Must the name "Bara'ah," which means innocence/childhood, be changed if naming with it is impermissible?
Ibn al-Qayyim stated that among the names forbidden to use are those of the Qur'an and its surahs, citing Malik's explicit dislike of naming with (Yasin), and a group's dislike of naming with the names of Qur'anic surahs such as (Taha, Yasin, Ha Mim). What appears evident is that this dislike encompasses the names of the Qur'an and its disconnected letters (huruf muqatta'at) which have no meaning other than being part of the Qur'an. As for Arabic words with a suitable meaning for naming, there is no harm in naming with them, even if they are names of Qur'anic surahs like "Al-Shams" (The Sun), "Al-Qamar" (The Moon), and "Al-Fajr" (The The Dawn). It is also recommended to name with the names of the prophets mentioned in the Qur'an. The reason for Malik's dislike of (Yasin) might be that it is a name for Allah or for the Qur'an, and this dislike is not a matter of consensus. There is no harm in naming "Bara'ah" if the intention is the meaning and not the Qur'anic wording. Some scholars have named their children "Tawbah". What was previously published on the website about the name "Bara'ah" being "undesirable" or "disliked" was based on the aforementioned disagreement, but the more preponderant view is that there is no dislike.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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