Haji m ArabicRefers to a person who has participated in the
حَجّ (hajj), the annual pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia that Muslims must undertake at least once in their lifetimes.
Hakeem m ArabicAlternate transcription of Arabic
حكيم (see
Hakim). A famous bearer is Nigerian-born former basketball player Hakeem Olajuwon (1963-).
Hakim m ArabicMeans
"wise" in Arabic. In Islamic tradition
الحكيم (al-Hakim) is one of the 99 names of Allah.
Hala f ArabicMeans
"halo around the moon" in Arabic. This was the name of a sister-in-law of the Prophet
Muhammad.
Halim m Arabic, TurkishMeans
"patient, tolerant, mild" in Arabic. In Islamic tradition
الحليم (al-Halim) is one of the 99 names of Allah.
Hamza m Arabic, Turkish, BosnianPossibly derived from Arabic
hamuza meaning
"strong, steadfast". This was the name of the uncle of the Prophet
Muhammad who was killed in battle.
Hasan m Arabic, Turkish, Persian, Urdu, Punjabi, Bengali, Indonesian, Albanian, BosnianMeans
"handsome" in Arabic, from the root
حسن (hasuna) meaning "to be beautiful, to be good". Hasan was the son of
Ali and the grandson of the Prophet
Muhammad. He was poisoned by one of his wives and is regarded as a martyr by Shia Muslims. This was also the name of two kings of Morocco. It is sometimes transcribed as
Hassan, though this is a distinct name in Arabic.
Hashim m Arabic, Urdu, MalayMeans
"crusher, breaker" in Arabic. This was the nickname of a great-grandfather of the Prophet
Muhammad. He acquired this nickname because of his practice of crumbling bread and giving it to pilgrims.
Hasim m ArabicMeans
"decisive" in Arabic, derived from
حسم (hasama) meaning "to sever, to finish, to decide".
Hassan m Arabic, Persian, UrduMeans
"beautifier, improver" in Arabic. Hassan ibn Thabit was a 7th-century poet who was a companion of the Prophet
Muhammad. This name is sometimes transcribed as
Hasan, though the two names are spelled distinctly in Arabic.
Haya f ArabicMeans
"hurry, come quickly" in Arabic.
Hayat f & m Arabic, Persian, UrduMeans
"life" in Arabic, from
حيي (hayiya) meaning "to live". In Arabic and Persian it is a feminine name, while in Urdu it is masculine.
Hilal m & f Arabic, TurkishMeans
"crescent moon" in Arabic, also referring to the new moon on the Islamic calendar. As a given name it is typically masculine in Arabic and feminine in Turkish.
Hind f ArabicPossibly means
"group of camels" in Arabic. Hind bint Abi Umayyah, also known as Umm Salama, was one of the wives of the Prophet
Muhammad. This is also the Arabic name for the country of India.
Hisham m ArabicMeans
"generous" in Arabic, ultimately from
hashama "to crush". The meaning derives from the traditional Arab act of crushing bread into crumbs in order to share it. This was the name of an 8th-century caliph of the Umayyad dynasty in Spain.
Husam m ArabicMeans
"sword" in Arabic, a derivative of the verb
حسم (hasama) meaning "to sever, to finish, to decide".
Husayn m ArabicDiminutive of
Hasan. Husayn ibn Ali (also commonly transliterated
Hussein) was the son of
Ali and the grandson of the Prophet
Muhammad. His older brother was named
Hasan. The massacre of Husayn and his family was a major event in the split between Shia and Sunni Muslims, which continues to this day. In more recent times this was the name of a king of Jordan (1935-1999).
Idris 1 m Arabic, Malay, IndonesianPossibly means
"interpreter" in Arabic. According to the Quran this was the name of an ancient prophet. He is traditionally equated with the Hebrew prophet
Enoch.
Imad m ArabicMeans
"support" or
"pillar" in Arabic.
Iman f & m Arabic, Persian, IndonesianMeans
"faith", derived from Arabic
أمن (amuna) meaning "to be faithful". It is typically feminine in Arabic and typically masculine in Persian.
Iqbal m ArabicMeans
"fortunate" in Arabic. Allama Muhammad Iqbal (1877-1938) was a poet, philosopher, and scholar from Pakistan.
Iqra f UrduFrom Arabic
إقرا (iqra) meaning
"read, recite, confess". This is another name of the 96th chapter of the Quran.
İradə f AzerbaijaniMeans
"will, determination, decree" in Azerbaijani, derived from Arabic
إرادة (iradah).
Iroda f UzbekMeans
"will, determination, decree" in Uzbek, derived from Arabic
إرادة (iradah).
Islambek m ChechenDerived from
Islam, the name of the religion (ultimately from Arabic
إسلام), combined with the Turkic military title
beg meaning "chieftain, master".
Isra f ArabicMeans
"nocturnal journey", derived from Arabic
سرى (sara) meaning "to travel at night".
Izz ad-Din m ArabicMeans
"glory of religion", derived from Arabic
عزّ ('izz) meaning "glory, power" and
دين (din) meaning "religion, faith". In the 13th century Izz ad-Din Aybak became the first Mamluk ruler of Egypt. The Mamluks were a warrior caste who were originally slaves.
Jabari m African American (Modern)Means
"almighty, powerful" in Swahili, ultimately from Arabic
جبّار (jabbar). It started to be used by African-American parents after it was featured in a 1973 nation-wide newspaper article about African baby names.
Jabbar m ArabicMeans
"powerful" in Arabic. In Islamic tradition
الجبّار (al-Jabbar) is one of the 99 names of Allah.
Jabr m ArabicMeans
"consolation, assistance" in Arabic.
Jad m ArabicMeans
"serious" in Arabic. This name is most common in Lebanon.
Jafar m Arabic, PersianMeans
"stream" in Arabic. Jafar ibn Abi Talib was a cousin of the Prophet
Muhammad who was killed fighting against Byzantium in the 7th century. Another notable bearer was Jafar al-Sadiq, the sixth Shia imam.
Jalal ad-Din m ArabicMeans
"greatness of the faith" from Arabic
جلال (jalal) meaning "greatness, splendour" and
دين (din) meaning "religion, faith". Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi, commonly called just Rumi, was a 13th-century Persian poet.
Jamal ad-Din m ArabicMeans
"beauty of the faith" from Arabic
جمال (jamal) meaning "beauty" and
دين (din) meaning "religion, faith". Jamal ad-Din al-Afghani (1839-1897) was a political activist who promoted pan-Islamism.
Jawahir f ArabicMeans
"jewels" in Arabic, ultimately from Persian
گوهر (gohar) meaning "jewel, essence".
Jawdat m & f ArabicMeans
"goodness, excellence", derived from Arabic
جاد (jada) meaning "to be excellent".
Jelani m & f African American (Modern)This name began to be used rarely in the United States in 1973 after it was featured in a nation-wide newspaper article about African baby names. It probably represents the Arabic name
Jilani, given in honour of the Sufi scholar Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani (the meaning quoted by the newspaper article ("mighty") coincides with the meaning of
Qadir).
... [more] Jilani m ArabicFrom the Arabic surname
الجيلاني (al-Jilani), borne by the 12th-century Persian Sufi scholar Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani (or Abdul Qadir Gilani), indicating he came from the town of Gilan near Baghdad.
Jinan m & f ArabicMeans
"garden" or
"paradise" in Arabic.
Juda m ArabicMeans
"goodness, excellence", derived from Arabic
جاد (jada) meaning "to be excellent".
Jummai f HausaFrom Hausa
Jumma'a meaning
"Friday" (of Arabic origin).
Junayd m ArabicMeans
"small army", derived from Arabic
جند (jund) meaning "army, soldiers".
Kamaria f ComorianFrom Arabic
qamar meaning
"moon", also the root of the name of the island country of the Comoros.
Karam m & f ArabicMeans
"nobility, generosity" in Arabic.
Kareem m ArabicAlternate transcription of Arabic
كريم (see
Karim). A famous bearer of this name is basketball player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1947-).
Kausar f & m Urdu, KazakhUrdu and Kazakh form of
Kawthar. It is a unisex name in Urdu, but solely feminine in Kazakh.
Kawthar f ArabicMeans
"abundance" in Arabic. This is the name of the 108th chapter (surah al-Kawthar) of the Quran.
Kemal m TurkishTurkish form of
Kamal 1. This was the second name, acquired in his youth, of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (1881-1938), the founder of modern Turkey.
Khadija f ArabicMeans
"premature child" in Arabic. This was the name of the Prophet
Muhammad's first wife and the mother of all of his children, with the exception of one. She was a wealthy merchant and a widow when they married in the year 595. Muhammad received his first revelation 15 years after their marriage, and she was the first person to convert to Islam.
Khalid m Arabic, UrduMeans
"eternal", derived from Arabic
خلد (khalada) meaning "to last forever". This name was borne by a 7th-century Islamic military leader, Khalid ibn al-Walid.
Khalifa m ArabicMeans
"successor, caliph" in Arabic. The title
caliph was given to the successors of the Prophet
Muhammad, originally elected by the Islamic populace.
Khaliq m ArabicMeans
"creator" in Arabic. In Islamic tradition
الخليق (al-Khaliq) is one of the 99 names of Allah.
Khayyam m ArabicMeans
"tent maker" in Arabic. This was the surname of the 12th-century Persian poet Umar Khayyam.
Ladi f HausaFrom Hausa
Lahadi meaning
"Sunday" (of Arabic origin).
Lamya f ArabicDerived from the poetic Arabic word
لمى (lama) meaning
"dark red lips".
Latif m Arabic, UrduMeans
"gentle, kind" in Arabic. In Islamic tradition
اللطيف (al-Latif) is one of the 99 names of Allah.
Layla f Arabic, EnglishMeans
"night" in Arabic. Layla was the love interest of the poet
Qays (called Majnun) in an old Arab tale, notably retold by the 12th-century Persian poet Nizami Ganjavi in his poem
Layla and Majnun. This story was a popular romance in medieval Arabia and Persia. The name became used in the English-speaking world after the 1970 release of the song
Layla by Derek and the Dominos, the title of which was inspired by the medieval story.
Lilac f English (Rare)From the English word for the shrub with purple or white flowers (genus Syringa). It is derived via Arabic from Persian.
Lina 1 f ArabicMeans either
"palm tree" or
"tender" in Arabic.
Lubna f ArabicMeans
"storax tree" in Arabic. According to a 7th-century legend Lubna and Qays were a couple forced to divorce by Qays's father.