In Islam, choosing a righteous, dignified, and beautiful name is one of the primary obligations a father and mother owe their newborn child. Prophet Muhammad ﷺ taught that names directly influence a child's character and spiritual destiny.
It is authentic Sunnah to name the baby on the day of birth, or on the seventh day alongside the performance of the 'Aqiqah (sacrifice) and shaving the infant's hair with its equivalent weight in silver given in charity.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said in Sahih Muslim: "The names most beloved to Allah are Abdullah (Servant of Allah) and Abdur-Rahman (Servant of the Most Merciful)." Names beginning with 'Abd linked to any of Allah's 99 Beautiful Names carry immense virtue.
Naming after the noble Prophets (e.g., Muhammad, Ibrahim, Yusuf, Musa, Isa, Maryam) and the righteous Sahabah & Sahabiyyat (e.g., Abu Bakr, Umar, Ali, Fatimah, Khadijah, Aisha) revives sacred memory and invokes prayers for the child to walk in their footsteps.
It is prohibited (Haram) to give names implying servitude to anyone other than Allah (e.g., Abdul-Nabi, Abdul-Ka'bah) or attributes unique to the Divine (e.g., Al-Khaliq, Al-Quddus). It is disliked (Makruh) to choose names that convey sadness, bitterness, ugliness, or arrogant vanity.