We all want to give our children beautiful names but before doing so lets take a look at the Islamic guidelines on naming children.

Praise be to Allaah. No doubt the matter of giving names is one of the most important issues in people’s lives, because a person’s name is a title which says something about him, and is essential for communicating with him. It is an adornment and symbol for the person, by which he is called in this world and in the Hereafter. It is indicative of the religion to which he belongs, and makes him feel that he is one of the followers of that religion. It gives an impression of him to other people, and in their view it is like a garment – if it is too long or too short, it does not look right. The basic principle concerning names is that they are permissible, but there are some matters which are prohibited according to sharee’ah and
should be avoided when choosing names. These include the following: -

Enslavement to or worship of anything other than Allaah, including Prophets and angels. It is not permissible to be enslaved to or to worship anyone or anything other than Allaah at all. Among the names which express
enslavement to or worship of anything other than Allaah are ‘Abd al-Rasool
(“slave of the Messenger”), ‘Abd al-Nabi (“slave of the Prophet”) and ‘Abd al-Ameer (slave of the prince) and
other names which imply worship of or submission to anything other than Allaah. The person who has a name
like this must change it. The great Sahaabi ‘Abd al-Rahmaan ibn ‘Awf
(may Allaah be pleased with him) said: My name was ‘Abd ‘Amr – or according
to one report, ‘Abd al-Ka’bah and when I became Muslim, the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) called me ‘Abd al-Rahmaan. (Narrated by al-Haakim, 3/306. Al-Dhahabi agreed with him) -

Names of Allaah which are befitting only for Him, may He be glorified, such as al-Khaaliq (the Creator), al-Raaziq (the Provider), al-Rabb (the Lord), al-Rahmaan (the Most Merciful), etc.,
which are names that befit only Allaah;

Names which describe attributes which are true only of Allaah, such as Malik al-Mulook (King of kings), al-Qaahir (the Subduer), etc. It is haraam to call people by these names, and they must
be changed. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “Do you know of any who is similar to Him?” [Maryam 19:65]. -

Names that belong exclusively to the kuffaar and are not used by
anyone else, such as ‘Abd al-Maseeh (“slave of the Messiah”), Butrous
(Peter), Jurjus (George), and other names which denote religions of kufr. -

Names of idols and false gods which are worshipped instead of Allaah, such
as naming someone after a devil and so on. It is not permissible to call people after the names referred to
above; indeed, doing so is haraam and anyone who has such a name is obliged to change it. -

It is makrooh (disliked) to use names which have off-putting meanings, either because the
meaning is ugly or because it will provoke others to make fun of the person. Such names also go against
the teaching of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), who
commanded us to give beautiful names. Examples of such (objectionable) names include Harb (“war”), Rashaash (sprinkles or drizzle), and Hiyaam – which is the name of a disease suffered by camels – and other names which have ugly or unpleasant meanings.

It is makrooh to use names which have alluring or
provocative meanings. This happens a lot when it comes to naming girls, where some names are given which
have sexual or provocative meanings. -

It is makrooh to deliberately name someone after immoral people such as singers and actors/actresses, etc. If
they have good names, it is
permissible to use those names, but it must be because of the meaning of
the name and not because of the desire to imitate those people.

It is makrooh to give names which have meanings that refer to sin, such as Saariq (“thief”) or Zaalim (“wrongdoer”); or to give the names of Pharaohs or sinners, such as Fir’awn
(Pharaoh), Haamaan (the name of Pharaoh’s minister) and Qaaroon. -

It is makrooh to use the names of animals which are well-known for their
undesirable characteristics, such as al-Himaar (donkey), al-Kalb (dog), al-Qird (monkey), etc. -

It is makrooh to use
any name which is added to the words “al-Deen” or “al-Islam” (i.e., names which appear in idaafah – genitive
construction – with these words), such as Noor al-Deen (“light of the religion”), Shams al-Deen (“sun of the religion”), Noor al-Islam (“light of Islam”), Shams al-Islam (“sun of
Islam”), etc., because these names give a person more than he deserves. The
scholars of the Salaf disliked being given nicknames of this sort. Imaam al-Nawawi (may Allaah have mercy on
him) disliked his nickname of Muhiy al-Deen (“reviver of the religion”); Shaykh
al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) also disliked his nickname of Taqiy al-Deen (“piety of
the religion”), and he used to say, “But my family gave me this nickname and it
became well-known.” -

It is makrooh to add any word to the name of Allaah
except the word ‘Abd (slave), as in ‘Abd-Allaah (Abdullah). Example of this include Hasab-Allaah, Rahmat-Allaah
(the mercy of Allaah), etc. It is similarly makrooh to add words to the word al-
Rasool (the Messenger). - It is
makrooh to use the names of angels, or to call people after the names of soorahs in the Qur’aan, such as Ta-Ha,
Yaa-Seen, etc. These names are al- Huroof al-Muqatta’ah (letters which appear at the beginning of some soorahs; their meaning is known only
to Allaah – Translator), they are not names of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).
SeeTuhfat al-Mawdood by Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him), p109.

These names are makrooh, and it is makrooh to give them to anyone. But if a person has been given such a
name by his family, and he is grown up and it is difficult for him to change it, he does not have to do so.

There are five categories of good names:

The first (best) category are the names ‘Abd-Allaah and ‘Abd al-Rahmaan. It was reported that the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
“The most beloved of names to Allaah are ‘Abd-Allaah and ‘Abd al-Rahmaan.” (Narrated by Muslim in his Saheeh, 1398).

The second category include
all the names which express
enslavement to and worship of Allaah, such as ‘Abd al-Azeez, ‘Abd al-Raheem,
‘Abd al-Malik, ‘Abd al-Ilaah, ‘Abd al-Salaam, etc.

The third category are
names of Prophets and Messengers – may the peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon them. Undoubtedly the best and greatest of them is our Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him); the name Ahmad is also one of his names. Next come
the names of the “Messengers of strong will” [cf. Al-Ahqaaf 46:35],
namely Ibrahim, Musa, ‘Eesa and Nuh (may the peace and blessings of Allaah be upon them), then the rest of
the Prophets - may the peace and blessings of Allaah be upon them.

The fourth category are the names of righteous slaves of Allaah, above all the
companions of our noble Prophet. It is mustahabb to use their names, following their example and hoping to
reach a higher status.

The fifth category is any other good name which has a proper and pleasant meaning.

It is good to pay attention to a number of matters when giving names to our children, including the following:
1.Recognizing the fact that this name will stay with the person for his entire
lifetime, and it could cause some embarrassment or problems for him which in turn could make him feel
badly towards his father, mother or whoever gave him this name.
2. When looking at names in order to choose one, we should look at it from a
number of angles. We should look at the name itself, and also think of how it will sound when this person is a child,
a youth, an adult, an old man and a father, and how it will suit his father to be called “Abu” (Father of) So and so,
and how it will suit his son to be called Son and so son of So and so, etc.
3.Choosing the name is the right of the father, because he is the one after whom the child will be named (son of,
or daughter of…). But it is mustahabb for the father to involve the mother in
the decision and to ask for her opinion as to whether she thinks the name is good, so that she will feel happy.
4.The child must be named after his father even if the father is deceased or
divorced, etc., even if he does not take care of the child or see him at all. It is
utterly haraam to name a child after anyone other than his father, except in one case, which is when the child is
born as the result of adultery (Allaah forbid). In this case the child should be named after his mother and it is not
permissible to name him after his father.

Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid

Why should a page without any comment make the frontpage?
Mukina, do you care to explain?

Am not a Muslim but I find this very interesting as I know a lot of people who bear some of the makrooh names.

Reyginus: Why should a page without any comment make the frontpage?
Mukina, do you care to explain?

you have made a comment case closed.

Tanx OP.But 4rm d title, i thought d topic is not going to dwell on naming only, but on other etiquettes practised right 4rm birth e.g tahneek.Pls ppl need to be enlightened on these also.It will also be beneficial if we know d authenticity of saying the adhan and iqamah into d left nd right ears respectvly of a new-born baby,also the issue of shaving d baby's hair nd giving its equivalent weight in charity.Jazallahu khayran

Boring

I find this very interesting and enlightening.

It is funny that many Muslims in a bid to give uncommon names are giving very wrong names to their children.

Some names are even indian,just arabic without their meanings known to the parents.

It is also of note that Muslims dont necessarily have to bear arabic names. They only provide the Islam identity. Any name with a good meaning is alright and Islamic.

A nice article!

Op i didn't understand your etiquettes. Too much arab i guess, buh is it against any of your numerous etiquettes to name your child, imam shekau, osama bin laden kabiru sokoto etc?

Thank u op!
i hav reserve abdul rahman and abdullah for my unborn babies inshaalah

Paxchal: Op i didn't understand your etiquettes. Too much arab i guess, buh is it against any of your numerous etiquettes to name your child, imam shekau, osama bin laden kabiru sokoto etc?

Hav u taken ur drugs today?

Jazakum lahu khairan. Very important topic.

talk2me006:
Hav u taken ur drugs today?

Drugs like camel piss? Nah




*am off

Peace be onto you.... Op

Interesting article
More interesting is the flagrant non-use or abuse as seen in certain communities.

.

Jazakallahu khairan...what an educative article

going by the last point, a lot of Muslims I know are supposed to bear their Mother's name rather than the name of their father

Muslims/Islam and all these rules.

haba, is there something u pple dont have a gamut of rules for? how una dey take cope with all these una living under bondage of law, how many of una go go Al-jannah at this rate?

even to chop get like 1000 rules

so those named mikail,jibril are affected.

talk2me006: Thank u op!
i hav reserve abdul rahman and abdullah for my unborn babies inshaalah

Good for you but you still have to involve your wife

Jazakalahu khairan kheshiran @op

Names in mind for my unborn children insha Allah are: Jamal abdulmuiz bilal Fareedah Aqeelah and kulzum..it's permited to copy anyone if u like

I hate when as a Muslim u are telling me your name is Segun when you have a better name u were given like Abdulfawaz..this is why I'm not going to give my children any tribal names.

Ayoobscom: Jazakalahu khairan kheshiran @op

Names in mind for my unborn children insha Allah are: Jamal abdulmuiz bilal Fareedah Aqeelah and kulzum..it's permited to copy anyone if u like

I hate when as a Muslim u are telling me your name is Segun when you have a better name u were given like Abdulfawaz..this is why I'm not going to give my children any tribal names.

You're wrong!! There's nothing wrong in giving your child a tribal name as long as it fits into the conditions stated above. The Prophet S.A.W. said no race or tribe is superior to the other, the essence of your Islamic name is to show your muslim identity not to Arabize you.

4llerbuntu: Muslims/Islam and all these rules.

haba, is there something u pple dont have a gamut of rules for? how una dey take cope with all these una living under bondage of law, how many of una go go Al-jannah at this rate?

even to chop get like 1000 rules

Islam is a scholarly religion. Wherever Islam holds sway, learning thrives.

Noted

4llerbuntu: Muslims/Islam and all these rules.

haba, is there something u pple dont have a gamut of rules for? how una dey take cope with all these una living under bondage of law, how many of una go go Al-jannah at this rate?

even to chop get like 1000 rules

Maybe you dont know but Islam is a complete way of life. It encompasses everything abt life and so muslims are covered in evry aspect of their life. What could be sweeter than something that concerns evry aspect of ur life?? I'm prooud to be in the fold

Kayslim10: you can jump into the well.

Salaam
This is not the type of message/character we are to demonstrate
We are the best of people. Please let us educate, counter with facts but not invite rancour

4llerbuntu: Muslims/Islam and all these rules.

haba, is there something u pple dont have a gamut of rules for? how una dey take cope with all these una living under bondage of law, how many of una go go Al-jannah at this rate?

even to chop get like 1000 rules

Yes, we need these guidance because no original equipment comes without a manual
Would you really like to be called Judas or a dog? Of course not.
And rules ensure that people don't marry their daughter or mom