Doha – Mohamed has secured the top position as the most common surname in Ceuta, according to data released by the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE) for 2024.
According to local media, a total of 7,750 residents of the Spanish North African enclave carry Mohamed as their first surname, while 7,479 have it as their second surname. Additionally, 1,731 people in Ceuta have the double surname combination of Mohamed Mohamed.
Ahmed ranks as the second most frequent surname in Ceuta with 3,097 residents carrying it as their first surname and 2,880 as their second. The Spanish surname García takes third place with 2,217 and 2,059 people having it as first and second surnames respectively.
The list of top ten surnames in the enclave continues with Abdeselam, Sánchez, González, Rodríguez, López, Pérez, and Fernández. Completing the top fifteen are Martín, Ruiz, Jiménez, Gómez, and Abdelkader.
The 7-square-mile territory on Morocco’s northern coast remains under Spanish control—a holdover from centuries-old colonial expansion. Despite this, the enclave’s geographic, cultural, and demographic realities point unmistakably toward its Moroccan character.
What makes this distinction clear is that the trend in Ceuta diverges significantly. In mainland Spain, García, Rodríguez, and González reign as the most common surnames nationwide. The INE reports that 26.3% of Spaniards have one of the top twenty most frequent surnames as their first surname.
The dominance of the name Muhammad extends beyond Ceuta to other parts of the world. In December 2024, Muhammad became the most popular first name for baby boys in England and Wales for the first time, according to the country’s Office for National Statistics (ONS).
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The Arabic name displaced Noah, which fell to second place in the UK rankings. There were 4,661 babies named Muhammad born across England and Wales in 2023, up from 4,177 in 2022. Alternative spellings of the name also appeared in the top 100, with Mohammed ranking 28th with 1,601 babies and Mohammad placing 68th with 835.
Muhammad was the most popular boys’ name in four out of nine regions in England and ranked 63rd in Wales. Meanwhile, in Northern Ireland and Scotland, Noah and Luca respectively claimed the top spots for boys’ names in 2023.
The name’s growing prevalence is an indication of demographic changes across Europe, with projections from the Pew Research Center suggesting that by 2050, Muslims will represent 20% of Germany’s population, 18% in France, and 17% in Britain.
France currently has the highest proportion of Muslims among major European countries, with a June 2023 study by the French Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies showing that 10% of French people identify as Muslim, though some estimates place this figure as high as 15%.
