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The question

Is it permissible to say that someone whose name is so-and-so possesses such-and-such qualities, and is this considered a form of fortune-telling?

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Source: FtawySummarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 20261 min readAlso available in العربية
The answer

There is no religious evidence for the saying, "Everyone gets a share from their name." Some scholars have mentioned that a name is linked to a person to encourage people to choose good names. A name may influence the person named, but this is not necessary in all cases. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, changed ugly names not because the person possessed the qualities indicated by the name, but to avoid pessimism. If describing people based on their names stems from the linguistic meaning of the name, it is a probable assumption, not an absolute rule, and the person's real situation must be verified. However, if it does not stem from the linguistic meaning of the name, it is a blameworthy and forbidden assumption.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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