Naming a person is one of the most important issues in his or her life, because a person’s name is a title that says something about him and is essential for communicating with him. It is an adornment and symbol for the person, by which he or she is called in this world and in the Hereafter.
Clarifying the Islamic ruling concerning the issue raised in the question, we would like to cite for you the following:
“This cannot and should not be considered as shirk, which refers to ascribing partners to Allah. How can calling someone by the name Ghafur (forgiving), or Rahim (merciful) be considered as shirk, unless the caller actually intends and holds the person to be equal to Allah, Glorified and Exalted be He.
It should further be kept in mind that Allah’s Name is not “Ghafur” but, to the contrary, it is “Al-Ghafur”. There is a significant difference between the two words. Barring a few of the attributive Names of Allah that relate to qualities, which are exclusively His Own, most of the attributive Names of Allah, are, in fact, attributes that we humans possess, even if they are at a very small scale as compared to the Almighty.
In all such cases, it would only be shirk to believe that someone other than Allah has these attributes at the same level as Allah. For instance, it is indeed prohibited to consider someone as merciful or as knowledgeable or as powerful or as wise as the Almighty. However, there is nothing wrong in considering someone merciful or knowledgeable or powerful or wise.
Thus, calling someone “Ghafur” for example is not wrong, even if the word is taken in its literal meaning of forgiving. Nevertheless, to call someone “Al-Ghafur”, which is Allah’s Attribute, is wrong. However, it would still not be considered as shirk unless the caller holds the addressee to be as forgiving — as Ghafur — as Almighty Allah.”