Saleh
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- SAH-leh
- Origin
- Arabic
- UK rank, 2025
- #902 for boys
- US rank, 2025
- #2,451 for boys
Saleh is a boys' name of Arabic origin, meaning “righteous, virtuous”. In 2025 it ranked 902nd for boys in the UK (38 babies) and 2,451st for boys in the US (55 babies).
What does Saleh mean?
Arabic: spelling of Salih
“righteous, virtuous”
Salih is a prophet in the Quran, sent to the people of Thamud with the miraculous she-camel.
More on Wiktionary.
Is Saleh a girl's or a boy's name?
Saleh is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 38 boys in the UK and 55 boys in the US. Too few girls were given it to be listed.
How popular is Saleh in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- 902nd among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 38 about 1 in 7,900 boys
- Five-year trend
- Rising up 78% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 38 boys in the UK were named Saleh, making it the 902nd most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,206th. Its busiest year was 2023, with 49 boys.
Half of all the boys named Saleh in the UK since 1996 were born between 2009 and 2022, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 59 boys in the UK were given Saleh or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #619, up from #902 for this spelling alone.
Among boys in 2025, it was 914th in England and Wales and 647th in Scotland.
Saleh in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 38 | #902 |
| 2024 | 36 | #942 |
| 2023 | 49 | #760 |
| 2022 | 31 | #1,048 |
| 2021 | 20 | #1,389 |
| 2020 | 24 | #1,206 |
| 2019 | 21 | #1,302 |
| 2018 | 24 | #1,210 |
| 2017 | 19 | #1,428 |
| 2016 | 24 | #1,234 |
| 2015 | 28 | #1,090 |
| 2014 | 22 | #1,260 |
| 2013 | 21 | #1,290 |
| 2012 | 21 | #1,313 |
| 2011 | 24 | #1,164 |
| 2010 | 15 | #1,654 |
| 2009 | 19 | #1,340 |
| 2008 | 19 | #1,334 |
| 2007 | 11 | #1,848 |
| 2006 | 18 | #1,256 |
| 2005 | 14 | #1,445 |
| 2004 | 11 | #1,583 |
| 2003 | 11 | #1,498 |
| 2002 | 11 | #1,384 |
| 2001 | 12 | #1,283 |
| 2000 | 10 | #1,405 |
| 1999 | 11 | #1,267 |
| 1998 | 5 | #2,170 |
| 1997 | 8 | #1,532 |
| 1996 | 4 | #2,442 |
How popular is Saleh in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 2,451st among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 55 about 1 in 31,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Steady up 4% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 55 boys in the US were named Saleh, making it the 2,451st most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 2,190th. Its busiest year was 2018, with 83 boys. It first appears in the records in 1974.
2025 had fewer boys named Saleh than any year since 2013.
Half of all the boys named Saleh in the US since 1880 were born between 2001 and 2019, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 77 boys in the US were given Saleh or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #1,726, up from #2,451 for this spelling alone.
- Saleh 55
- Salih 22
Saleh in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 55 | #2,451 |
| 2024 | 81 | #1,938 |
| 2023 | 79 | #1,953 |
| 2022 | 74 | #2,038 |
| 2021 | 61 | #2,276 |
| 2020 | 63 | #2,190 |
| 2019 | 61 | #2,264 |
| 2018 | 83 | #1,822 |
| 2017 | 74 | #1,935 |
| 2016 | 75 | #1,936 |
| 2015 | 56 | #2,327 |
| 2014 | 59 | #2,254 |
| 2013 | 54 | #2,335 |
| 2012 | 48 | #2,550 |
| 2011 | 45 | #2,662 |
| 2010 | 36 | #3,127 |
| 2009 | 38 | #3,044 |
| 2008 | 49 | #2,541 |
| 2007 | 50 | #2,504 |
| 2006 | 35 | #3,082 |
| 2005 | 43 | #2,563 |
| 2004 | 36 | #2,839 |
| 2003 | 32 | #2,989 |
| 2002 | 30 | #3,018 |
| 2001 | 25 | #3,405 |
| 2000 | 26 | #3,213 |
| 1999 | 24 | #3,275 |
| 1998 | 28 | #2,848 |
| 1997 | 26 | #2,899 |
| 1996 | 22 | #3,197 |
| 1995 | 26 | #2,757 |
| 1994 | 22 | #3,103 |
| 1993 | 24 | #2,859 |
| 1992 | 29 | #2,462 |
| 1991 | 25 | #2,677 |
| 1990 | 15 | #3,773 |
| 1989 | 24 | #2,609 |
| 1988 | 19 | #2,855 |
| 1987 | 10 | #4,233 |
| 1986 | 13 | #3,437 |
| 1985 | 8 | #4,693 |
| 1984 | 16 | #2,823 |
| 1983 | 11 | #3,629 |
| 1982 | 17 | #2,708 |
| 1981 | 12 | #3,410 |
| 1980 | 7 | #4,938 |
| 1979 | 6 | #5,353 |
| 1978 | 5 | #5,769 |
| 1977 | 5 | #5,843 |
| 1976 | 5 | #5,584 |
| 1975 | 5 | #5,462 |
| 1974 | 5 | #5,225 |
Names like Saleh
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Muhammad, Abdullah, Hamza, Musa, Ahmed, Umar, Zayd, Mustafa, Zayaan, Zayan, Amir, Ibrahim
Other spellings of Saleh
Salih, Saalih
Names related to Saleh
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, “Saleh: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/saleh, updated 20 October 2026.