According to the UK Office for National Statistics, Muhammad became one of the top-10 most popular names for baby boys in London and several other large British cities last year.
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Oliver remained the most popular name for boys, although Muhammad was more popular in London, the West Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber.
Meanwhile, other spellings of the name of the Muslim prophet, Mohammed (1,982 babies), Mohammad (837), Muhammed (450) and Mohamed (269) are ranked 30, 79, 133 and 199 respectively.
In its previous reports, the ONS explained that combining spelling of one particular name would distort the list, knocking other names off their spots.
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Social media users, however, seemed to be annoyed by the fact that the Muslim name was trending in the UK:
Europe is LOST
— Valdis Gailitis (@WallyG1) 21 сентября 2018 г.
Islam is the future of Englandistan and Walesnistan.
— Eros 🇮🇱 🇺🇸 👌 (@Erosunique) 21 сентября 2018 г.
Beautiful British name! pic.twitter.com/xEQ2kdInaj
— Galvanized Grenadier 🐻 (@MitreCapMadness) 21 сентября 2018 г.
Muhammad Names are Top For Baby Boys in England and Wales Sixth Year Running! pic.twitter.com/4iS7VgK8oQ
— Eli Tabori (@EliTabori) 21 сентября 2018 г.
The growing size of the Muslim community in England and Wales, as well as the popularity of the name among Muslims, were listed as the key reasons for Muhammad’s rise to the top-10 in previous ONS reports. At the same time, the Office believes that prominent sports figures, such as boxing legend Muhammad Ali and the UK’s finest distance runner, Mohamed “Mo” Farah, may have contributed to the increasing trend.
