Zeinab Al-`Alawani, Instructor of Fiqh and Islamic Studies,Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences, states the following: “What is important for a new convert is to change their first name. This is what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to do with people bearing names with negative connotations names, such as `Abd Shams (servants of the Sun) by changing it into `Abdurahman (servant of the Most Merciful). In addition, if changing the family name will cause a problem like their relative not accepting the change, then let them keep it in their legal papers only, and choose a Muslim name that people, at least in the Muslim community, can use in referring to or calling them.”
Changing One’s Last Name After Conversion
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