Given name & surname
Abbas
“one who is stern; in Islam, Muhammad's uncle”
Abbas is used as a given name and a surname. One Arabic interpretation is “one who is stern; in Islam, Muhammad's uncle.”
Original Arabicعباس
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Arabic interpretation is “one who is stern; in Islam, Muhammad's uncle.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Arabic.
How it developed
From Arabic عَبَّاس (“one who frowns a lot; untamed lion”); its root is Arabic ع ب س.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1975. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Abbas through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,843
- 1,843 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2018
- 95 babies
- 2025
- 61
- #2,284 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −15%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 61 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 2,284 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 14.8% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 95 in 2018. In 2025, Michigan had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (19). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 4,261 as a first name in 2020; 7,132 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Abbas’s family of names
In English usage, Abbas has a related form in Abbie. In English usage, Abbas has a related form in ABBE. Abbas has a related form in Ab.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Abbas has relatives in 11 languages. Lines run from its Arabic roots to each of them.
Arabicwhere Abbas comes from · 1 name
Nicknames & forms 7
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 2
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 8
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Abbas
- Abbas the GreatShah of Safavid Iran (1587–1629)1571–1629
- Abbas KiarostamiIranian film director, screenwriter, photographer and film producer (1940-2016)
- Abbas ibn Abd al-MuttalibPaternal uncle of Muhammad (c.565–c.653)568–653
- Abbas ibn Firnas9th century astronomer and physician810–887
- Abbas II of EgyptKhedive of Egypt (1874-1944) (r. 1892-1914)
- Abbas II of PersiaThe seventh Safavid king (1642–1666)1633–1666
- Abbas AraghchiIranian diplomat, Minister of Foreign Affairs (born 1962)
- Abbas I of EgyptWāli of Egypt from 1848 to 18541812–1854
- Abbas MirzaQajar crown prince1789–1833
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
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