boy's name
Yahya
YAH-ya
- Origin Hebrew
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 5
- Popularity Top 100 (E&W)
- Births on record 15,734
the United States
#616
2025 births
Yahya is a boy's name of Hebrew origin, the Arabic form of John. It is usually read as "God is gracious," from the Hebrew Yohanan, though Arabic sources often connect it instead to hayya, to live.
- Yahya is a name of Hebrew origin.
- Peaked in England and Wales in 2025, when 625 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade in England and Wales.
- Today about 1 in 843 babies in England and Wales is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1996.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Yahya over time
Births per decade in England and Wales, 1990s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1990s | 94 |
| 2000s | 818 |
| 2010s | 2,716 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 2,755 |
What Yahya means
Yahya means God is gracious in its Hebrew derivation. Arabic tradition more often reads it as one who lives, from the root h-y-y, giving a sense of enduring life.
Where Yahya comes from
Yahya is the Arabic form of the Hebrew Yohanan, from yo, a shortening of the divine name, and hanan, gracious — the name English renders as John. Arabic scholarship has long offered a second reading, connecting Yahya to the root h-y-y, to live, which is a folk etymology in the technical sense but a genuinely old and widely held one. In the Quran Yahya is the son of Zakariya and the name is described as one no one had been given before, which is itself a point of commentary since Yohanan was well attested in Hebrew.
Yahya in use
Our data shows Yahya peaking in 2025 and still rising, at 81 in England and Wales against 616 in the United States. It first appears in our United States records only in 1972, one of the more recent arrivals among established Quranic names.
How popular is Yahya?
In 2025, Yahya was given to 625 babies in England and Wales, ranking #81 that year. It is one of the most popular names in England and Wales.
Where Yahya is used
Figures for England and Wales withhold any name given to fewer than three babies in a year, so a gap means the name fell below that floor rather than went unused. Data & sources.
How Yahya is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Yahyâ | Yahyâ is a rare spelling of Yahya, written with a circumflex and recorded about 10 times, mostly in France. | 10 |
Names that peaked alongside Yahya
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Yahya also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Yahya over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Yahya in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Yahya
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Yahya — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Yahya
What does the name Yahya mean?
Usually "God is gracious," from the Hebrew Yohanan. Arabic tradition often reads it instead as "one who lives."
Is Yahya the same name as John?
Yes. Yahya is the Arabic form of the Hebrew Yohanan, which English renders as John.
Why do sources disagree about Yahya?
The Hebrew derivation is linguistically direct, but a long Arabic tradition connects it to h-y-y, to live. Both readings are widely repeated.
How popular is the name Yahya?
In 2025, Yahya was given to 625 babies in England and Wales, ranking #81 that year. It is one of the most popular names in England and Wales.
Is Yahya a girl's or a boy's name?
Yahya is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Yahya?
Yahya has 2 syllables.
When was Yahya most popular?
Yahya peaked in 2025, when 625 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
Is Yahya a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Yahya currently ranks #81 in England and Wales. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.