Selim is a distinctive choice, ranked #1035 in 2025. Your child is likely to be the only Selim in their class.
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UK Rank 2025
#1035
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About the Name Selim
Selim is currently at its most popular point on record, sitting at UK #1000. The name has climbed 1076 places in the last five years โ a significant surge by any measure. The name has been a regular feature in UK records since 1998.
Selim is uncommon in the UK, so your child is very likely to be the only Selim in their class.
Sheikh Selim โ Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim is a Bangladeshi politician who was a 9-term Member of Parliament representing the Gopalganj-2 constituency during 1980โ2024.
Selim (horse) โ Selim was a British Thoroughbred racehorse.
Biographical summaries are shortened from Wikipedia and are used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence; those summaries remain available under that same licence.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about the name Selim
Unlikely. With around 29 UK babies named Selim per year, your child will almost certainly be the only Selim in their class, and possibly the only one in the whole school.
Selim is rising: up 1,041 places since 2020, to #1,035 in 2025. Its best recorded position was #1,000 in 2024.
Selim 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 Selim include: MAH Selim, Sheikh Selim and Mujahidul Islam Selim. Short summaries for each appear below.
Selim does not appear in the US top 1,000 baby names, making it a distinctively British choice โ your child is unlikely to encounter American Selims in the wild.
29
UK babies named Selim (2025)
< 1
Expected classmates with this name (class of 28)
~0.0
In a school of 600
↑ 1041 places
Rank change (last 5 years)
🏫 Who else is in the room?
In a typical UK class of 28, highlighted children share the name Selim
Almost certainly the only Selim in the class
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UK Popularity (1998–2025)
Rank and birth count · ONS official data
No US data available for this name
✨ Similar names to Selim
Names with a similar style — each with their own classroom story
Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim is a Bangladeshi politician who was a 9-term Member of Parliament representing the Gopalganj-2 constituency during 1980โ2024.
Selim Khedouri Zilkha was an Iraqi-born British entrepreneur, who founded Mothercare, one of the UK's largest retail chains until it was put into administration in 2019.
Selim Khimshiashvili was a Georgian nobleman of the Khimshiashvili princedom and dukedom and a Beylerbey of Adjara under the Ottoman suzerainty, but with considerable autonomy.