Benefits Regarding Naming Children
Our Shaykh, the ‘Allaamah, the Sincere Adviser, Abu ‘Abdirrahman Yahya bin ‘Ali Al-Hajoori – may Allaah preserve him – said
The questioner says: What do you think of the following names: Tasneem, Ruqayyah, AmatulBaasiṭ…
Sheikh: There’s nothing wrong with these names.
…Haana.
Sheikh: This is also fine… However, it’s better for people to adopt the same names as the wives of the Prophet ﷺ and the Ṣahābah. It is as though people grown bored of these names, or they consider them to be old fashioned, hence you find them searching for stylish/modern names, even though some of these names are disputed; is it permissible to have as a name or not; or perhaps it contains self-praise, or the name itself is disliked, or it is an imitation of the disbelievers, etc., as though they’ve grown bored of the true and correct names, the old-school names; like the names of the Prophets. The Prophets themselves used to name one another after the previous Prophets.
So they want to name their children with stylish/modern names. They will search and search (for a stylish name) until they become tired. Maybe, a name of a footballer, or a martial artist, and so on.
…(unclear)…
[when the Prophet ﷺ had a son, he said]
“I named him after my (fore)father Ibrāhīm”.
My intent is, we shouldn’t get bored of these names; Faaṭimah, Aa’ishah, Zainab, Ruqayyah, and so on; these old school names which those before us used to have. If it’s possible to name the child with one of these names, that is good. Otherwise, if one desires a different name – which does not fall contrary to the Sharee’ah – that is also okay, provided it is not an imitation of the disbelievers, or going overboard;
for example, Malaak.
Why would you want to give this name to your child ya akhi?
The person might not intend – malaa’ikah (angel)…(unclear)…what, do you want to raise her to the heaven?
They (some of the scholars) even disliked the name Hudaa (guidance), as well as Eamaan (faith); as though she personifies faith. Eamaan (according to the Sharee’ah) is the statement of the tongue, the belief in the heart, and the actions of the limbs. But this one has become Eamaan?!
Likewise, Hudaa – she personifies guidance. I don’t know, is she a guidance or is she a Fitnah?
And the likes of these names. There’s no need for exaggeration.
Questioner: Does the naming rights belong to the mother, seeing as the wife of ‘Imrān was the one who gave the name Maryam.
{وَإِنِّی سَمَّیۡتُهَا مَرۡیَمَ}
(She said) “I have named her Maryam.” [Surat Aal-E-Imran 36]
Sheikh: This was the legislation of those who came before (I.e. it doesn’t apply to us). Whether the newborn is male or female, naming rights belong to the father, just as the Prophet ﷺ used to name his children, boys and girls alike; like in the hadeeth, “I have named him after my (fore)father Ibrāhīm.” So, naming rights belong to the father, but if they (the husband and wife) come to an agreement, there’s nothing wrong with that; and this is how the Aayah could be understood; that they agreed this name beforehand, or that he (Imrān) gave her permission to name the child. Otherwise, this is the right of the father.
Translated by : Abū Ishāq Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad Bā ‘Alawī
Original link : https://t.me/sh_yahia_duroos/6285