MY NEW NAME

I nearly gave up when a man picked up the phone. He said 'Salaamu alleikum' but spoke with a London accent. Was she married to a convert then? I was curious...

I said to Anwar, 'It's interesting about converts isn't it? What would make a Westerner become a Muslim?...I think they're brave.' (Leila Aboulela, "Minaret")

Like many new Muslims, I decided to choose a Muslim name. Although choosing a Muslim name is not a requirement for new Muslims, it is certainly an option. I began to read Islamic books so I could carefully choose a name. Since I was re-verting to Islam from Judaism, I was happy to read that our Prophet (saw) had two wives who came from Judaism: Juwariyyah and Safiyyah (ra). I decided to call myself Juwariyyah, but Alhamdulillah, I could not even pronounce my own new name! So I told all my new Muslim sisters that I was changing my name to Safiyyah. Although I can now pronounce the name Juwariyyah, I remain Safiyyah, Alhamdulillah!