When I converted to Islam, I thought of two choices for a new name: Iman and Najwa. Don’t ask me why I would ever pick the name Najwa but thank Allah that I finally chose Iman.
Now some people would say that when you convert to Islam, it is not necessary to change your name. And that’s true. You don’t. Not unless your name has a meaning that is haram, or forbidden.
So, like some names in the Greek language, my original name implies servitude to someone other than Allah and so I changed it. Some other examples can include Athena or Dionysios (Greek gods) or Stavros (cross refering to the “crucifixion”).
Another issue that comes up with changing names is that most likely, your family is going to be furious because in the Greek tradition, it’s a major pride that you are named after your grandparents. So, you shouldn’t be suprised to know that all my cousins are either named Yiorgos or Evagelia!
There are these points to consider but keep in mind that even though your name might not directly imply servitude to other than Allah, many Greek names are taken after saints, and could imply indirect servitude.
Oh, and if you are a brother and are looking for a good name, try something other than Hamza. It seems that we have plenty of them already. 🙂
Greek Muslims 