 1968 | 8 | #3,106 |
| 1967 | 5 | #3,964 |
| 1966 | 0 | – |
| 1965 | 0 | – |
| 1964 | 0 | – |
| 1963 | 8 | #3,043 |
Names like Mustafa
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Muhammad, Musa, Abdullah, Hamza, Ahmed, Ibrahim, Zayd, Umar, Amir, Huzaifa, Khalid, Zayan
Other spellings of Mustafa
Mustapha, Mustafah
Names related to Mustafa
More Arabic names
Layla, Mohammed, Lyla, Mohammad, Zara, Aaliyah, Amira, Fatima, Ali, Yahya, Zayn, Aisha, Omar, Zahra, Kairo, Safa
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Mustafa: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/mustafa, updated 20 October 2026.