Sources & method

Our standard: Every name is cited either to the Qur'an (surah and verse) or to a hadith graded hasan or higher. Names attested only in weaker narrations are not included, however beautiful.

Each name page shows its source and, for hadith, the specific grading of the narration relied upon — sahih is claimed only where the narration is in Sahih al-Bukhari or Sahih Muslim; otherwise we state the grading we found and where.

Qur'anic and hadith meanings are rendered in our own words, with citation. Copyrighted translations are not reproduced.

Every effort is made to be factual and accurate. Still, we are not scholars of hadith — if you see something to correct, a grading, an attribution, a meaning, we'd love to know.

Where we can, we add historical context for the sake of education. Controversial or tragic details are left out by design; this site dwells on the beautiful. These entries are researched and drafted with AI assistance and reviewed by a person. No page here claims to be the full account of a name or its bearer — each is a starting point, meant to acquaint you with a name so you can pursue your own study of it.

Guiding principles

Our curation follows ten rules, gleaned from the works referenced below — which in turn draw on the Prophet's ﷺ own practice:

1. Beautiful meaning first. The most beloved names to Allah are Abdullah and Abd al-Rahman. A name's meaning is the first thing we weigh.
2. Sourced, with the grading shown. Every name is traced to the Qur'an or authentic hadith; where the tradition is silent, we hold back.
3. No harsh or blameworthy meanings. The Prophet ﷺ changed such names — 'Asiyah ("disobedient") became Jamilah ("beautiful"), and when Hazn ("roughness/grief") declined the change, his grandson traced the family's lasting hardness to the name kept.
4. No condemned figures. Fir'awn, Qarun, Haman, and Abu Lahab are excluded by definition — this is a collection of honored names.
5. Servanthood belongs to Allah alone. "Abd al-" compounds are included only with the names of Allah (Abd al-Rahman, Abd al-Aziz) — never Abd of anything else.
6. Nothing reserved to Allah. Names that are His alone (al-Rahman, al-Khaliq) are never given as personal names — they enter only through servanthood, as Abd al-Rahman or Abd al-Khaliq.
7. Nothing self-praising. Grand titles ("King of Kings") are not shown, as are names of self-purification — the Prophet ﷺ renamed Barrah ("righteous") to Zainab. This type of tazkiyat al-nafs — self-commendation, is avoided.
8. Names of honor are shown, not offered. Titles like al-Mahi are kept in the exhibits for what they teach of the Prophet ﷺ and marked as names of honor rather than given names — they are not for naming.
9. Prophets and the righteous. We favor the names the tradition itself honors — prophets, companions, and the people of faith.
10. Uncertainty is disclosed, not smoothed over. Where the scholars differ — a meaning, an era placement, an attribution — the entry says so plainly.