Arabic Boy Names
- Zaki
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"full of virtue, pure"Description:
Not related to Zack, Zacky, Zachary, or Zachariah – but many will assume it is.
- Rabi
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"gentle wind"Description:
Could cause pronunciation problems.
- Qasim
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"charitable, generous"Description:
Name of a son of the Prophet Muhammad, with a particularly positive meaning.
- Sabik
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"one who comes in first"Description:
Sabik, a star in Ophiuchus, makes for a rather harsh-sounding name. If you're looking skyward for a baby name, you'd do better with Orion or Jupiter. But if you are searching for names that mean new beginnings, this is one unusual choice.
- Salman
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"safety"Description:
Salman is an Arabic name dating back to Salman the Persian, one of Muhammad's companions. In this country it is strongly associated with Anglo-Indian novelist Salman Rushdie, author of The Satanic Verses.
- Kahlil
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"friend"Description:
Kahlil, spelled in various ways, was first brought into the American consciousness by the poet Kahlil Gibran, author of The Prophet.
- Abdul
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"servant of Allah"Description:
Widespread choice in the Muslim world, this was the name of both the father of the Prophet Mohammed and one of his sons.
- Salah
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"peace through faith"Description:
Short form of the name Anglicized as Saladin, very popular throughout the Arab world.
- Idrissa
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"interpreter"Description:
The Arabic name Idrissa is related to the more common form Idris, which is the name of a Quranic prophet usually equated with the biblical Enoch). Idrissa is more commonly seen in North and Western Africa. Idrissa Gueye, the Senegalese footballer who plays for Aston Villa in the UK, is probably the most famous person with this name.
- Ismail
Origin:
Arabic variation of Ishmael, HebrewMeaning:
"God will hear"Description:
This classic, handsome Arabic name — cognate of the Hebrew Ishmael — was chosen by Tan and Rob France for their son born in 2021. Ismail is the preferred spelling in England, Germany, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Turkey, while Ismael ranks higher in countries with native Spanish speakers, including the US.
- Farouk
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"seer of truth"Description:
Name of the last king of Egypt.
- Faisal
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"resolute"Description:
A Saudi Arabian royal name that has remained within its own culture.
- Mohamed
Origin:
Spelling variation of MuhammadMeaning:
"praiseworthy"Description:
This variation of the popular Arabic name has now been in the Top 500 for several years. It wasn't even in the Top 1000 before the 1980s.
- Ahmad
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"most commended, praisworthy"Description:
As a form of the popular Arabic name, Hamid, Ahmad could be seen as a contraction for one of the 99 names for Allah, al-Ḥamīd, however, it might also be a variation of Muhammad as they share the same roots. Either way, the name has many variants of its own, the Urdu Ahmed, the Kazakh Akhmet, and West African Amadou.
- Kamil
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"perfect"Description:
Although popular in the Muslim community as representing one of the 99 qualities of God listed in the Quran, this could be confused with the female Camille.
- Qamar
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"moon"Description:
Appealing in part because of its similarity to the likable Omar.
- Anwar
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"brighter, clearer"Description:
Strongly identified with peace-accord-seeking Egyptian president Anwar el-Sadat.
- Nabil
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"highborn"Description:
Pleasant and accessible and not as widely-used as some other African names.
- Tabari
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"he remembers"Description:
Tabari has a haunting, rhythmic feel.
- Azzam
Origin:
ArabicMeaning:
"determined"Description:
Azzam might be open to some "shazam" teasing.