Thirty years of Raya
Raya in numbers
Raya has climbed from 6 girls in 1996 to 547 in 2025, close to its peak of 574 in 2024. Its biggest three-year rise came between 2020 and 2023, from 110 to 486. It ranked 2,350th in 1996, reached 82nd in 2024 and is still 82nd. On average it was given to 5 girls a year in the late 1990s, 23 in the 2000s, 76 in the 2010s and 399 in the 2020s so far.
† Shapes, averages and turning points are Baby Data calculations from the ONS counts.
What the official statisticians said
“The release of Disney adventure "Raya and the Last Dragon" in 2021 could be another animation influencing parents.”
ONS, on 2021 births in England and Wales. Read the source
Quoted word for word from the official releases, including their own “may” and “could”. Baby Data has not added reasons of its own. Releases for Scotland and Northern Ireland are about babies there, not in England and Wales.
Milestones
First year in each bandChange
- On last year-5%574 to 547
- 5 years+397%110 to 547
- 10 years+529%87 to 547
- 20 years+3,547%15 to 547
- Since 1996×916 to 547
- Total, 1996 to 20253,402girls
† All changes and totals are Baby Data calculations from ONS counts. A total adds only the published years.
Across the three nations, 2025
Each from its own statistics office, never added togetherRank 82 · ONS · 574 in 2024
Rank 106 · NRS · 38 in 2024
Rank 82 · NISRA · 28 in 2024
England and Wales (ONS) count births in the calendar year; Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland (NISRA) count births registered in the year. Each comes from its own statistics office and they are never added together.
Year by year, 1996 to 2025 Show all 30 yearsHide the table
| Year | Rank | Babies | Change† | 1 in X† |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 82 | 547 | -5% | 1 in 520 |
| 2024 | 82 | 574 | +18% | 1 in 505 |
| 2023 | 100 | 486 | +15% | 1 in 593 |
| 2022 | 121 | 423 | +69% | 1 in 697 |
| 2021 | 203 | 251 | +128% | 1 in 1,214 |
| 2020 | =393 | 110 | +12% | 1 in 2,722 |
| 2019 | =430 | 98 | +20% | 1 in 3,176 |
| 2018 | =519 | 82 | -15% | 1 in 3,896 |
| 2017 | =453 | 97 | +1% | 1 in 3,413 |
| 2016 | =454 | 96 | +10% | 1 in 3,534 |
| 2015 | =496 | 87 | +7% | 1 in 3,905 |
| 2014 | =521 | 81 | +14% | 1 in 4,178 |
| 2013 * | =575 | 71 | +20% | 1 in 4,810 |
| 2012 | =701 | 59 | +16% | 1 in 6,022 |
| 2011 | =744 | 51 | +21% | 1 in 6,920 |
| 2010 | =840 | 42 | -7% | 1 in 8,386 |
| 2009 | =783 | 45 | +0% | 1 in 7,647 |
| 2008 | =767 | 45 | +5% | 1 in 7,683 |
| 2007 | =764 | 43 | +19% | 1 in 7,802 |
| 2006 | =835 | 36 | +140% | 1 in 9,088 |
| 2005 | =1,500 | 15 | -6% | 1 in 21,014 |
| 2004 | =1,383 | 16 | +14% | 1 in 19,461 |
| 2003 | =1,472 | 14 | +250% | 1 in 21,645 |
| 2002 | =3,409 | 4 | -43% | 1 in 72,512 |
| 2001 | =2,226 | 7 | +75% | 1 in 41,426 |
| 2000 | =3,247 | 4 | +33% | 1 in 73,702 |
| 1999 | =3,900 | 3 | +0% | 1 in 100,869 |
| 1998 | =3,848 | 3 | -50% | n/a |
| 1997 | =2,411 | 6 | +0% | 1 in 52,252 |
| 1996 | =2,350 | 6 | 1 in 52,665 |
* ONS’s girls’ 2013 file repeats the May total as April, so the 2013 births total is about 1,360 too high and 1 in X for 2013 is slightly too high. 1 in X is not shown for girls in 1998: one monthly total is missing from the ONS girls’ 1998 file. Rank follows ONS: names with the same count share a rank (shown with =). “Under 3” means the name was given to fewer than 3 babies that year, so ONS did not publish it.
Compare Raya
Draws the second name on the chart above, on a shared scale.
Share and download
Raya is in the free dataset (CSV and JSON), with the method and how to cite it.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0; National Records of Scotland; NISRA. Exact spellings are counted separately and names given to fewer than 3 babies are not published. Figures marked † are Baby Data calculations. How we calculate
Raya is in our lists: Short baby names.