Baba can be a surname in several cultures such as Japanese, Assyrian and Russian. It is also a nickname for 'father' in some languages, and translates to "father" in the Arabic and Shona languages. In various Slavic languages "baba" means an [old] lady (as in the diminutive variation babushka).

First name

• Baba Brinkman, Canadian environmental rapper
• Baba Ishak (died 1241), Seljuk Turkish preacher who led a revolt against the Seljuq Sultanate of Rûm
• Baba Jan (politician) (born 1974), Pakistani political activist
• Baba Nobuharu (1514–1575), samurai of Japan's Sengoku period under Takeda Shingen
• Baba Rahman (born 1994), Ghanaian footballer
• Baba Sayaka (馬場彩華), Japanese singer, former member of HKT48

Nickname

• Israel Abuhatzeira (Hebrew: ר׳ יִשְׂרָאֵל אַבּוּחַצִירָא), known as the Baba Sali (Arabic: بابا صلى, Hebrew: בַּאבָּא סָאלִי, lit. "Praying Father") (1889–1984), leading Moroccan Sephardic Jews rabbi.
• Köksal Bektaşoğlu (born 1975), known as Köksal Baba, Turkish internet celebrity
• Raila Odinga (born 1945), Kenyan politician and 2nd Prime Minister of Kenya (2008–2013)
• Sanjay Dutt (born 1959), Indian film actor and producer
• Starina Novak (c. 1530–1601), Serbian hajduk, also known as "Baba Novac" ("Old Novak") in Romanian
• Usnan Batubara (born 1971), just called of the “Ucok Baba”, Indonesian actor and comedian. BaBa stands for Batubara, which comes from the clan of the Batak Angkola tribe.
• Baba Vanga (Bulgarian: Баба Ванга, lit. 'Grandmother Vanga'), Bulgarian attributed mystic and healer who claimed to have foreseen the future

Surname

• Corneliu Baba (1906–1997), Romanian painter
• Frank Shozo Baba (1915–2008), Japanese American who worked for Voice of America and Japan
• Ghafar Baba (1925–2006), Malaysian politician
• Gül Baba (died 1541), Ottoman Bektashi dervish poet
• James Baba (born 1945), Ugandan politician
• Jaroslav Bába (born 1984), Czech high jumper
• Kenji Baba (born 1985), Japanese footballer
• Kikutaro Baba (1905–2001), Japanese malacologist
• Masao Baba (1892–1947), Japanese general
• Otman Baba (c. 1378–1478), Sufi saint
• Ryosuke Baba (馬場 亮輔, born 1984), Japanese artistic gymnast
• Seiya Baba (馬場 晴也, born 2001), Japanese professional footballer
• Shigeru Baba (born 1948), Japanese professional go player
• Shohei Baba (1938–1999), Japanese wrestler
• Sumie Baba (born 1967), Japanese voice actress
• Tadao Baba (born 1944), Japanese motorcycle engineer
• Takumi Baba (born 1999), Japanese footballer on the club Gainare Tottori
• Toru Baba (born 1988), Japanese entertainer
• Tupeni Baba (fl. 1980s–present), Fijian politician
• Yudai Baba (born 1995), Japanese basketball player
• Yuki Baba (born 1992), Japanese politician
• Yuta Baba (born 1984), Japanese expatriate footballer in South Korea

Honorific

The following have adopted the honorific Baba:

• Baba Ram Das (1931–2019), born Richard Alpert, American spiritual teacher and psychologist
• Baba Ramdevji (1352–1385), a Hindu ruler venerated as a folk deity in Gujarat and Rajasthan
• Baba Bulleh Shah (1680–1757), a Punjabi philosopher and Sufi poet
• Demir Baba, a 16th-century Alevi saint
• Gül Baba (died 1541), an Ottoman Bektashi dervish poet
• Meher Baba (1894–1969), born Merwan Sheriar Irani, Indian guru
• Otman Baba (c. 1378–1478), a dervish traveling throughout the Ottoman Empire
• Rehman Baba (1632–1706), an Afghan Sufi Dervish and poet
• Sai Baba of Shirdi (c. 1838–1918), Indian guru
• Sathya Sai Baba (1926–2011), born Sathya Narayana Raju, Indian guru purporting to be a reincarnation of Sai Baba of Shirdi
• Sersem Ali Baba, a 16th-century Ottoman dervish

See also

• Babá (disambiguation)