Riyadh, 12 Shawwal 1436/28 July 2015 (MINA) – Considered one of the most important decisions in a parent’s life, the choice is under enough scrutiny. If you’re living in Saudi Arabia, achieving that family milestone just got harder.
Saudi Arabia is known for some questionable practices: public executions, a ban on women driving, and segregated gender lines for grocery shopping. But a list of banned baby names ranks high up on the list, Albawaba quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA).
If you’re a parent planning on having kids anytime soon, you may want to take a look at this complete list of banned names issued in June 2014. They range from predictable (for Saudi Arabia) to just plain confusing.
Luckily we’re here to tell you the list of reasons the kingdom cites for the outlawed names. That’s not to say the bans make sense with these explanations — far from it — but at least it gives you a window into the thoughts of the monarchy.
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According to the site, here’s a complete list of banned names issued last year:
Malaak
Abdul Aati
Abdul Mueen
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Abdul Nab
Abdul Naser
Abdul Musleh
Abdul Rasool
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Abrar
Alice
Al-Mamlaka
Amir
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Aram
Barrah
Basil
Basmala (Bismillah)
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Bayan
Binyamin (Benjamin)
Elaine
Iman
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Inar
Jibreel (Gabriel)
Kibrial
Lareen
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Lauren
Linda
Loland
Malika
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Maline
Mamlaka
Maya
Nabi
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Nabiyya
Nardeen
Nareej
Naris
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Rama
Randa
Rital
Sandy
Sitav
Sumuw
Tabarak
Taline
Tilaj
Yara
Wireelam. (T/P010/R04)
Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)