The first name Musa
A boy’s name from Arabic.
Pronounced /ˈmuːsə/ 2 syllables Male Also a surname
Meaning and origin
Arabic origin
Transliteration of Arabic مُوسَى (mūsā), Persian موسی (Musâ), and Turkish Musa; ultimately from Biblical Hebrew. Doublet of Moses.
From Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Popularity
Babies registered in England and Wales, 1996–2025
In 2025, 798 boys were named Musa, making it the 64th most popular boys’ name.
Office for National Statistics; years with fewer than three births are not published and show as zero. Compare Musa with other names.
Popularity in the United States
Babies named Musa at birth, 1880–2025
In 2025, 651 boys born in the United States were named Musa, the 470th most popular boys’ name that year.
US Social Security Administration, from applications for a Social Security card. A name is only published for a year when at least five babies were given it, so quieter years show as zero.
Musa in other languages
Equivalent forms of the name, from Wiktionary
Spelled Musa in Turkish too.
Famous people named Musa
11 on Wikidata, most written-about first
- Mansa Musa14th-century emperor (mansa) of the Mali Empire, 1280–1337
- Musa BarrowGambian association football player, born 1998
- Al-Ashraf MusaAyyubid emir of Damascus 1229–1237
- Musa JuwaraFootball player, born 2001
- Musa NaghiyevAzerbaijani businessman (1849–1919)
- Musa ibn Ka'b al-Tamimi8th-century Abbasid commander and governor, 700–758
- Musa ibn YahyaAbbasid provincial governor and official (died c.835)
- Musa HitamFormer 5th Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, born 1934
- Al-HadiArab Abbasid Caliph (r. 785-786)
- Theophilus LondonAmerican rapper and singer, born 1987
- Kamal al-Din bin Younis11th c. mathematician and chemist, 1156–1242
More Arabic boys’ names
Questions
- What does the name Musa mean?
- Transliteration of Arabic مُوسَى (mūsā), Persian موسی (Musâ), and Turkish Musa; ultimately from Biblical Hebrew. Doublet of Moses.
- What is the origin of the name Musa?
- Transliteration of Arabic مُوسَى (mūsā), Persian موسی (Musâ), and Turkish Musa; ultimately from Biblical Hebrew. Doublet of Moses.
- How popular is the name Musa?
- In 2025, 798 boys born in England and Wales were named Musa, ranking 64th.
- Is Musa a boy's or a girl's name?
- Mostly a boy's name: 99% of the 6,140 US babies named Musa since 1880 were boys.
- When was Musa most popular?
- 2025 in the United States, when 651 babies were named Musa, its highest rank at 470th.
- How do you pronounce Musa?
- Musa is /ˈmuːsə/, 2 syllables.
- Is Musa also a surname?
- Yes. Musa is used as a surname as well as a first name; its surname page has the origin and how many people carry it.