Also needing name help...

[JanetJ]

Like LaraW, DH and I are also in a quandry regarding boy names. Of course, we won't even know till next week if we are having a boy or not, but we feel that this is something that must be decided RIGHT NOW. :D

Some background: DH is Muslim and it is customary to name your children Muslim/Arabic names and this is something that is very important to both of us. I would like to possibly use one of my family member's names as a middle name. Criteria is that it must be easy to spell and pronounce. Here's what we've come up with:

Shayan James

Kaysen James

Amir James: pronounced Ah-meer, this is also the name of DH's brother who died as a baby.

Honest opinions? I'm concerned Shayan will get confused with Shayne. Amir is not my favorite of the names, but it is growing on me and DH is pulling for this one. It is also a possibility to not use James as a middle name and use any combination of the names above. Or some totally different name we haven't even considered, of course.

We have settled on a girl's name already: Maya Elizabeth.

[sandyv]

I'm sorry. I don't know any Muslim/Arabic names, but I love the name Maya. Good luck.

[sandyv]

Okay. I am better informed now, I think. I did a search of Muslim baby names on Google. I like Rayhan, Sayid, Laith, Selim, and Bakir. I am not sure if these are appropriate because "Maya" didn't appear on the list, but maybe the list is not comprehensive.

[colleency]

I don't know any muslim names. I like Kaysen and Shayan, although people might think Shayan is Cheyenne.

[JanetJ]

Okay. I am better informed now, I think. I did a search of Muslim baby names on Google. I like Rayhan, Sayid, Laith, Selim, and Bakir. I am not sure if these are appropriate because "Maya" didn't appear on the list, but maybe the list is not comprehensive.

It is very hard to find a comprehensive list online. I don't think I've yet come across one that has all of the names we are considering in one place. Rayhan is a name that was on my list for a while, but apparently DH has a bad association with that name from his childhood. ;)

[mcgee]

I really like the Amir - it rolls of the tongue nicely. Don't care much for the other two you mention because I think they might be difficult to pronounce - at least for me. I also like Sayid and Samir.

[misskitty100]

I LOVE Kaysen!!!

I agree that with Shayan, there could be confusion with Shane.

[fci5767]

I like the name Kaysar. But mostly because I'm a big Big Brother fan and I wanted him to win.

Still love the name, though.

[tbb113]

I work with a lot of people from India and I believe most of them have Muslim names.

Arnab
Ashraf
Krish


Out of your list...I like Amir

[Julia1Pin]

My friend and her husband (he's Muslim, she's not) named their son Riyad.

[badunnin]

I like Tarik (or Tariq), Moheeb, and Adnan. And Basim. One of the finest people I've ever known is named Moheeb. :)

[Blissful_in_TX]

Shayan sounds like a girl's name to me (I'm not sure how it's actually pronounced, but it looks like Cheyenne to me). I really like Kaysen, but I like Amir too.

[Canice]

I'm afraid I don't have any fresh suggestions, but have to say that I think Amir is very nice, and respectful to the memory of his brother, too. I also like Amir Kaysen together.

Is James the only family name you're considering from your side or are there others, too? I'm wondering if you have names with Arabic counterparts - that might be one way of coming up with ideas. (For example, my name is Irish for Kenneth and my mother's maiden name was Kenny; my brother was named Sean, Irish for my father's name, John.)

[KristaMB]

I like Tarik (or Tariq), Moheeb, and Adnan.
Of all the names posted, Tarik is my favorite.

Janet, are nicknames allowed? How about Bobak and calling him Bo. That is my SIL's brother's name and I really like it. Other names in her family are Amir and Foad, if that helps any.

[ellielk]

One of my Muslim friends named her son Bijan.

[greta]

janet,
can you spell out phonetically kaysen and shayan? i think i know how they're pronounced, but i'm not 100% sure.

i like amir, and i especially like the significance of it...

i too like tarik (long tar, short ik--i know some people pronounce it tar eeek, but i like the first pronounciation better).

and, to the rest of you: (i've already asked janet about this)
we have our girl's name picked (leila) out but are struggling with the boy's name as well. we're leaning towards kamran, but i was wondering if we'd be able to get people to pronounce it correctly: kom ron (longer kom, shorter ron).

honest opinions please (janet, i hope you don't mind me piggybacking on your thread). :p

greta

[jabelt]

I have a couple friend that is Muslim. They have named their children:
Leila
Sherif
Samir

[LA98]

Greta, I'm guessing most people will probably try to pronounce it the way it looks: cam ran. I like Leila, I had a friend in college named Leilani and we all called her Leila.

[Andrea_2]

Greta, I'm guessing most people will probably try to pronounce it the way it looks: cam ran.

I agree. I think you'd have to be prepared to always be correcting people.

Same thing with Amir. I think people might pronounce that wrong too (or maybe it is just me that was pronouncing it wrong... :o )

Of the suggestions posted so far, I think I like Rayhan, Adnan and Bijan the best.

[Sookie]

My adopted son's name is Shakir. I don't know if you like the name, but if your baby grows up to be anything like my Shakir you will be truly blessed. Good luck in whatever you decide.

[BeachBum]

I like Amir the best. I think that Shayan sounds a little feminine, and I think Kaysen looks like a "made up" American name. You know like someone tried to get to "cute" coming up with a name--like a spin off on Casey.

[donleyk]

janet,
can you spell out phonetically kaysen and shayan? i think i know how they're pronounced, but i'm not 100% sure.

i like amir, and i especially like the significance of it...

i too like tarik (long tar, short ik--i know some people pronounce it tar eeek, but i like the first pronounciation better).

and, to the rest of you: (i've already asked janet about this)
we have our girl's name picked (leila) out but are struggling with the boy's name as well. we're leaning towards kamran, but i was wondering if we'd be able to get people to pronounce it correctly: kom ron (longer kom, shorter ron).

honest opinions please (janet, i hope you don't mind me piggybacking on your thread). :p

greta

Greta,

I think you'll get alot of "Cameron" :( instead.

[KimE]

I have 2 nephews their names are
Tarik
Jawad

I had a easier time with Tarik rather then Jawad, in fact when he was little I use to call him Jo. Now that he is older Jawad fits better, at least to me.
Good luck on your search :)
Kim

[JanetJ]

janet,
can you spell out phonetically kaysen and shayan? i think i know how they're pronounced, but i'm not 100% sure.

i like amir, and i especially like the significance of it...

i too like tarik (long tar, short ik--i know some people pronounce it tar eeek, but i like the first pronounciation better).

and, to the rest of you: (i've already asked janet about this)
we have our girl's name picked (leila) out but are struggling with the boy's name as well. we're leaning towards kamran, but i was wondering if we'd be able to get people to pronounce it correctly: kom ron (longer kom, shorter ron).

honest opinions please (janet, i hope you don't mind me piggybacking on your thread). :p

greta

Greta,

Of course I don't mind you jumping in - you've already heard so much about our naming discussions. :)

Kaysen - I'm so bad at doing this, but it's the word "case" with an N on it.
Shayan - Long Shay - en

That probably didn't help at all. :rolleyes:

Thank you all so much for your opinions and suggestions. You've given us a couple new names to throw around.

Beachbum, I had been wondering that about Kaysen - and if people would think it was another cutesy/trendy name.

[MrsReber]

I like Kaysen- but my daughter's name is Casey, so of course I'd like Kaysen!

Just be warned, it will turn into "Case" no matter what you do :rolleyes: But we still like the name.

[hlao23]

What about Khalid? Of course, non-Arabic speakers aren't going to get the "Kh" sound perfectly but it's pretty fool-proof otherwise.

[luv2run]

I worked with several Pakistani surgeons a few years ago. I liked the names Jamal, Malik and Asad.

My direct bosses name was Muhammad Zafrullah Khan. Whatcha think about that? (We just called him "Z"!)

[Molli526]

I like the name Kaysar. But mostly because I'm a big Big Brother fan and I wanted him to win.

Still love the name, though.

I like Kaysar too :)

I like the significance of Amir.

[tbb113]

My son has a friend named Kaymar which I like as well. I like his last name even better. Its Shabaniani :D

[angelamaria]

someone here has a laith i think - greta maybe? greta i think kamron will always be pronounced cameron and he would spend a lot of time correcting people.

janet i like kaysen amir. i also like tariq. and sayid (isn't that the hunky Iraqi on Lost' name?) maybe that's why i like it!

greta i love leila !

[badunnin]

Of all the names posted, Tarik is my favorite.

Janet, are nicknames allowed? How about Bobak and calling him Bo. That is my SIL's brother's name and I really like it. Other names in her family are Amir and Foad, if that helps any.

Foad in my vocabulary was a type of letter at university. It was a rejection letter from a company you had applied to, and was short for F Off And Die. :eek:

FWIW - all 4 Tariks I have know have been TAR-iks, not Tar-EEKs. :) 2 each Tarik and Tariq.

Dang - I had another one and lost it.