Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: "Keep the names of Prophets and the most desirable names by Allah Ta'ala are Abdullah and Abdur Rahman - the most disliked ones are Harb (battle) and Murrah (bitter).” (Sunan Abi Dawood)

It is the right of every child to be honoured with a good name. The name of a child has a definite bearing and impact upon the child's life, therefore the name should carry a positive meaning. Since a name is for identification purposes, it should be easily pronounceable. Ulama also advise that one simple name should be kept, instead of two or three.

Unfortunately, there seems to be a trend of people keeping strange and 'unique' names which have undesirable meanings and connotations.

Hazrat A'ishah (Radiyallahu Anha) reports that Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) would change unpleasant names by replacing them with good names. (Tirmizi)

Parents are therefore advised to keep good names like the names of the Prophets u, Sahabah y and pious personalities.