Names :s :s :s

It confuses me sometimes when I think of the meanings of my students' names. I teach students from India, Bangladesh and Pakistan too.

It amazes me how the parents make sure they name their kids "Islamic" names. They choose the names from words in the Quran. They don't pronounce them right, so I do my best to teach the parents and their kids how to pronounce it perfectly, the parents like this, but most of the students find it hard to just have a totally "NEW" name for themselves! Well, at least I call them with the right pronunciation:)

Some names are really nice, like Raek =Ra7eeq, Arini =show me, Najma, Zakareyyah, Zuneirah, Zainah, 3afra2, Fardousah, Tawseef, Naheel, raihan... but some other names are really strange...

I have a student, her name is Naimal! I was confused when I first heard it, and the mother told me "proudly" that she picked it from the Quran!
So I kept thinking about it...What could it be?!

Yesterday, After I taught Naimal I asked her mom about it's meaning, and whether she can show it to me in the Quran! So she brings the Quran and shows me the ayah : "ni3mal mawla wa ni3mal naseer"!!!

so her name "Naimal" is actually "(ni3ma al)-mawla"!! and it's translation into English is "The best ..." So she thinks or actually believes that the name means "the best"!!!

I spent sometime explaining to her that her daughter's name -by itself- has no meaning!! she found it really hard to understand, and she wants to talk to the Arabic teacher at the school I work at!! she was shocked :(

and the big surprise, when she told me that her son's name is "Muta3al" which is one of Allah's SWT 99 names!! I didn't know it's OK to name people with Allah's names. Her explanation was : since it doesn't have "al" or "the" at the beginning then it's OK!! Is that right?!?!

Because I have a student who's name is Musabbir!! His mom told me it's one of Allah's names!! I didn't say a word when she told me, I thought to myself :Interesting!!
Then I heard her once calling her daughter loudly at their home : Muhayminooooo!!!!

NOW, IS THIS REALLY ALLOWED?!?!?!?

Another student, his name is Albab Nour!! And his middle name is Rasheek! I found it funny, because it means: Someone in shape!! He told me that it means: Wise person!!! Is this right?!?!

what else...oh yea...

Last year at school, I was working on the students' certificates and I was asked to type them in Arabic! So one girl's name was : Hera, in English! So when I typed it in Arabic, I typed it as: 7eerah! And I felt sorry for her, because her name means: Confusion!

She took her certificate, and her parents didn't complain about wrong spelling or anything, because simply they don't speak or read Arabic!

Later on, this year, I asked her mom about the meaning of Hera...and she told me, it's the cave where the prophet Mohammad Peace be upon him, used to pray!!!

So i was like: OOOOOOOOOOOOOOH....you mean 7iraaaaaa2!!
loooooooooooool....