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What is the reason for the different names of the Father of the Prophets, Abraham (peace be upon him), among Muslims, Christians, and Jews? Is it true that his original name was "Abram" and it was changed to "Abraham" by God's command? Is it permissible to name children "Abram" and "Abraham"? And is it permissible for someone named "Ibrahim" to introduce himself as "Abraham" to foreigners?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Ibrahim and Abraham are two established names among Muslims, and it is permissible to name someone with either. The majority of reciters pronounced Ibrahim with a 'ya' (ي), while Ibn 'Amir al-Dimashqi pronounced it Abraham with an 'alif' (ا) in some surahs. It is Ibrahim and Abraham, just like Ya'qub and Isra'il. Ibrahim is the name of the great Messenger, and its meaning is "merciful father" or "compassionate father," or "father of many nations." His name was originally Abram, meaning "father of exaltation," then Allah named him Ibrahim. The first part of the name ('Ib') is Arabic, and the second part is Chaldean or from other Semitic languages. Seven different linguistic forms for this name have been reported among the Arabs. There is no objection to stating that the name is Abraham. However, naming someone Abram is feared to be among the names specific to disbelievers. It is preferable to name with the name that appeared in the Quran, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) named his son Ibrahim.

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

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