Salih is a distinctive choice, ranked #2089 in 2024. Your child is likely to be the only Salih in their class.
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UK Rank 2024
#2089
About the Name Salih
Salih has seen a notable decline in recent years, dropping 264 places in five years. It was most popular in 1996 at #1458 — parents choosing it today are making a deliberately counter-trend decision. The name has been a consistent presence in UK records since 1996.
Salih is distinctive enough that your child will likely be the only one in both their class and their school — standing out on every register.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about the name Salih
Unlikely. With around 11 UK babies named Salih per year, your child will almost certainly be the only Salih in his class, and possibly the only one in the whole school.
Salih has been declining in UK popularity, dropping 264 places in the last five years. Its peak was #1458 in 1996. Choosing it now means he is likely to be among the last of his generation with this name.
Salih is a distinctive choice sitting outside the mainstream UK top names. Parents choosing less common names often find their children appreciate the individuality as they grow up, rarely needing to add an initial to distinguish themselves.
Notable people named Salih include: Salih Mustafa — Salih Mustafa also known by the nickname "Cali", is a former Kosovo Albanian war commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) from the Guerilla BIA unit,...; Salih Özcan — Salih Özcan is a professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund.; Salih Uçan — Salih Uçan is a Turkish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Beşiktaş..
Salih does not appear in the US top 1,000 baby names, making it a distinctively British choice — your child is unlikely to encounter American Salihs in the wild.
11
UK babies named Salih (2024)
< 1
Expected classmates with this name (class of 28)
~0.0
In a school of 600
↓ 264 places
Rank change (last 5 years)
🏫 Who else is in the room?
In a typical UK class of 28, highlighted children share the name Salih
Likely around 1 other Salih in the class
UK Popularity (1996–2024)
Rank and birth count · ONS official data
No US data available for this name
✨ Similar names to Salih
Names with a similar style — each with their own classroom story
Salih Mustafa also known by the nickname "Cali", is a former Kosovo Albanian war commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) from the Guerilla BIA unit, which operated in the Llap region operative zone, particularly in parts of Gollak, Zllash during the Kosovo War. He was the former founder and Leader of the Nationalist Communist Party National Movement for the Liberation of Kosovo and the former intelligence chief of the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) until his indictment in The Hague.
Salih Özcan is a professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund. Born in Germany, he plays for the Turkey national team.
Barham Salih (Kurdish: بەرھەم ساڵح, romanized: Berhem Salih; Arabic: برهم صالح, romanized: Barham Ṣāliḥ; born 8 September 1960) is an Iraqi-Kurdish politician who has been serving as United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees since 1 January 2026. He previously served as the president of Iraq from 2018 to 2022.
Saleh al-Fawzan is a Saudi Islamic scholar who is the fourth and current Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, serving since 22 October 2025. He is regarded as one of the senior scholars within the Salafi movement.
Ṣāleḥ ibn ʻAbd Allāh al-Ḥumayd, is a Saudi Islamic scholar and judge, who is currently one of the nine Imams of Grand Mosque of Mecca. He has also been a member of the Assembly of Saudi Arabia since 1993 and served as Speaker of the Majlis al-Shura from February 2002 to February 2009.
As-Salih Salah ad-Din Salih ibn Muhammad ibn Qalawun (28 September 1337–1360/61, better known as as-Salih Salih, was the Mamluk sultan in 1351–1354. He was the eighth son of Sultan an-Nasir Muhammad to accede to the sultanate.
Salih Bozok was an officer of the Ottoman Army, later the Turkish Army and a politician of the Republic of Turkey. He was the chief aide-de-camp of Mustafa Kemal (Atatürk), the founder of modern Turkey.