Editing Arabic name (section)

==Common naming practices==
{{see also|List of Arabic theophoric names}}

===Arab Muslim===
A common name-form among Arab Muslims is the prefix ''{{transliteration|ar|[[Abd (Arabic)|ʿAbd]]}}'' ("Worshipper", {{abbr|fem.|feminine}} ''{{transliteration|ar|Amah}}'') combined with the word for God ([[Allah]]), ''{{transliteration|ar|Abdullah}}'' ({{lang|ar|عبد الله}} "Worshipper of God"), or with one of the [[Names of God in Islam|epithets of God]].

As a mark of deference, ''{{transliteration|ar|ʿAbd}}'' is usually not conjoined with the prophet's names.<ref>{{cite book|last=Metcalf|first=Barbara D.|title=Islam in South Asia in Practice|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pR0LzVCpfw8C&pg=PA344|date=2009-09-08|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-1-4008-3138-8|page=344|quote=One must avoid names whose ambiguity suggests something unlawful. It is for this reason that the scholars forbid having names like 'Abd al-Nabi (Slave of the Prophet).}}</ref> Nonetheless, such names are accepted in some areas.  Its use is not exclusive to Muslims and throughout all Arab countries, the name ''Abdel-Massih'', "Servant of Christ", is a common Christian last name.

Converts to Islam may often continue using the native non-Arabic non-Islamic names that are without any polytheistic connotation, or association.

===Arab Christian===
Generally, [[Arab Christians]] have names indistinguishable from Muslims, with the exception of some explicitly Islamic names, e.g. ''Muhammad''. Some common Christian names are:
* Arabic versions of Christian names (e.g. saints' names: ''{{transliteration|ar|Buṭrus}}'' for ''[[Saint Peter|Peter]]'', ''Boulos '' for ''[[Paul the Apostle|Paul]]'').
* Names of [[Greek language|Greek]], [[Armenian language|Armenian]], and [[Aramaic language|Aramaic]] origin, which are also used by ethnically "non-Arab" Christians such as [[Armenian people|Armenians]], [[Assyrian people|Assyrians]], [[Copts]] and [[Syriac Christians]].
* Use of [[Europe]]an names, especially [[French language|French]], and [[English language|English]]. This is a recent convention for Christian Arabs, which mainly started with the [[Sykes–Picot Agreement|British and French mandates in the Levant]]. Examples include [[George Habash]], [[Michel Aflaq]], and [[Charles Helou]].
* Names in honor of Jesus Christ:
: ''{{transliteration|ar|ʿAbd al-Yasuʿ}}'' ({{abbr|masc.|masculine}} ) / ''{{transliteration|ar|Amat al-Yasuʿ}}'' ({{abbr|fem.|feminine}}) ("Servant of Jesus")
: ''{{transliteration|ar|ʿAbd al-Masiḥ}}'' (masc.) / ''{{transliteration|ar|Amat al-Masiḥ}}'' (fem.) ("Servant of the [[Messiah]]")
: Derivations of ''{{transliteration|ar|Maseeḥ}}'' ("Messiah"): ''{{transliteration|ar|Masūḥun}}'' ("Most Anointed"), ''{{transliteration|ar|Amsāḥ}}'' ("More Anointed"), ''{{transliteration|ar|Mamsūḥ}}'' "Anointed" and ''{{transliteration|ar|Musayḥ}}'' "Infant Christ". The [[Semitic root|root]], ''{{transliteration|ar|M-S-Ḥ}}'', means "to anoint" (as in ''[[masah]]'') and is cognate to the [[Messiah in Judaism|Hebrew ''{{transliteration|he|Mashiah}}'']].