ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with them both) related that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “The dearest of your names to Allah are ʿAbd Allāh and ʿAbd al-Raḥmān.”

Abū Wahb al-Jushamī reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Name your children after the prophets. The names most beloved to Allah the Exalted are ʿAbd Allāh and ʿAbd al-Raḥmān; the most truthful of names are Ḥārith (Cultivator) and Hammām (Aspiring); and the most detested are Ḥarb (War) and Murrah (Bitterness).” This was recorded by Abū Dāwūd and al-Nasāʾī.

The Prophet ﷺ would replace objectionable names with pleasant ones. Zaynab, for example, had been called Barra (“Pious”), but people remarked that the name sounded as though she were praising herself, so he renamed her Zaynab, disliking that anyone should say, “He has just come from Barra.”

He once asked a man, “What is your name?” The man answered, “Ḥuzn (Roughness).” The Prophet said, “Rather, you are Sahl (Ease).” He changed the name ʿĀṣiyah (Disobedient) to Jamīlah (Beautiful), and said to another man, “What is your name?” The reply was, “Aṣram (Severed).” The Prophet responded, “Instead, you are Zarʿah (Productive).” He renamed Ḥarb (War) as Salm (Peace), al-Muḍṭajiʿ (One Lying Down) as al-Munbaʿith (One Who Rouses Himself), a tract of land called ʿAfrāʾ (Dusty) as Khudrah (Green), Shaʿb al-Ḍalālah (Gorge of Misguidance) as Shaʿb al-Hudā (Gorge of Guidance), and the clan Banū al-Zinyah (Sons of Adultery) as Banū al-Rushdah (Sons of Uprightness).