Fun Facts About the Name Khadija
- More than 5 thousand babies named Khadija: U.S. records list 5,271 babies given the name Khadija from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Khadija Mean?
Khadija is an Arabic feminine name, and its established meaning is "premature child" or "one born early." It comes from the Arabic root kh - d - j (خ د ج), whose verb khadaja means "to give birth before term," and whose noun khidāj refers to a premature birth. The adjective khadīj describes a child or young animal born early, and Khadīja is its feminine form. The root also carries a secondary sense of something incomplete or falling short, which is related to the idea of a birth that comes before its time.
Some popular sources give the name as "trustworthy" or "respectable." That is a later, symbolic reading drawn from the character of the most famous woman who bore the name, not from the word's etymology, so it should not be confused with the literal meaning.
Khadija Name History & Origins
The name was part of the ordinary stock of Arab names in the late sixth century, and its best-known early bearer is Khadija bint Khuwaylid (roughly 555 - 619), a prosperous merchant of Mecca. She employed Muhammad and later married him, becoming his first wife and the first person to accept Islam; she is remembered by Muslims as Umm al-Mu'minin, "Mother of the Believers." Her central place in early Islamic history carried the name into wide use across the Muslim world.
As Arabic-speaking communities spread through the Middle East, North Africa, and beyond, the name took on regional forms in the languages that adopted it. Turkish uses Hatice, Azerbaijani uses Xədicə, and Bosnian and other Balkan Muslim communities use forms such as Hatidža. In Arabic it remains Khadija, and in English the spelling Khadijah is also common.
How Popular is the Name Khadija?
Khadija recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2025. Its best rank was #982 in 2025.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #982 | 258 | 0.0161% |
| 2024 | #1,073 | 231 | 0.0143% |
| 2023 | #1,191 | 202 | 0.0126% |
| 2022 | #1,122 | 219 | 0.0134% |
| 2021 | #1,175 | 208 | 0.0127% |
| 2020 | #1,268 | 177 | 0.0110% |
| 2019 | #1,144 | 211 | 0.0126% |
| 2018 | #1,329 | 171 | 0.0101% |
| 2017 | #1,369 | 169 | 0.0098% |
| 2016 | #1,342 | 177 | 0.0100% |
| 2015 | #1,342 | 177 | 0.0099% |
| 2014 | #1,404 | 163 | 0.0091% |
| 2013 | #1,591 | 135 | 0.0077% |
| 2012 | #1,618 | 134 | 0.0076% |
| 2011 | #1,920 | 104 | 0.0059% |
| 2010 | #1,806 | 114 | 0.0064% |
| 2009 | #1,681 | 133 | 0.0072% |
| 2008 | #1,839 | 117 | 0.0062% |
| 2007 | #2,169 | 92 | 0.0048% |
| 2006 | #1,901 | 107 | 0.0056% |
| 2005 | #1,940 | 99 | 0.0054% |
| 2004 | #2,081 | 88 | 0.0048% |
| 2003 | #1,794 | 105 | 0.0057% |
| 2002 | #2,279 | 72 | 0.0040% |
| 2001 | #2,056 | 82 | 0.0046% |
| 2000 | #2,296 | 68 | 0.0037% |
| 1999 | #2,325 | 64 | 0.0036% |
| 1998 | #2,037 | 73 | 0.0041% |
| 1997 | #2,299 | 59 | 0.0034% |
| 1996 | #1,831 | 80 | 0.0046% |
| 1995 | #1,848 | 77 | 0.0044% |
| 1994 | #1,208 | 146 | 0.0082% |
| 1993 | #1,337 | 125 | 0.0069% |
| 1992 | #2,145 | 63 | 0.0034% |
| 1991 | #2,067 | 66 | 0.0035% |
| 1990 | #1,915 | 73 | 0.0038% |
| 1989 | #2,431 | 48 | 0.0026% |
| 1988 | #2,617 | 41 | 0.0023% |
| 1987 | #1,615 | 77 | 0.0044% |
| 1986 | #2,316 | 44 | 0.0026% |
| 1985 | #3,043 | 30 | 0.0017% |
| 1984 | #2,956 | 30 | 0.0018% |
| 1983 | #3,098 | 27 | 0.0016% |
| 1982 | #2,669 | 35 | 0.0021% |
| 1981 | #4,245 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 1980 | #3,030 | 29 | 0.0017% |
| 1979 | #3,108 | 27 | 0.0017% |
| 1978 | #3,236 | 24 | 0.0016% |
| 1977 | #2,637 | 32 | 0.0021% |
| 1976 | #2,829 | 27 | 0.0018% |
| 1975 | #3,210 | 22 | 0.0015% |
| 1974 | #2,948 | 24 | 0.0016% |
| 1973 | #3,543 | 18 | 0.0012% |
| 1972 | #5,266 | 10 | 0.0007% |
| 1971 | #3,571 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 1970 | #4,361 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1969 | #5,696 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1968 | #5,365 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1967 | #4,165 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 1966 | #6,164 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1965 | #6,992 | 5 | 0.0003% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Khadija Shapes Your Personality and Life?
EXTREMES in fortune, health and spirituality. You are very versatile, idealistic and intuitive. You either enjoy great success or suffer abject misery. The solution is service to others. Use your leadership abilities for humanity and not for self-glorification. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
Position and social status is very important for you and you are always looking for way to improve your position in society. You have power and ability to chose your own destiny and achieve anything you want in life. You can expand in any direction according to your will and the set of values. You have passion for justice and belong to the position of authority. You have an inherent courage and endurance to accomplish "The Impossible Dream". With the power comes responsibility. You hold keys to the material world, but with this gift comes high spiritual responsibility to be fair and true to others. You are philosophical and mature, determined and intense with a desire to endure, often religious.
✦ Khadija's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Khadija's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.