Fun Facts About the Name Kulsoom
- 67 babies named Kulsoom: U.S. records list 67 babies given the name Kulsoom from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Kulsoom Mean?
Kulsoom is an Arabic feminine name, written Kulthūm (كُلْثُوم) in Arabic script. Arabic sources explain it as "full-cheeked" or "one with full, rounded cheeks," from the root k‑l‑th‑m and the verb kalṯama, which refers to fullness in the face. The description is a physical one, and names drawn from a notable feature of a person were common in old Arabic naming.
The spelling Kulsoom reflects a change in pronunciation rather than a different name. Arabic has a "th" sound for the letter ث, so the name is Kulthūm; in Persian, Urdu, and other South Asian languages that sound is regularly pronounced "s," giving Kulsoom, Kulsum, and similar spellings. Turkish uses Külsüm. All are the same name written and spoken in different languages.
Kulsoom Name History & Origins
Kulthūm is an old Arabic personal name. Because it was common to address a woman through her child, the honorific form Umm Kulthūm, meaning "mother of Kulthūm," was widely used, and some women are remembered in early Islamic history under that form alone. Among them are Umm Kulthūm bint Muhammad, a daughter of the Prophet Muhammad, and Umm Kulthūm bint ʿAlī, a daughter of ʿAlī and Fāṭima. Through such figures the name has an established place in Muslim naming in Arabic-speaking countries and beyond.
As the name moved into Persian and then Urdu and other South Asian languages, its pronunciation shifted from a "th" to an "s" sound, and the transliterated forms Kulsoom and Kulsum became normal there. In Pakistan, for example, Kulsoom Nawaz, wife of the politician Nawaz Sharif, is a well-known bearer of that spelling. Turkish speakers use Külsüm. The differences among these forms are matters of script and sound, not of separate origin.
In the twentieth century the Egyptian singer Umm Kulthūm (born Fāṭima Ibrāhīm al-Sayyid al-Biltājī, about 1904 - 1975), called Kawkab al-Sharq, "the Star of the East," became the most widely known bearer of the name in the modern period, performing across the Arab world for decades.
How Popular is the Name Kulsoom?
Kulsoom has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2025. Its best rank was #11,490 in 1997.
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 | #12,589 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2024 | #12,809 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2023 | #12,842 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2022 | #16,605 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2020 | #16,422 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2019 | #14,762 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 2011 | #14,128 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2002 | #14,595 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1998 | #15,423 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1997 | #11,490 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1995 | #14,654 | 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 Kulsoom 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. Emergencies may raise your intuitive abilities in order to resolve conflict or situation. You become very creative under the pressure, and have quite original ideas to make the best out of it.
You are very intuitive. You have a reservoir of inspired wisdom combined with inherited analytical ability, which could reward you through expressions of spiritual leadership, business analysis, marketing, artistic visions, and scientific research. Operating on spiritual side of your individuality can bring you to the great heights, and drop you off if you neglect your spiritual identity. You are always looking for an opportunity to investigate the unknown, to use and show your mental abilities, to find the purpose and meaning of life. You want to grow wise and to understand people and things. You need privacy to replenish your energy. You have a unique way of thinking, intuitive, reflective, absorbing.
✦ Kulsoom's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Kulsoom's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.