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Fatwa CenterNaming a Child ‘Ruh’
Question
Is it okay to name ones child “Ruh” is there any negative connotations to this name, I saw that it means soul/spirit in Arabic? Is this an appropriate name in islam?
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.
The basic ruling regarding names is permissibility, except for those for which there is evidence of being prohibited or dislikeable, such as names that involve worship to other than Allah, imply excessive praise or self-purification, or rather bad meanings or negative connotations.
As for the name “Ruh”, it is a well-known Arabic name. The word “Ruh” was frequently mentioned in the Quran with honorable meanings, for example, the statements of Allah, the Exalted:
{He sends down the angels with the Ruh (Revelation) of His command...} [Quran 16: 2]
{...And breathed into him of My [created] Ruh...} [Quran 38: 72]
{The Day that the Ruh [i.e., Gabriel] and the angels will stand in rows...} [Quran 78: 38]
Tafseer (Exegesis) scholars have differed in the meaning of “Ruh” depending on the context:
In some instances, it refers to Jibril (Gabriel, peace be upon him).
In others, it refers to the revelation.
In others, it refers to the life that makes a human being alive.
Accordingly, it is permissible to name a boy or a girl “Ruh”.
Historically, several Muslim scholars and Tabi‘oon (Successors of the Prophet’s Companions) bore this name, such as Rawh ibn ‘Ubadah ibn Al-‘Ala’ Al-Basri, a trustworthy Imam among Hadith narrators and one of the prominent Hadith scholars.
This indicates that the name was familiar and used among the Salaf (righteous predecessors) and does not carry any negative connotations or violate the Shariah.
Allah knows best.
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