Mustapha
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- MOOS-ta-fa
- Origin
- Arabic
- UK rank, 2025
- #3,021 for boys
- US rank, 2025
- #5,606 for boys
Mustapha is a boys' name of Arabic origin, meaning “chosen”. In 2025 it ranked 3,021st for boys in the UK (7 babies) and 5,606th for boys in the US (16 babies).
What does Mustapha mean?
Arabic: spelling of Mustafa
“chosen”
Al-Mustafa, 'the chosen one', is a title of the Prophet Muhammad; Mustafa Kemal Ataturk founded modern Turkey.
Meaning borrowed from Mustafa. More on Wiktionary.
Is Mustapha a girl's or a boy's name?
Mustapha is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 7 boys in the UK and 16 boys in the US. Too few girls were given it to be listed.
How popular is Mustapha in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- 3,021st among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 7 about 1 in 43,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Steady down 21% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 7 boys in the UK were named Mustapha, making it the 3,021st most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 2,562nd. Its busiest year was 2010, with 21 boys.
Half of all the boys named Mustapha in the UK since 1996 were born between 2004 and 2017. It was already well used in 1996, when the records begin, so earlier boys aren't counted.
In 2025, 318 boys in the UK were given Mustapha or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #191, up from #3,021 for this spelling alone.
Among boys in 2025, it was 2,938th in England and Wales.
Mustapha in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 7 | #3,021 |
| 2024 | 9 | #2,515 |
| 2023 | 10 | #2,303 |
| 2022 | 8 | #2,678 |
| 2021 | 0 | – |
| 2020 | 8 | #2,562 |
| 2019 | 16 | #1,608 |
| 2018 | 9 | #2,388 |
| 2017 | 17 | #1,563 |
| 2016 | 15 | #1,723 |
| 2015 | 7 | #2,855 |
| 2014 | 10 | #2,207 |
| 2013 | 7 | #2,792 |
| 2012 | 16 | #1,622 |
| 2011 | 11 | #2,011 |
| 2010 | 21 | #1,288 |
| 2009 | 12 | #1,852 |
| 2008 | 8 | #2,384 |
| 2007 | 12 | #1,760 |
| 2006 | 15 | #1,423 |
| 2005 | 8 | #2,090 |
| 2004 | 9 | #1,831 |
| 2003 | 14 | #1,272 |
| 2002 | 11 | #1,384 |
| 2001 | 9 | #1,547 |
| 2000 | 5 | #2,237 |
| 1999 | 6 | #1,941 |
| 1998 | 7 | #1,727 |
| 1997 | 10 | #1,319 |
| 1996 | 6 | #1,840 |
How popular is Mustapha in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 5,606th among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 16 about 1 in 110,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Steady up 9% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 16 boys in the US were named Mustapha, making it the 5,606th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 5,695th. Its busiest year was 2004, with 26 boys. It first appears in the records in 1981.
Half of all the boys named Mustapha in the US since 1880 were born between 1998 and 2015, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 355 boys in the US were given Mustapha or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #697, up from #5,606 for this spelling alone.
- Mustafa 339
- Mustapha 16
Mustapha in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 16 | #5,606 |
| 2024 | 12 | #6,827 |
| 2023 | 19 | #5,070 |
| 2022 | 12 | #6,822 |
| 2021 | 15 | #5,771 |
| 2020 | 15 | #5,695 |
| 2019 | 11 | #7,168 |
| 2018 | 17 | #5,316 |
| 2017 | 14 | #6,056 |
| 2016 | 24 | #4,198 |
| 2015 | 18 | #5,056 |
| 2014 | 14 | #5,993 |
| 2013 | 15 | #5,655 |
| 2012 | 20 | #4,682 |
| 2011 | 13 | #6,250 |
| 2010 | 23 | #4,240 |
| 2009 | 21 | #4,580 |
| 2008 | 18 | #5,063 |
| 2007 | 21 | #4,491 |
| 2006 | 18 | #4,861 |
| 2005 | 21 | #4,193 |
| 2004 | 26 | #3,530 |
| 2003 | 22 | #3,833 |
| 2002 | 20 | #4,038 |
| 2001 | 18 | #4,296 |
| 2000 | 12 | #5,581 |
| 1999 | 22 | #3,475 |
| 1998 | 16 | #4,193 |
| 1997 | 16 | #4,054 |
| 1996 | 17 | #3,824 |
| 1995 | 19 | #3,426 |
| 1994 | 14 | #4,284 |
| 1993 | 24 | #2,859 |
| 1992 | 7 | #6,662 |
| 1991 | 8 | #5,934 |
| 1990 | 9 | #5,375 |
| 1989 | 7 | #6,222 |
| 1988 | 8 | #5,194 |
| 1987 | 6 | #6,083 |
| 1986 | 7 | #5,327 |
| 1985 | 0 | – |
| 1984 | 6 | #5,557 |
| 1983 | 0 | – |
| 1982 | 5 | #6,383 |
| 1981 | 8 | #4,507 |
Names like Mustapha
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Muhammad, Hamza, Musa, Abdullah, Huzaifa, Ahmed, Ibrahim, Zayd, Umar, Taha, Musab, Khalifa
Other spellings of Mustapha
Mustafa, Mustafah
Names related to Mustapha
More Arabic names
Layla, Mohammed, Lyla, Mohammad, Zara, Aaliyah, Amir, Amira, Fatima, Ali, Yahya, Zayn, Aisha, Omar, Zahra, Kairo
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, “Mustapha: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/mustapha, updated 20 October 2026.