Referring to Places and Things by Names Containing Meanings of Disbelief

20-5-2026 | IslamWeb

Question:

Assalamu alaikum If a river or a mountain has a name that is kufr for e.g, here in India a mountain is called shiwalik which means belonging to Shiva , similarly a river called kishanganga which means belonging to Krishna nauzbillah ... These names are mentioned in books that we study, Even Muslims call it by that name. What is ruling on calling that river or the mountain by those names?

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad () is His Slave and Messenger.

There is no harm in referring to these mountains by such names, since you did not invent these names yourself. Rather, you merely referred to them by the names through which they are commonly known among the people.

Ibn Al-Qayyim mentioned in Tuhfat Al-Mawdood Bi Ahkam Al-Mawlood that it is prohibited to initially give such names. However, merely referring to something by the name through which it is already commonly recognized, for the sake of identification and clarification, is not prohibited.

Allah Knows best