Rahman
Masculine · “most merciful”
Rahman is the Arabic word for the most merciful, and the root behind it is the word for a womb — mercy conceived as maternal.
How old is the name Rahman?
Rahman first appears in US birth records in 1959 — 66 years ago. The typical Rahman alive today was born around 1994, making them about 31 years old. About 1,200 people named Rahman are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Rahman most popular?
Rahman peaked in 1976, reaching #1190 nationally. Today it ranks #4249, 3,059 places below that high. See the whole 1976 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Rahman
The formula bismillah ar-rahman ar-rahim — in the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate — opens the Qur'an and precedes almost every chapter, so the word is among the most-spoken in the Muslim world. The shared root with the word for a womb is remarked on constantly in the commentary tradition. Rahman is used as a personal name, usually in the compound Abd al-Rahman, servant of the Merciful.
Meaning
most merciful, compassionate
From an Arabic root that also gives rahim, a womb; the connection is explicit in the tradition, which reads divine mercy as of the kind a mother has. Ar-Rahman and Ar-Rahim open every chapter of the Qur'an but one.
Pronouncing Rahman
rah-MAAN
Two syllables with the stress on the long second. English speakers often say RAH-man.
Nicknames for Rahman
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1959
- Most boys named
- 197652 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1190reached in 1976
- Change vs 2024
- +20.0%24 in 2025, from 20
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Rahman in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Rahman in Arabic — same name
- Rehman in Urdu — spelling variant
- Rahman in Turkish — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas.
Rahmans among us
people named Rahman are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 71,170 born in 2025 was named Rahman
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Atlee test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Rahman's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Atlee climbed just as high around 1911, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Atlee's path sketches the road Rahman is walking now.
Rahman sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Rahman beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Rahman in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A settled meaning with a genuinely profound link between mercy and the womb.
- Six letters and two syllables, quick to write.
- Recognized everywhere in the Muslim world without any explanation.
- It is a divine name, and many families use it only in the compound Abd al-Rahman.
- The stress moves to the front in English mouths.
- Rahman and Rehman are both in use and mark different regions.
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What they receive
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Rahman
Masculine · #4249 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Rahmans are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,200 people named Rahman are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Rahman in 2025?
- Rahman ranks #4249 among US boy names in 2025, with 24 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Rahman?
- About 1 in every 71,170 US boys born in 2025 was named Rahman — 24 in all.
- Will my child share the name Rahman with classmates?
- Rahman will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Rahman
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Guadalupe#4249 · Denny#4249 · Hughes#4249 · Erling#4249 · Rodrick#4249 · Elric#4249 · Ron#4249 · Wright#4249
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Rahman? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Rahman and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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