Mahmoud
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Meaning
praised, commendable; famously borne by Mahmoud Darwish, the Palestinian national poet
The story
Mahmoud is an Arabic name meaning praised, commendable, from the same root that gives Muhammad and Ahmed, which places it among the most honored names in the Muslim world. Its literary weight comes from Mahmoud Darwish, the Palestinian national poet, whose poems of exile, memory, and homeland made him one of the most read Arabic poets of the twentieth century; his public readings could fill stadiums, and lines of his verse are known by heart across the Arab world. The name is everywhere in the Middle East and has been for centuries. In American records, by contrast, Mahmoud has only just surfaced, first charting in the 2020s, so within the US it stands as a rare pick with an ancient pedigree: a single word of praise, carried by generations, and by one unforgettable poet.
How popular is Mahmoud around the world?
In the United States, 349 babies were named Mahmoud between 2020 and 2025. In Norway, 6 boys were given the name Mahmoud in 2025.
Mahmoud is on the official records of the United States, Norway, Austria, Ireland, France, England and Wales, Canada, Spain and Brazil.
United States
1 in 62,000
In the United States, 349 babies were named Mahmoud between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Mahmoud peaked in the 2000s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Norway
1 in 4,800register 2026
In Norway, 6 boys were given the name Mahmoud in 2025.
share of the boys on the register for that year, SSB’s own figure
People who have or have had a Norwegian ID number, emigrants left out, from Statistics Norway’s name statistics (release of January 2026): by year of birth for 1945–2020 (everyone born that year who was ever registered in Norway, including people who registered later and people who have since died) and by year of naming from 2021; only first names carried by 200 or more living people are listed, counts under 4 are withheld, and SSB merges spellings that differ only by letters outside the Norwegian alphabet. The shares are SSB’s own, of the people of that sex and year in that count; the 2025 figure counts the children named that year, and no year is a count of births. Source: Statistics Norway (SSB), table 10467 (updated 2026-01-28)
Austria
1 in 5,400
In Austria, 14 boys named Mahmoud were born in 2025, the 374th most common name among boys that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
share of that year’s births on record
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
Ireland
1 in 18,000
In Ireland, 3 boys named Mahmoud were born in 2025, the 829th most common name among boys that year.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
France
1 in 18,000
In France, about 35 boys named Mahmoud were born in 2025, ranked 1,089th among boys that year.
share of that year’s births on record
Births in France by year of birth, from INSEE’s fichier des prénoms (1900–2025; Mayotte from 2012); exact spellings count separately (Léo and Leo are different names), any spelling under 3 in a year and sex is withheld at source, every count is rounded to the nearest 5 at source, and nametree keeps the spellings that reached 20 in some year. Shares divide by INSEE’s count of births in France from 1957, and before that by the file’s own total for the year; INSEE says the file is not complete before 1946. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)
England and Wales
1 in 20,000
In England and Wales, 29 boys named Mahmoud were born in 2025, ranked 1,035th among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Canada
1 in 24,000
In Canada, 15 boys named Mahmoud were born in 2024, ranked 1,459th among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
Spain
1 in 42,000
In Spain, 1,058 residents are named Mahmoud, ranked 1,316th among men, with a mean age of 39.3 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Brazil
1 in 1M
At the 2022 census, 149 people in Brazil were named Mahmoud, ranked 31,238th, with a median age of 35.
Among people named Mahmoud living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1990s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Scotland
last on record 2023
Mahmoud is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
South Australia
last on record 2016
Mahmoud is not on the 2017 record for South Australia, whose registry publishes every name given that year.
The count never rose above 1 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
Not on the record in Mexico City, Argentina, Puerto Rico, New Zealand and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years.
When you meet Mahmoud
Most people given the name Mahmoud in the United States are teenagers or young adults today.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
The Mahmoud deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Mahmoud truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Mahmoud fits with your family’s names and surname.
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