Three bits of name news out of Saudi Arabia…
First:
The most circulated [baby] names in the Kingdom include Mohammad, Fahd, Abdullah, Abdulrahman, Turki, Bandar, Omar, Ali, Fatima, Aisha, Nora, Hessa, Sheikha, and Maha.
Unfortunately the article didn’t specify exactly which year (or years) this list covers.
Second:
Unusual or rare [baby] names have been reduced due to the work of authorities across the Kingdom who have enacted regulations to curb exotic or strange names.
Some of the baby names no longer being used are…
- Faziah, female name meaning “one who is afraid”
- Mureibah, female name, “fearful”
- Najar, male name
- Rashash, male name, “a gun machine”
- Zaqam, male name meaning “to do with the mouth” (…?)
Third:
Saudi society is facing a new phenomenon in which many young people are changing their names to be in tune with the latest name trends, Al-Hayat newspaper reported.
Several of the name changes mentioned in the article:
- Fatimah to Hadeel (woman, 22 years old)
- “I used the name Hadeel for my social media account before I changed it officially with the Civil Status Department.”
- Salem to Faris (man, 27 years old)
- Ethar to Maria (woman, 31 years old)
- Nouf to Naifah (woman, age not mentioned)
Sources:
- “Naming babies under scrutiny.” Arab News 13 Mar. 2015.
- “The name game! Young Saudis changing names to be more trendy.” Al Bawaba 7 Feb. 2015.
