IS YOUR NAME HARAM IN SAUDI ARABIA? HERE'S WHY THE KINGDOM BANNED THESE BABY NAMES

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.

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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.

According to the site, here’s a complete list of banned names issued last year:

Malaak

Abdul Aati

Abdul Mueen

Abdul Nab

Abdul Naser

Abdul Musleh

Abdul Rasool

Abrar

Alice

Al-Mamlaka

Amir

Aram

Barrah

Basil

Basmala (Bismillah)

Bayan

Binyamin (Benjamin)

Elaine

Iman

Inar

Jibreel (Gabriel)

Kibrial

Lareen

Lauren

Linda

Loland

Malika

Maline

Mamlaka

Maya

Nabi

Nabiyya

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Nardeen

Nareej

Naris

Rama

Randa

Rital

Sandy

Sitav

Sumuw

Tabarak

Taline

Tilaj

Yara

Wireelam. (T/P010/R04)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)