Is it legitimate or an innovation for a person to title himself with a name other than his real name—such as "Abu Abd al-Rahman" for someone who has no children, or "Umm Yasir" for a girl? And is there any religious evidence for that?
Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 2026
It has been established that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, gave a kunya (patronymic honorific) to those men and women who had no children. In Sunan Abi Dawud, it is narrated that Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, took the kunya from her nephew Abdullah ibn Al-Zubair. And in Al-Bukhari, it is narrated from Anas that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, gave a kunya to a young unweaned brother of his, saying: "O Abu Umayr, what did the little bird do?"
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/50665
Where this answer came from
- Source platform
- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 50665
- Added here
- . This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
- Text
- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy