Faatima
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "the weaned one".
Name Census estimates that about 75 living Americans carry the first name Faatima. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Faatima today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Faatima births was 1988 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Faatima. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Faatima with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Faatima. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
75
~ 1 in 4,570,058 Americans
Peak year
1988
8 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2022 SSA rank
#16,079
Tracked since 1983
Popularity
Faatima: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Faatima from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 24 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Faatima by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Faatima during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Faatima
The name Faatima is derived from the Arabic name Fatima, which has its roots in the Semitic languages. The name Fatima is believed to have originated in the 7th century CE and is derived from the Arabic word "fatama," meaning "to wean." This could suggest a meaning related to weaning or being weaned.
The name Fatima holds significant importance in Islamic history and is particularly revered by Muslims. It was the name of one of the daughters of Prophet Muhammad and his wife Khadijah. Fatima, also known as Fatima Zahra, was born around 605 CE in Mecca and is considered one of the most important figures in Islam.
The name Fatima first appeared in religious texts and historical records from the early days of Islam. It is mentioned in the Quran, the holy book of Islam, and is also found in various hadith (sayings and traditions of Prophet Muhammad) and biographical accounts of the Prophet's life.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Fatima can be found in the writings of the famous Arab historian and scholar, Ibn Ishaq, who lived in the 8th century CE. He documented the life of Prophet Muhammad and mentioned Fatima as one of his daughters.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Fatima. Here are five examples:
1. Fatima Zahra (605-632 CE), the daughter of Prophet Muhammad and his wife Khadijah, revered by Muslims as an exemplary figure of piety and virtue.
2. Fatima al-Fihri (born around 800 CE), a Muslim woman from Tunisia who founded the world's oldest continuously operating university, the University of Al-Qarawiyyin, in Fez, Morocco.
3. Fatima al-Batayhi (1766-1822), a poet and scholar from Damascus, Syria, who was renowned for her expertise in Arabic literature and Islamic sciences.
4. Fatima Mernissi (1940-2015), a Moroccan feminist writer and sociologist who wrote extensively on women's rights and gender issues in the Islamic world.
5. Fatima Jinnah (1893-1967), the younger sister of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, and a prominent political figure in her own right, known for her advocacy of women's rights and education.
The name Fatima has been widely used across the Muslim world and has transcended cultural and linguistic boundaries. It continues to be a popular name among Muslims, carrying with it a rich historical and religious significance.
People
Faatima + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Faatima as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with F
Other first names starting with F with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Faatima: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Faatima?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 75 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Faatima going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 4,570,058 US residents.
Is Faatima a common name?
We classify Faatima as "Very Rare". It ranks above 60.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 77 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Faatima most popular?
The single biggest year for Faatima was 1988, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Faatima is about 26 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Faatima in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Faatima a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Faatima in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Faatima still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Faatima in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Faatima can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are named Faatima?
You can see how many people share the name Faatima on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.