Arabic Last Names

These Arabic last names come from across the Middle East and North Africa and are listed with their Arabic script and meanings. Many began as a father's name, a trade, a tribe or a hometown, and still show that origin clearly.

300 real surnames with meanings, A to Z.

A

Abaza أباظة

Egyptian family of Abkhazian origin
Abbas عباس

Stern; lion
Abdel-Aziz عبد العزيز

Servant of the Mighty
Abdel-Fattah عبد الفتاح

Servant of the Opener
Abdel-Ghani عبد الغني

Servant of the Self-Sufficient
Abdel-Hamid عبد الحميد

Servant of the Praiseworthy
Abdel-Karim عبد الكريم

Servant of the Generous
Abdel-Latif عبد اللطيف

Servant of the Gentle
Abdel-Majid عبد المجيد

Servant of the Glorious
Abdel-Qader عبد القادر

Servant of the Capable
Abdel-Rahman عبد الرحمن

Servant of the Merciful
Abdel-Wahab عبد الوهاب

Servant of the Bestower
Abdelhadi عبد الهادي

Servant of the Guide
Abdo عبده

His servant
Abdullah عبدالله

Servant of God
Aboud عبود

Devoted worshipper
Abu-Ghazaleh أبو غزالة

Father of the gazelle
Abu-Zaid أبو زيد

Father of Zaid
Adel عادل

Just; fair
Ahmad أحمد

Most praiseworthy
Al-Ahmar الأحمر

The red one; Yemeni tribal family
Al-Ajmi العجمي

From the Ajman tribe
Akkawi عكاوي

From Acre
Alami علمي

From Jebel Alam; Moroccan sharifs
Alaoui علوي

Descendant of Ali; Moroccan royal dynasty
Ali علي

Exalted; sublime
Al-Amin الأمين

The trustworthy
Amiri عامري

From the Banu Amir tribe
Anazi عنزي

From the Anazzah tribe
Ansari أنصاري

Helper; from the Ansar of Medina
Anwar أنور

More luminous
Aoun عون

Help; assistance
Arslan أرسلان

Lion (Turkish origin)
Asfour عصفور

Sparrow; small bird
Ashour عاشور

Born on Ashura; the tenth day
Asmar أسمر

Dark-skinned; brown
Assaf عساف

Lebanese family; possibly gatherer
Atallah عطا الله

Gift of God
Attar عطار

Perfumer; spice seller
Attieh عطية

Gift
Awad عوض

Compensation; reward
Ayoub أيوب

Job; patient one
Aziz عزيز

Mighty; beloved

B

Badr بدر

Full moon
Bakr بكر

Young camel; first-born
Al-Balushi البلوشي

Baloch; of Balochi origin
Barakat بركات

Blessings
Bashir بشير

Bringer of good news
Basri بصري

From Basra, Iraq
Bassiouni بسيوني

From Basyoun, Egypt
Belkacem بلقاسم

Father of Qasim; Maghrebi form
Ben-Ammar بن عمار

Son of Ammar
Ben-Youssef بن يوسف

Son of Youssef
Benali بن علي

Son of Ali
Benjelloun بن جلون

Son of Jelloun; Fez merchant family
Benkirane بن كيران

Son of Kiran; Moroccan family
Bennani بناني

Moroccan family from Fez
Bennis بنيس

Moroccan family from Fez
Bensaid بن سعيد

Son of Said
Berrada برادة

Possibly water jug maker (Moroccan)
Bilal بلال

Moisture; the first muezzin
Bitar بيطار

Farrier; horseshoe maker
Bouazizi بوعزيزي

Father of Aziz; Tunisian family
Boudiaf بوضياف

Father of the guest; Algerian family
Bouteflika بوتفليقة

Algerian family of Berber origin
Boutros بطرس

Peter
Busaidi بوسعيدي

Ruling dynasty of Oman
Bustani بستاني

Gardener

C

Chalabi جلبي

Gentleman; from Turkish celebi
Chamoun شمعون

Simon (Lebanese Christian)
Chraibi شرايبي

Possibly drink or syrup seller; Moroccan family

D

Daher ضاهر

Apparent; evident
Dajani دجاني

Jerusalem family; keepers of David's tomb
Daoud داود

David; beloved
Darwish درويش

Dervish; Sufi mystic
Dessouki دسوقي

From Desouk, Egypt
Diab دياب

Wolves
Dib ديب

Wolf
Dimashqi دمشقي

From Damascus
Dossari دوسري

From the Dawasir tribe
Dulaimi دليمي

From the Dulaim tribe, Iraq

E

Elias إلياس

Elijah
Ezzat عزت

Glory; honor

F

Fadel فاضل

Virtuous; excellent
Fahmy فهمي

Understanding; intelligent
Faisal فيصل

Decisive; arbiter
Fakhoury فاخوري

Potter
Al-Falasi الفلاسي

From the Falasi tribe, UAE
Farah فرح

Joy
Fares فارس

Knight; horseman
Farouk فاروق

One who distinguishes truth from falsehood
Fassi فاسي

From Fez, Morocco
Fathy فتحي

Victorious; of conquest
Fawzy فوزي

Of victory; triumphant
Fikry فكري

Thoughtful; intellectual
Fouad فؤاد

Heart

G

Ghamdi غامدي

From the Ghamid tribe
Ghandour غندور

Dandy; handsome young man
Ghanem غانم

Successful; one who gains
Gharbi غربي

Westerner
Ghazal غزال

Gazelle
Ghazzawi غزاوي

From Gaza
Ghoneim غنيم

Spoils; gain
Ghosn غصن

Branch
Girgis جرجس

George (Coptic)

H

Habib حبيب

Beloved
Haddad حداد

Blacksmith
Hadrami حضرمي

From Hadramaut, Yemen
Haidar حيدر

Lion
Hakim حكيم

Wise; physician
Hamawi حموي

From Hama, Syria
Hamdan حمدان

Much praised
Hamed حامد

One who praises
Hamid حميد

Praiseworthy
Al-Hammadi الحمادي

From the Hammadi tribe
Hammami حمامي

Bathhouse keeper
Hammoud حمود

Praised; from Hamad
Hamza حمزة

Lion; strong
Hanna حنا

John; grace (Christian Arab)
Harb حرب

War
Harbi حربي

From the Harb tribe
Hariri حريري

Silk merchant
Al-Harthi الحارثي

From the Harith tribe
Hashemi هاشمي

Descendant of Hashim; the Prophet's clan
Hassan حسن

Handsome; good
Helmy حلمي

Gentle; forbearing
Hijazi حجازي

From the Hejaz region
Hilal هلال

Crescent moon
Al-Hinai الهنائي

From the Hina tribe, Oman
Hindi هندي

Indian
Homsi حمصي

From Homs, Syria
Hosny حسني

Of beauty; good
Hourani حوراني

From the Hauran region, Syria
Hussein حسين

Little handsome one
Husseini حسيني

Descendant of Hussein

I

Ibrahim إبراهيم

Abraham; father of many
Idris إدريس

Enoch; studious one
Idrissi إدريسي

Descendant of Idris; Moroccan sharifs
Ismail إسماعيل

Ishmael; God hears
Issa عيسى

Jesus

J

Jaber جابر

Comforter; one who mends
Jamal جمال

Beauty
Janabi جنابي

From the Janabi tribe, Iraq
Jarrar جرار

Puller; Palestinian clan from Jenin
Jawad جواد

Generous; steed
Jazairi جزائري

Algerian; from Algiers
Jebali جبالي

Mountain dweller
Jubouri جبوري

From the Jubur tribe, Iraq

K

Al-Kaabi الكعبي

From the Bani Kaab tribe
Kadhim كاظم

One who restrains anger
Kamal كمال

Perfection
Kamel كامل

Complete; perfect
Kanafani كنفاني

Maker of kunafa pastry
Karam كرم

Generosity
Karim كريم

Generous; noble
Kassab قصاب

Butcher
Kassem قاسم

Distributor; one who divides
Al-Ketbi الكتبي

From the Ketbi tribe, UAE
Kettani كتاني

Linen merchant; Moroccan family
Khalaf خلف

Successor; descendant
Khaled خالد

Eternal; immortal
Khalidi خالدي

Descendant of Khalid; Jerusalem family
Al-Khalifa آل خليفة

Ruling family of Bahrain
Khalifa خليفة

Successor; caliph
Khalil خليل

Friend; companion
Khalili خليلي

From Hebron (al-Khalil)
Khater خاطر

Mind; thought
Khatib خطيب

Preacher; orator
Khazen خازن

Treasurer; Lebanese Maronite family
Khoury خوري

Priest (Levantine Christian)
Kubaisi كبيسي

From Kubaisa, Iraq
Kurdi كردي

Kurdish
Al-Kuwari الكواري

Qatari tribal family

L

Lahlou لحلو

The sweet one (Moroccan)
Latif لطيف

Gentle; kind
Lotfy لطفي

Kind; gentle

M

Maalouf معلوف

Accustomed; familiar (Lebanese)
Mahdi مهدي

Rightly guided one
Mahfouz محفوظ

Protected; preserved
Mahmoud محمود

Praised
Majid ماجد

Glorious; noble
Maliki مالكي

From the Bani Malik tribe
Mansour منصور

Victorious; aided by God
Marrakchi مراكشي

From Marrakech
Al-Marri المري

From the Al Murrah tribe
Marzouk مرزوق

Blessed with provision
Masri مصري

Egyptian
Matar مطر

Rain
Al-Mazrouei المزروعي

From the Mazari tribe, UAE
Metwally متولي

Guardian; custodian
Mirghani ميرغني

Sudanese Sufi family
Misrati مصراتي

From Misrata, Libya
Mohammed محمد

Praised one
Mokhtar مختار

Chosen
Mosuli موصلي

From Mosul, Iraq
Moussa موسى

Moses
Mrabet مرابط

Marabout; holy man (Maghrebi)
Mubarak مبارك

Blessed
Mustafa مصطفى

Chosen one
Mutairi مطيري

From the Mutayr tribe

N

Nabil نبيل

Noble
Naguib نجيب

Noble; distinguished
Nahas نحاس

Coppersmith
Najjar نجار

Carpenter
Nashashibi نشاشيبي

Arrow maker; Jerusalem family
Nassar نصار

Helper; supporter
Nasser ناصر

Helper; supporter
Nassif ناصيف

Just; fair (Lebanese)
Nour نور

Light
Al-Nuaimi النعيمي

From the Nuaim tribe; rulers of Ajman

O

Obeidi عبيدي

From the Ubaid tribe, Iraq
Odeh عودة

Return
Omar عمر

Long-lived; flourishing
Otaibi عتيبي

From the Otaibah tribe
Othman عثمان

Baby bustard; the third caliph

Q

Qadi قاضي

Judge
Qahtani قحطاني

From the Qahtan tribe
Al-Qasimi القاسمي

Ruling family of Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah
Qureshi قرشي

From the Quraysh tribe

R

Radwan رضوان

Contentment; the angel of paradise
Rahbani رحباني

Lebanese family; possibly from rahib, monk
Rahman رحمن

Merciful
Rahmani رحماني

Of the Merciful
Ramadan رمضان

The holy month; born in Ramadan
Ramzy رمزي

Symbolic; of a sign
Rashid راشد

Rightly guided
Al-Rashidi الرشيدي

From the Rashid tribe
Rizk رزق

Provision; livelihood
Rubaie ربيعي

From the Rabia tribe

S

Saab صعب

Difficult; hard
Saad سعد

Good fortune; felicity
Saadoun سعدون

Fortunate; Iraqi family
Sabbagh صباغ

Dyer
Sabry صبري

Patient
Sadat سادات

Masters; descendants of the Prophet
Sadr صدر

Chest; foremost; Shia clerical family
Safadi صفدي

From Safed
Said سعيد

Happy; fortunate
Salam سلام

Peace
Salameh سلامة

Safety; well-being
Saleh صالح

Righteous; virtuous
Salem سالم

Safe; sound
Salloum سلوم

From Salim; safe
Samir سمير

Evening companion
Samy سامي

Elevated; sublime
Sanani صنعاني

From Sanaa, Yemen
Saqr صقر

Falcon; hawk
Sarraf صراف

Money changer
Al-Sayed السيد

The master; descendant of the Prophet
Sayegh صائغ

Goldsmith; jeweler
Selim سليم

Safe; sound
Senussi سنوسي

Libyan Sufi dynasty; from Senous
Sfaxi صفاقسي

From Sfax, Tunisia
Shaban شعبان

The eighth month; born in Shaban
Shafik شفيق

Compassionate
Shaheen شاهين

Falcon (Persian origin)
Shaker شاكر

Thankful
Shammari شمري

From the Shammar tribe
Shams شمس

Sun
Al-Shamsi الشامسي

From the Shamsi tribe, UAE
Sharif شريف

Noble; honorable
Sharkawy شرقاوي

Easterner; from Sharqia, Egypt
Shehadeh شحادة

Testimony; witness
Shehri شهري

From the Shahran tribe
Shenouda شنودة

Son of God (Coptic)
Shihab شهاب

Shooting star; Lebanese emirs
Shukri شكري

Of thanks; grateful
Sidawi صيداوي

From Sidon, Lebanon
Siddiqui صديقي

Truthful; descendant of Abu Bakr
Al-Subaie السبيعي

From the Subai tribe, Najd
Suleiman سليمان

Solomon; man of peace
Sultan سلطان

Ruler; authority
Al-Suwaidi السويدي

From the Suwaidi tribe, Gulf

T

Taha طه

Opening letters of Quran chapter 20
Tahir طاهر

Pure; chaste
Tamimi تميمي

From the Banu Tamim tribe
Tarek طارق

Morning star; one who knocks
Tawil طويل

Tall
Tazi تازي

From Taza, Morocco
Tikriti تكريتي

From Tikrit, Iraq
Tlemcani تلمساني

From Tlemcen, Algeria
Tunisi تونسي

Tunisian; from Tunis
Tuqan طوقان

Nablus family; possibly from Turkic
Turki تركي

Turkish

W

Walid وليد

Newborn

Y

Yacoub يعقوب

Jacob
Yahya يحيى

John; he lives
Yasin ياسين

Opening letters of Quran chapter 36
Younes يونس

Jonah
Youssef يوسف

Joseph; God increases

Z

Al-Zaabi الزعابي

From the Zaab tribe, UAE
Zaghloul زغلول

Young pigeon; Egyptian leader's name
Zahrani زهراني

From the Zahran tribe
Zaidan زيدان

Growth; increase
Zakaria زكريا

Zachariah; God remembers
Zaki زكي

Pure; virtuous
Zayed زايد

Growth; abundance
Zewail زويل

Egyptian family; the Nobel chemist
Zoghbi زغبي

Downy; soft-haired
Zubaidi زبيدي

From the Zubaid tribe

Generate random arabic surnames

Filter by first letter, length and rarity, add a first name to preview the full name, then copy or save your favorites.

Results (6)

Elias

إلياس

Elijah
Tlemcani

تلمساني

From Tlemcen, Algeria
Fassi

فاسي

From Fez, Morocco
Idris

إدريس

Enoch; studious one
Benjelloun

بن جلون

Son of Jelloun; Fez merchant family
Fallah

فلاح

Farmer; peasant

Saved names

Names you save will appear here. They stay in this browser only.

Open the full generator

The traditional parts of an Arabic name

Classical Arabic naming did not use fixed surnames in the European sense. A full name was built from several parts: the ism, or given name; the nasab, a chain of descent using ibn or bin (son of) and bint (daughter of); the kunya, such as Abu Ali (father of Ali) or Umm Ali (mother of Ali); the laqab, an honorific or descriptive epithet; and the nisba, which names a place, tribe or profession and usually ends in -i.

Modern family names grew out of these parts. Many are a nisba: al-Masri means the Egyptian, al-Baghdadi the one from Baghdad, al-Halabi the one from Aleppo and al-Tamimi a member of the Banu Tamim tribe. Others were the name of a grandfather or notable ancestor that civil registries turned into a fixed surname during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In many Arab countries official documents still list a person's given name, father's name and grandfather's name before the family name.

Common Arabic last names and what they mean

Many of the most frequent surnames are also popular given names, because a grandfather's name became the family name. Mohammed (praised), Ahmed (most praiseworthy), Ali (exalted), Hassan (good or handsome), Hussein (little good one), Ibrahim (Abraham), Mahmoud (praised) and Abdullah (servant of God) all appear as surnames across the Arab world. Names beginning with Abd, meaning servant of, are combined with one of the names of God, as in Abdel Rahman, Abdel Aziz and Abdel Karim.

Occupational names are common, especially in the Levant. Haddad means blacksmith, Najjar carpenter, Khayat tailor, Sabbagh dyer, Attar perfumer and Khoury priest, the last being widespread among Christian families in Lebanon, Syria and Palestine. Names describing a quality include Mansour (victorious), Nasser (helper), Saleh (righteous), Karim (generous) and Jamil (handsome). Dynastic and tribal names with Al, meaning family of, such as Al Saud or Al Thani, are typical of the Gulf.

Arabic last names and meanings across the region

Spelling varies widely because Arabic has sounds that English lacks and each country followed its own official or colonial system. The same name can appear as Mohammed, Muhammad or Mohamed, and as Mehmet in Turkey. North African names often follow French spelling and use Ben for ibn and Bou for Abu, as in Benali, Benyoussef and Boumediene. Egyptian names frequently use Abdel as one word or two, and Gulf families may write Al with or without a hyphen.

Remember too that al- (the) and Al (family of) are different words, although both appear before names. When choosing a name for a character, think about country and religion. A Lebanese Christian family might be Khoury or Haddad, an Egyptian family Abdel Fattah or Mansour, a Moroccan family Benjelloun or El Idrissi, and a Gulf family might use a tribal name. The meanings in the list above help you pick one that suits the character's story.

Frequently asked questions

Which Arabic last names are the most common?

Names derived from popular given names lead in most countries, especially Mohammed, Ahmed, Ali, Hassan, Hussein and Ibrahim. Occupational names such as Haddad and Najjar and place names such as al-Masri are also widespread, with local favourites varying from country to country.

What does ibn or bin mean in an Arabic name?

Both mean son of. Ibn is the classical form and bin is common in the Gulf and in everyday speech. Bint means daughter of. In North Africa the equivalent is Ben, which is why many Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian surnames begin with Ben, such as Benali or Benjelloun.

What is the difference between Al and al- before a name?

Al- with a hyphen is the definite article, meaning the, as in al-Masri, the Egyptian. Al written as a separate word, as in Al Thani, means family or house of and marks a clan or dynasty. They look similar in English but are different words in Arabic.

Why do Arabic names have so many English spellings?

Arabic has several sounds with no exact English equivalent, and short vowels are usually not written. Countries also followed English or French conventions. As a result Mohammed, Muhammad, Mohamed and Mouhamed are all the same name, and families often keep whichever spelling appears on their first passport.