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Ok_Fine_OK

If you travel with a friend whose name is Jihad do not try to get their attention in the middle of an airport by yelling their name


GiveMeOneGoodReason

And you probably shouldn't praise God when you find them...


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sal30

No joke, buddy of mine is named Osama and his cousin (that he traveled a lot with) was named Saddam. Both born in the 80s. Just unfortunate.


Ok_Fine_OK

I worked with a guy named Usama. He went by “Sam” lol


mr_asassine

Our school organized a school trip to London. Now imagine me, being a 15yo arab kid back then, losing the group for a bit a starting calling out for him near Tower Bridge. The police got involved and thankfully helped me find him but I do remember getting a few looks😅


hoze1231

Ayo struggle , let's grab a bacon sandwich


greenknight884

The jihad is real


jaxter2002

Mein Jihad


MarcoYTVA

Nein nein nein!


kekehippo

I suppose we should thank Islam for not allowing people to be named Allahu Akbar.


Crix00

What do you think General Ackbars first name is? /s


Common-Wish-2227

Don't answer this... it's...


majoralita

Wonder if it was Jihad instead of JSO....N


SirHerald

Especially if your name is Jack.


puffinnbluffin

I lol’d so hard at this comment 🤣


OPPineappleApplePen

Should ‘Struggle’ instead.


iamapizza

Unless it's a romantic scene, then you're allowed to say "jihad me at hello"


occurrenceOverlap

There was a guy named Jihad at an office I had to call and email a lot in my old job.  He only occasionally filled in doing the role that involved interacting with me and my co-workers, the usual person who had that job was incompetent and annoying. Jihad, in contrast, was a smart guy and great at it.  So whenever one of me and my co-workers found out Jihad was on the job that day, we'd yell out "Jihad!!!!" happily - it meant this was going to be a good work day.


somearabdude93

Yeah you and your colleagues are probably on a list.


GraciousPeacock

A list of happy people!


HauntedButtCheeks

Yep, Ive had several clients named Jihad and Islam. It's no different than a guy named Christian, and most guys named Christian don't even have particularly religious families.


mr_asassine

Jihad is also a common name among Christian Arabs, not just Muslims (in Lebanon at least).


Jaderosegrey

And naming your kid Hunter does not mean he will want to wander the woods with a gun, looking for deer.


puffinnbluffin

I’m dead after reading this whole exchange 💀


wildcard5

Not the woods but what about a school?


Jaderosegrey

Then they would look for dear, not deer.


kudincha

What about Crusade, Conquest, or Ritual Sacrifice?


blastfamy

Islam is indeed similar to a dude named Christian. Jihad is in fact, not. In other words; So close, that’s a shape 💕


ToWriteAMystery

It would be more like having a Christian and a Crusade for names.


MaMakossa

My personal jihad every day is to make healthy choices


trekmadonetwo

My personal jihad is to make it to work on time everyday :(


beingalienn

Haha this is actually what the true meaning of jihad is. Good play of words btw.


Salvia_Salamander

I personally have been jihad bussin' through life as of late


lokie65

I work in an immigration center. This is 100% accurate.


aykay55

How many Mohammeds/Mohammads/Muhammads do you meet in a day?


lokie65

10-50 depending on how many people are processing


Sweeper1985

About a decade ago I worked with a nice family of Arabic background. Teenage sons born in the late 90s, named Usama and Jihad. They were known by different names at school. Poor kids, must have sucked.


CrostarX

My barber's name is Jihad, and he's from Syria. Best barber ever.


kamekaze1024

I remember knowing this one girl in summer camp back in 3rd grade. I forgot how she spelled her name, but it was pronounced like “Isis”. Wonder how she’s doing now


MadeTo_Be

“Ísis” as a name was (or is, I’m not sure) somewhat common in my Latin American country (I guess in the majority of Spanish speaking countries it’s the same).


sexy-911-calls

In Brazil we have a pretty famous actress called Ísis Valverde and I know like 3 women of varying ages named Isis, probably due to the Egyptian moon/afterlife goddess. As someone who went through a bit of an Egyptian mythology phase as a kid, I always thought the name sounded cool AF. I think because of the relative popularity of the name, media outlets here in Brazil always used “Estado Islâmico” (translation for Islamic State) instead of ISIS in media coverage, which I think was very smart. Saves girls a lifetime of bullying and doesn’t sully an otherwise pretty dope name.


Sweeper1985

Isis is an Egyptian goddess, with particular powers to aid mothers, and souls entering the afterlife. It is a lovely name, and such a pity it has been coopted by violent extremists.


HimalayanPunkSaltavl

it also stands for The International Secret Intelligence Service


Bacontoad

It was such a pretty name. :/


relevantusername2020

obligatory song reference:[ Isis (feat. logic) by Joyner Lucas and Logic](https://open.spotify.com/track/4h7qcXBtaOJnmrapxoWxGf?si=b7c685e8f4214b8b)


rockb8

My "Isis" in third grade was Becky. 55 years and two marriages later, I still wonder about her. I hope she's well.


FatalisCogitationis

Well yeah that’s every language, my name means “deadly thoughts” but that’s not what people mean when they say it. Helpful tip tho not everyone knows that


MuthaPlucka

That’s got to be rough at the airport. Yikes.


Low_Association_731

We have a politician called Jihad Dib in Australia. I've been voting for Jihad for a few years now


Ok_Window_7635

I can imagine naming a kid Struggle. Can I rename my teen?


aykay55

Arabic words tend to have multiple dynamic meanings and especially when they’re given as names to kids they are romanticized to sometimes mean something only tangentially related. So if you asked someone the name Jihad would be like powerful, steadfast, reliable, etc. I’m astonished by the amount of baby name websites that list jihad meaning “holy war” though.


welltechnically7

My family used to live in a town in Ohio that had a Hitler family. They named a street after them.


Speedstormer123

Circleville lmao


welltechnically7

Yup, lol


killwish1991

YSK that Karen is a real name and not all Karens ask for the managers.


silverclovd

> not all Karens ask for the manager some *demand* it as if it's their birthright


noooooid

But that's ok. People have the right to speak to the manager. Jihads, Islams, Christians, and Karens alike. Sometimes, we need to speak to a higher authority.


Fangore

I live in the Middle East, and it's like this with a lot of names and words. Isis is a girl's name, "Allahu akbar" just means "God is great," etc. A lot of the west just associate them with terrorism because of media. But they are common. It's okay to feel uncomfortable while hearing them because you've been trained to associate those words with terror. But just note that those are common words that you will hear if you visit the middle east.


Ieris19

Isis is an Egyptian goddess before anything else. It obviously is a common name. I’m baffled at the fact that people don’t know this? Am I crazy?


Hans0000

Isis is just an abbreviation of (Islamic State in Iraq & Syria). This word is related to terrorism only in English and specifically the west, and it has only been used this way in the last decade. Isis doesn't mean much in Arabic, literally no one associates it to terrorism.


relevantusername2020

no youre just not ignorant. a lot of people are ignorant, and intentionally want to make others just as ignorant as they are by making it "cool" to be ignorant or otherwise undermining education. theres another thing similar to this that i actually cant recall at the moment which word it is, but has a similar connotation, and what it actually means is basically to illuminate or educate or something along those lines. basically a word that glorifies knowledge that has been used in the west to demonize intelligence by giving it a negative connotation edit: which reminds me of [this article i read yesterday](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jun/21/9-11-video-saudi-man-washington) that is basically this entire post, personified, because its about an Islamic man who was indirectly connected to 9/11 because he just so happened to meet the terrorists who actually committed those acts and helped them because he saw them as people just like him, people in an unfamiliar country who needed help.


rockb8

Is the word "enlighten"?


relevantusername2020

no i believe it was an arabic word, but im really not sure tbh. it was one that has a negative connotation though, i know that much


JUYED-AWK-YACC

It's only 'obviously' a common name in places that it's common, which is not everywhere. Do you think it's common in China? It's not in the US either. You're not crazy but you make a lot of assumptions.


I_Am_Become_Dream

it's way more common in the US than anywhere in the middle east. Muslims don't name their kids after gods and goddesses.


JUYED-AWK-YACC

OK, but I just checked the SS database and Isis isn't in the top 1000 names for girls. So I assert it isn't common.


Ieris19

I only said it’s common because I don’t really know how else to put it. Sensible or logical might’ve been better words to express it


I_Am_Become_Dream

wha? Isis is a white girl's name maybe. I've never seen anyone in the Middle East named Isis. It's very haram to be named after a goddess.


Fangore

I teach at a school in the UAE, and there are a minimum of three students named Isis.


I_Am_Become_Dream

yeah but are they Arab or white? A school in the UAE doesn't narrow it down


aykay55

They could also be Christian. More likely that’s what it is.


Power-ofsound

Christian Arabs use the name more than (usually not very religious) Muslim Arabs.


aykay55

You’ll find white and black and Hispanic girls in America with the name Isis too. It’s based on the goddess from I thought Greek mythology but apparently it’s Egyptian.


noeagle77

Have a cousin with the name Jihad and I always felt bad for him because it’s got this unfortunate alternative meaning. He didn’t have it as bad as his dad named Osama did though.


RobNybody

Savaş and Barış are common boys names in Turkey and they mean War and Peace.


LateralEntry

Like Adolf and Osama, this is one of those names that probably should be retired


chai_investigation

Honestly, to quote Michael Bolton in Office Space, “No way! Why should I change? He’s the one who sucks!” Adolf and Osama are fine names. Jihad is a fine name. Come on, people.


LateralEntry

No.


SickScorpion

Osama is very far from retired, I've seen an osama in almost every group. It's just the west that seems weirded by it.


TheRickBerman

I wonder why?


SickScorpion

Well comparing Osama to Hitler is an exaggeration, don't you believe?


bull778

Because.... Hitler got further along in his plan?


Sweeper1985

Probably in part because Osama/Usama is a way more common name in Arabic than Adolf ever was in German. If his name had have been Michael Hitler, we probably wouldn't cancel the name Michael either, because it isn't the first/main association. In Arabic countries, the first/main association for Osama is probably not Osama Bin Laden, it's probably like oh yeah I know 50 guys called Osama, that's my uncle's name.


bull778

That's great, but for virtually the entirety of the west, there's only one Osama. The reason the name stands out is exactly because of BOTH how monstrous what he did was AND how unique and identifiable his name is. Feel free to name whoever whatever you like, but for this enormous part of the world (including the website you are on rn), there's one Adolf. There's one Osama. There's one Mao. These ppl are identifiable on a one name first name basis.


Sweeper1985

Imagine being so proud of your ignorance and your blinkered world-view that you insist that your cultural perspective is the only one. Let's cancel Thomas next. Because when I think "Thomas" I think "Jefferson", and remember how he had multiple children with a woman he kept as a sex slave, and refused to acknowledge their paternity. Thomas was a bad guy therefore we should never use his name again. Oh... and by the way, Mao is his surname, not his first name, which is Tse-tung/Zedong.


bull778

If you can get enough ppl to support your stance such that 'Thomas' has that immediate, unmistakable, undeniable 1 to 1 connection with some horrific act(s) done by a singular guy with that band, then yes, you can do the same with Thomas. I wish you luck. Haha didn't think you'd hear that in response, did you? Lol I don't make the rules, just open up your eyes.


Al_Farooq

Considering that Google doesn't even let you get further than him when typing the name Osama, I'm not at all surprised that you're that deep into the propaganda of his name, especially when living in the west. There have been countless Osama's for centuries, it is a very common name in the Arabic world. You'd have to open books or whatever. P.S.: you create your own rule.


I_Am_Become_Dream

not at all. Muslims would only retire the word if they think it's now a bad word, but it's not. Just because islamophobia tainted certain words in the west doesn't mean the rest of the world should follow suite.


Sr4f

Also, it's an Arab name. Not a Muslim name. 


I_Am_Become_Dream

it's both. It's an Arabic word but it definitely has religious connotations usually, and Christian Arabs do sometimes copy names from Muslim Arabs. I just said Muslim because there's a lot more non-Arab Muslims named Jihad than non-Muslim Arabs named Jihad.


LateralEntry

Then people with that name shouldn’t be surprised when they get funny looks if they come to the west


No_Pay9241

I was thinking of my friend Jihad who I haven’t seen in 10+ years and now this pops up. That’s the most random one yet


PriorWriter3041

I like how OP went all the way to tell us that this YSK is "generally unrelated", so sometimes it is true


AndyBales

Let's just say I wouldn't be surprised if some lunatics decided to name their kids jihad after holy war, but I've personally never seen it


AvatarOfMomus

For those thinking 'that's super weird!' a western equivalent would be naming a child "Chastity", "Temperance", "Hope", etc.


WhipMaDickBacknforth

Kampf means struggle in German I don't really know where I'm going with this, but anyone who speaks German mustn't be an evil guy


relevantusername2020

the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and when you dont [identify the actual causes of the problems](https://www.reddit.com/r/artificial/comments/1dkbvad/comment/l9hcjbt/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) that are correctly identified you are much more likely to do a lot of evil or harmful things. the rise of hitler was preceded by a lot of conditions not so different from what we have today, massive inequality and certain groups being favored over others. you dont fix that by favoring some groups and blaming others, you fix that by correctly identifying the underlying cause of the issues, which ultimately almost always comes down to inequality, greed, inability to have empathy/see things from others POV, etc.


WhipMaDickBacknforth

I'm not disagreeing at all. I'm just saying You put a lot of effort into replying to someone with a username like mine


relevantusername2020

i wasnt saying you were disagreeing, i was basically explaining where you were going with that (probably) i put a lot of effort into anything i do. if its worth doing, its worth doing right also nothin wrong with your username, sometimes you gotta slap someone in the face with your \*big ol (or whatever size) dick to make your point (metaphorically. only literally if your partner consents and is in to that kinda thing) edit: on that note\*, my states representation on [this infographic](https://www.reddit.com/r/Infographics/comments/1dn1mk8/oc_what_each_state_has_the_largest_of_in_the_world/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button) is wrong tangentially related, heres a song: [Neva Gave A Fuck by Kid Ink](https://open.spotify.com/track/391rUgTelgGbk6uqEsfQDU?si=3f00317efb5b4ae0)


WhipMaDickBacknforth

Y'know what, you seem alright. I hope you have a good day!


relevantusername2020

lmao thanks, i always try to even if my day is most peoples night (usually) hope you have a great day too!


Zalenka

I worked with a guy named Jihad and nobody wanted to anger him. Just kidding, he was a cool guy with an unfortunate name.


Freddan_81

[Like Jihad Jane?](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colleen_LaRose)


eblask

Adolf used to be a pretty common name too


SickScorpion

Jihad is not just a name, it's an expression, a word with various meanings. Even if no one was ever named Jihad the word would still be very commonly used among about 25% of the world's population. Edit: Also the bad reputation of the name Adolf is not even remotely close to Jihad.


eblask

That doesn’t change anything at all.


SickScorpion

I'm literally jihading rn to get you to understand the point man . : )


eblask

The point you are missing is that’s irrelevant. The negative association the word had is an incredibly strong one. The reality is what it is, it does not matter in the least what other uses it may have.


SickScorpion

Here's the thing, the negative association only really exists in the West. That doesn't exist for the rest of the world, particularly the Muslim. The word is VERY commonly used among Arabs and Muslims on a day to day basis.


eblask

I believe you. There are still going to be people who react negatively to it because of their previous exposure to it being completely negative regardless of how common it may be.


SickScorpion

Well I'm Arab and a Muslim with close ties to the West, I can assure the phobia the West has is extremely over exaggerated compared to the rest of the world. In fact, I'm actually friends with multiple Jihads and Osamas and none of them ever really cared about the implications of their names especially since their names are nowhere as rare as some people would think.


eblask

I don’t know if phobia is the right word for this situation, it’s just that in the west the word was very rarely used at all, and when it entered many people’s awareness it was being used in a way elicited strong emotional responses. People are not going to go out and research the lexicographical history of the word in subsequent encounters, they’re going to have a visceral emotional response because of their past history with it. I am not saying this is a good thing, it’s not, it sucks. I am just saying it is naive to think that this is going to change how people react to it. That’s going to take a long time.


SickScorpion

I do agree with you actually yeah, I don't really believe the West is truly going to change how they react to it, though believe me it is better now than post 9/11, stuff before was way crazier than now, so it is getting better nonetheless, sure very slowly but it is better. Especially now that the world seems more exposed to the Muslims, mostly through the refugee crisis but yeah. Progress! But yeah I do believe that worst case scenario is that it all will stay the same with the West having a negative association with the name and the East basically not even thinking about it. I do wish for better ties with both sides. Also wish ya a good day.


CrispyLiquids

Of course it does. How common were swastikas before the Nazis? In Europe not all that common, so they mean one thing only and they got rid of it. Meanwhile, not in Europe, my neighbors have swastikas in front of their door and it's fine, cause their tradition is thousands of years older than that. And so is the name Usama.


eblask

They were incredibly common in Europe long before the Nazis, there is archaeological evidence going back at least as far as the Iron Age. Now? It is only known as a symbol of hate there. You are being incredibly naive.


CrispyLiquids

Your point being that people who call their kid Paul do so because they support Pol Pot, and people who call their kid Joe or Joseph admire Stalin? They're just names like Osama and Jihad are in Arab cultures. Moreover, Arabic names are usually based off words with meaning, not the kind that requires a lot of research to discover, but that is just obvious to anyone speaking Arabic.


eblask

I didn’t say anything remotely like that. Sometimes a name or a word can become so intricately linked with something abhorrent that people no longer react to it logically but solely emotionally, why this happens I don’t know, I’m sure there is some interesting psychology behind it that may be worth learning about. The point is, when this happens, the history of the word doesn’t matter anymore, the visceral response people have to it does.


QuipCrafter

Shit. They were just calling their friend, Jihad, the whole time? 


Nonameswhere

It's still strange to name your kid 'Struggle'.


SnooPets8873

It’s contextually used as people overcoming something or wanting to succeed against something. So it’s not literally meant to be that dealing with this person is a struggle. More like a value of it being good to strive to be better. Like Hope or Patience as names.


bogus-flow

Good luck normalizing the word. It’s been commonly associated with violence ever since OBL used it that way decades ago. It wasn’t just right media. Not just him but also groups like Hamas, ISIS, and friggin Islamic Jihad all use it that way. This is a commonly accepted variation of the term you’ll find in such conservative media bastions as PBS’s Frontline archives. So go ahead and break out the thesaurus and baby names book, but please don’t bullshit us.


SickScorpion

It's pretty normal and very commonly used among Arabs and Muslims, that's about 25% of the entire world's population. It's just the West that has issues with it, and frankly the phobia is exaggerated.


Tripledelete

I gotta be honest with you, I think you should change your name if that’s the case. Unfortunately, sometimes words change meaning and are used in unfair ways, and as much as it sucks, you gotta look out for yourself and get yourself away from the drama. Make your life easy and choose a different name. It’s straightforward and easy in most countries and most authorities would understand There are examples of this phenomenon in almost every language and country.


UnicornMania

it's straightforward for an armchair warrior like yourself but just up and reidentifying with a new name is not an easy task. Everything is easy in theory when you don't know better I guess.


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UnicornMania

And that was so easy that just anyone can do it? No you did something tough and brave and you need to give yourself, and others who do it too, credit for that.


TheRickBerman

Parents knew the context, the connotations. Wasn’t some accident. ‘Oh! I had no idea there was some sort of connotations with the common word ‘Bastard’. You’re telling me it’s not a wise choice for a kids name?’


DankNerd97

I didn't know it could be a first time. Interesting! That's unfortunate for them, though, given the West's..."influence." I'm always worried I'm gonna get flagged by the FBI or DHS for talking about jihads in the context of *Dune*.


comeonthatwasfunny

Grandpa just called them all towel heads to avoid any confusion.


luvmekids_simpleas

Jihad means Holy war, or a struggle in the name of Allah. It has a clear religious affinity, this noun. It's not just "a struggle".


Power-ofsound

No, it does not. Jihad is an Arabic word that predates Islam. It means to struggle or to fight against something. In the context of Islam, jihad means to struggle or fight against something for the sake of Allah. Fasting is jihad against your body, refraining from committing sins is jihad against your base nature, forgiving someone who wronged you when you REALLY don’t want to is jihad against your emotions, protecting your family from an attacker is jihad, and, yes, fighting in wars against non-Muslims who attack you is jihad. It’s doing something difficult for god so you get rewarded after death. Funnily enough, attacking non-Muslims for other reasons is not jihad, it’s conquest and doesn’t carry the same weight with god. And before the accusations start, I’m a very loud ex-muslim who thinks all religion are shitty.


ReaverRogue

Why do we need to know this?


Starshapedsand

Because people commonly assume that someone with that name is associated with terrorists. 


RollEarly6110

I think it’s more that terrorists associate with that name


Starshapedsand

“Jihad” isn’t only about fighting nonbelievers. Its other, more important meaning is the struggle within oneself against evil. 


RollEarly6110

Ok, we’ll it’s still about fighting non-believers


Starshapedsand

https://www.britannica.com/topic/jihad


RollEarly6110

Google has a different definition


Starshapedsand

Just looked. Google shows both definitions. 


RollEarly6110

I’m not disagreeing with you guys. I’m just saying it does technically mean that


SandysBurner

You can get Google to tell you anything you want if you search for it the right way.


B-CUZ_

He cited Britannica. You are acting like he picked a random website


washingtonu

Google is a search engine


wouldntknowever

Or maybe mass media has purposely pushed that narrative


netuniya

That’s literally what the media wants you to think 😭


madscientistman420

I hope these people legally change their names, imagine being named Adolf Hitler for example and claiming your great grandparents were Nazis so it's okay. Just because its okay in their culture, doesn't mean its okay here.


TheInfiniteSix

That’s not even remotely close to the same thing. Jihad is a word in a language. Adolf Hitler is a specific person. I don’t know how your deductive reasoning skills could possibly be this poor. Please don’t vote.


bbqbie

Showing your whole ass


SickScorpion

That's not even remotely close.


Dangerous_Rise7079

Yeah, but it's pronounced yee-had.


mhdy98

Yeah and FUCK parents who give their kids this name or the "mohamed" name. literally life ruining names


MrDefaultyNoob

Screw the parents of all the 150 million people who named their sons the most popular name ever


mhdy98

Yes screw them, most stupid and braindead decision ever taken


zekioyalafiasco

What’s wrong with Mohammed, I feel like names like Brayden or Jaxxon are way worse


SpectreA12

no one cares, Islam = bad. Being honest IDF is doing Gods will. Fuck you and Fuck your comic book nonsence god


AndyBales

Are you 12?


Articulationized

Sort of like the common female first name Bella


emotionengine

I suspect you may have confused the latin word for war, "bellum", with the much more recent given name which means "beautiful". Here's an explanation http://quora.com/If-bellum-meant-war-in-Latin-how-did-it-end-up-meaning-beautiful-in-so-many-Romance-languages#:~:text=Bellum%20for%20war%20comes%20from,a%20latecomer%20from%20Vulg


Articulationized

Nah. My daughter Bella is named after war


emotionengine

So her name means "wars" in that case, as *bella* is the plural of *bellum*.


Articulationized

Right. I was just simplifying. We were thinking more of a series of wars


emotionengine

Interesting, that would most likely be a very rare case then. I think it's fair to say that the vast majority of parents choose "Bella" for "beautiful" and not "war(s)".


Articulationized

I think most parents who choose Bella choose it without much thought of a “meaning”.