Muhammad is once again the most popular baby name for boys in England and Wales, according to newly released official data. The name topped the list for the third year in a row, beating names like Noah, Leo, Luca, Arthur, Oliver, and George. The numbers quickly set off a political fight over immigration, changing demographics, and the future of British identity. Critics of mass migration pointed to the ranking as another sign that England and Wales are being reshaped in ways voters never fully approved.
The new baby-name figures come from the Office for National Statistics and cover children born in England and Wales during 2025. The name Muhammad was given to 5,957 baby boys, putting it comfortably ahead of Noah, which came in second place. Other spellings of the name, including Mohammed and Mohammad, also appeared in the top 100. The ONS counts spelling variants separately, meaning the full number of boys given some version of the name is higher than the first-place total alone.
The headline statistic landed in the middle of a broader debate over migration and demographic change in the United Kingdom. Britain has seen major shifts in population, religion, and national origin over the last several decades, and baby names have become one of the clearest everyday signs of that change. Muhammad first became the top boys’ name in England and Wales in 2023, held the top spot again in 2024, and has now done so for a third straight year. For opponents of mass migration, the trend has become a symbol of a country changing faster than many of its own citizens expected.
The Office for National Statistics released the boys’ baby-name dataset on July 9th, showing Muhammad in the top spot for 2025. Noah came in second, followed by Leo, Luca, Arthur, Oliver, George, Oscar, Theodore, and Freddie. The figures are based on birth registrations and rank names according to the exact spelling recorded when the child’s birth was registered. That means Muhammad, Mohammed, Mohammad, and other variations are not combined into one total for the main ranking.
The same data showed that Muhammad was not just barely ahead of the rest of the field. The Sun reported that 5,957 baby boys were given the name Muhammad in 2025, while Noah and Leo followed behind it. Muhammad was the most popular boys’ name in four English regions, while Olivia remained the most popular girls’ name and held the top spot among girls for the tenth year running. In Wales specifically, Muhammad ranked much lower, coming in 34th, showing that the trend is concentrated more heavily in parts of England.
The broader birth data helps explain why the name ranking turned into a migration story so quickly. The ONS reported that 40.2% of live births in England and Wales in 2025 involved at least one parent born outside the United Kingdom. That figure was up from 39.5% in 2024. The same release said there were 585,396 live births in England and Wales in 2025, down from 594,677 the year before.
Restore Britain leader Rupert Lowe MP of Great Yarmouth reacted by tying the baby-name ranking directly to Britain’s demographic changes. “‘Muhammad’ has comfortably topped the list for the most popular boy name for the third year running,” Lowe wrote on X. “You can call me Islamophobic, I really don’t care.” He added, “This is awful and demonstrates the rapidly changing demographics of our country. Only Restore Britain will fight this.”
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The reaction from Lowe captured why the baby-name list drew so much attention outside normal lifestyle coverage. Baby-name rankings are usually treated as light cultural news, with stories about pop stars, royal names, seasonal trends, and names falling out of fashion. This one quickly became political because the name at the top is closely associated with Islam and Muslim families. The result was a small statistical release becoming another flashpoint in Britain’s larger fight over immigration, assimilation, religion, and national identity.
The 2021 census already showed major religious change across England and Wales. The ONS reported that less than half the population described itself as Christian for the first time in a census, falling from 59.3% in 2011 to 46.2% in 2021. “No religion” rose to 37.2%, while London remained the most religiously diverse region in England. The ONS also said religious change can be shaped by aging, fertility, mortality, migration, and changes in how people choose to answer the census question.
Migration figures have also remained central to the debate, even after net migration dropped sharply from its recent highs. The Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford reported that non-EU immigration stood at 627,000 in 2025, down 20% from 2024. The same analysis said just under 70% of non-EU arrivals came to study at universities, work, or join a work migrant as a partner or child. Asylum accounted for another portion of arrivals, while fewer asylum migrants left the country compared with some other groups.
The name Muhammad has been rising for years, but its move into the top spot has made the trend harder to ignore. The National reported that the name has been in the top 10 since 2016 and in the top 100 since 1997. Two spelling variants, Mohammed and Mohammad, also landed in the top 100 in 2025 and together accounted for thousands more boys. The outlet also noted that Mohammed first entered the top 100 boys’ names in England and Wales as far back as 1924.
Supporters of migration and multiculturalism are likely to describe the ranking as a normal reflection of a diverse country. They will also point out that only a small percentage of all boys receive any one name, even when that name ranks first. Opponents of mass migration see it differently, arguing that the cultural signal matters precisely because names are among the most personal and visible signs of a population’s direction. That is why a baby-name ranking turned into a national argument within hours of its release.
The ONS figures do not say that migration alone caused Muhammad to become the top boys’ name. They do, however, sit alongside years of data showing higher foreign-born parent shares among births, growth in Britain’s Muslim population, and major shifts in religious identification. For critics like Lowe, the point is not just that one name won the annual ranking. It is that the list reflects a country whose demographics are changing quickly, with immigration and family formation now at the center of Britain’s political future.