Naming a baby boy 'Noah' with the common English spelling and pronunciation Fatwa No: 263128
- Fatwa Date:21-8-2014
Is it permissible to name a baby boy 'Noah' with the common English spelling and pronunciation? Or must it be 'Nooh' or 'Nuh' to correspond to the Arabic pronunciation?
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and messenger.
It is not incumbent on non-Arab Muslims to have Arabic names or pronounce their names according to the Arabic pronunciation. We do not know of any scholars suggesting that this is obligatory.
If the name referred to in the question ('Noah' with the common English spelling and pronunciation) does not express or indicate any prohibited or disliked meaning, we see no religious impediment to have such a name. Moreover, there is nothing in the Sharee‘ah that makes it obligatory for you to pronounce it in a manner that corresponds to its Arabic pronunciation.
Allaah Knows best.