Head to head · Boys' names
Maximo vs Mohammad
#580 vs #561 in 2025
Mohammad is a whisker ahead (#561 vs #580 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Mohammad is back after a long quiet spell, Maximo is climbing the charts fast. On momentum, Maximo has the edge.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Mohammad leads 4 measures of 6; Maximo leads 2.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1900s: Maximo #1130, Mohammad — — Maximo higher
- 1910s: Maximo #2823, Mohammad — — Maximo higher
- 1920s: Maximo #2036, Mohammad — — Maximo higher
- 1930s: Maximo #2280, Mohammad — — Maximo higher
- 1940s: Maximo #1884, Mohammad — — Maximo higher
- 1950s: Maximo #1950, Mohammad — — Maximo higher
- 1960s: Maximo #1700, Mohammad #3470 — Maximo higher
- 1970s: Maximo #1618, Mohammad #1540 — Mohammad higher
- 1980s: Maximo #1729, Mohammad #704 — Mohammad higher
- 1990s: Maximo #1753, Mohammad #542 — Mohammad higher
- 2000s: Maximo #1000, Mohammad #583 — Mohammad higher
- 2010s: Maximo #835, Mohammad #591 — Mohammad higher
- 2020s: Maximo #649, Mohammad #603 — Mohammad higher
Maximo stood higher in 7 of 13 decades; Mohammad has held the lead since the 1970s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Maximo | Mohammad |
|---|---|---|
| 1900s | #1130 | — |
| 1910s | #2823 | — |
| 1920s | #2036 | — |
| 1930s | #2280 | — |
| 1940s | #1884 | — |
| 1950s | #1950 | — |
| 1960s | #1700 | #3470 |
| 1970s | #1618 | #1540 |
| 1980s | #1729 | #704 |
| 1990s | #1753 | #542 |
| 2000s | #1000 | #583 |
| 2010s | #835 | #591 |
| 2020s | #649 | #603 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
Around the world
Maximo
Not charting outside the US.
Mohammad
- England & Wales#53
National statistics offices, latest published year.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Maximo
greatest
From Latin maximus, the superlative of magnus, "great" — literally "greatest, largest."
Maximus → Máximo → Maximo
How it traveled
Maximus began as a Roman cognomen, an honorific tacked onto a family name, and it was common enough across the Latin-speaking world to be handed down for generations. Early Christianity gave it a second life: several saints of the first millennium bore the name, which kept it in liturgical calendars long after the empire had gone.
Mohammad
praised, praiseworthy
It is the passive participle of the Arabic verb ḥammada, "to praise" — literally one who is praised or worthy of praise. The same root sits under Ahmad, Mahmud and Hamid.
Arabic root ḥ-m-d ("praise") → Muḥammad → Mohammad
How it traveled
The name is Arabic, from the root ḥ-m-d, and was borne by the Prophet of Islam, born in Mecca in the sixth century. With the spread of Islam it traveled across North Africa, Anatolia, Persia, South Asia, the Balkans and the Indonesian archipelago, becoming the most widely given name across much of the world.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Maximo
MAK-see-mo
Stress falls on the first syllable in both Spanish and English; the Spanish spelling Máximo marks it with an accent. Expect an occasional mak-SEE-mo from people meeting it in print.
- Max — The everyday short form; also a standalone given name, and shared with Maxwell, Maximilian and Maximus.
- Maxi — Common in Spanish-speaking households and in Latin American sport, used affectionately rather than formally.
- Mo — An informal English-language shortening, used mostly among friends.
Mohammad
moh-HAM-mad
Closer to the Arabic, the doubled m is held for a beat: moh-HAM-mad. In American English you will also hear moh-HAH-med and a flatter MOH-uh-mad. All three are in ordinary use among bearers.
- Mo — The usual informal short form in English-speaking countries; also stands alone as a given name and as a short form of Maurice, Morris and Moses.
- Moe — Same short form, spelled to look phonetic in English; common in North American use.
- Md. — Not a nickname but a written abbreviation, widely used in Bangladesh, Pakistan and India in front of a second given name on documents.
- Hamada — A familiar diminutive used in Egypt and parts of the Levant, within the family rather than in formal settings.
One short form, two names
- Maximo and Mohammad both shorten to Mo.
Short forms as recorded on each name’s own page. This is here so it is a decision rather than a discovery.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Maximo if you want…
- a name fewer children share#580 in 2025 — maximo will almost certainly be the only one in school
- a name on the way upup 174 places on the charts in five years
- a name that feels very nowMaximo is climbing the charts fast
Choose Mohammad if you want…
- a name most people already know#561 in 2025, 529 babies that year
- a name that charts abroad tooMohammad is on the national lists of England & Wales
- a name that ages quietlyan estimated 30% chance of feeling dated by 2040, against 51% for Maximo
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Maximo
Strengths
- Meaning is settled and easy to state: Latin for "greatest."
- Recognizable across Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French and Russian in closely related forms.
- Shortens instantly to Max, a nickname Americans already know and spell without help.
To consider
- The accent is the sticking point: Máximo in Spanish, Maximo in most US paperwork. Families who use both will spend a while correcting one or the other.
- Max is shared territory. It belongs equally to Maxwell, Maximilian and Maximus, so a child who goes by it may not be the only Max in the room even while remaining the only Maximo.
- It sits close enough to Maximus and Maximiliano that some people will reach for the wrong one on first hearing. A single calm repetition usually settles it for good.
Mohammad
Strengths
- Recognized in nearly every country on earth, so it almost never needs explaining or justifying as a name.
- An unbroken written record since the seventh century, and continuous use in dozens of languages since.
- Mo and Moe are long-established English short forms, ready-made for informal settings.
To consider
- The romanisations compete: Muhammad, Mohammed, Mohamed and Mohammad are all correct, which means a lifetime of spelling it out and of forms coming back with the wrong vowel or a single m.
- It is the name of the Prophet of Islam and carries that weight. In many families it is given first and a second name is used day to day, out of respect — worth deciding early how you want it spoken at home and at school.
- The name identifies its bearer as Muslim anywhere in the world. Most families count that as the point; some also weigh how it lands in particular American settings, and that is a fair thing to talk through.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Maximo
51%chance Maximo feels dated by 2040
Maximo is climbing fast right now. Steep climbs tend to come with steep descents — the quicker a name arrives, the more firmly it belongs to its moment.
Mohammad
30%chance Mohammad feels dated by 2040
Mohammad is on its second act. Revived names age gently: the generation that wore them first is far enough away that the name feels classic rather than dated.
A reading of where each name sits on the long naming cycle — computed, not measured, and explained on the data page.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Maximo and Mohammad in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Maximo and Mohammad?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
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More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists that carry both names
Every list here names both Maximo and Mohammad — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Maximo or Mohammad — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Maximo or Mohammad?
- Mohammad, in 2025: Mohammad ranked #561 with 529 babies; Maximo ranked #580 with 506 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Maximo or Mohammad?
- Maximo. Over the last five years Maximo moved up 174 places; Mohammad moved up 102 places.
- Which is the older name, Maximo or Mohammad?
- Maximo entered the US charts in 1903; Mohammad entered the US charts in 1964. On the American record, Maximo is the older name.
- How many people are named Maximo and Mohammad?
- About 8,600 people named Maximo are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 17,000 people named Mohammad are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Do Maximo and Mohammad share a nickname?
- Yes — both shorten to Mo, so in a house with both names the short form would not say which child is meant.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025; international figures from national statistics agencies. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Maximo, Mohammad and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
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