Saudi Arabia Bans Blasphemous and Inappropriate Baby Names Alice, Sandy and Elaine

Saudi Arabia's interior ministry has banned 50 given names that "contradict the culture or religion of the kingdom" or are" foreign" and "inappropriate".

According to the list of forbidden names, Saudis will no longer be able to call their children Linda, Alice, Malaak (angel) or Basmala (utterance of the name of God), to name just a few.

The ministry justified the ban by saying that the names offend perceived religious sensibilities, are affiliated to royalty and some are of non-Arabic or non-Islamic origin.

Binyamin is believed in Islam to be the son of Prophet Jacob (Yaqoub) (PBUH) and the full brother of Prophet Joseph (PBUH), but it also happens to be the name of the Israeli prime minister.

Names such as Abdul Nabi and Abdul Hussain, common among Shiites and some Sunni Arabs, are controversial because of the multiple ways in which they can be interpreted. Abdul in Arabic means "worshipper of" or "slave of", while Nabi means "prophet" and Rasool means "messenger". Those who oppose such names argue that Abdul means "worshipper of' and is therefore forbidden as only God can be worshipped, Gulf News reported.

Another set of names that is banned includes those with royal connotations, especially titles such as Sumuw (highness), Malek (king) and Malika (Queen) and other royal terms such as Al Mamlaka (the kingdom).

A number of other names appear that do not necessarily fit into any category and it is therefore unclear as to why they would have been banned, Gulf News reported.

Saudi Arabia is not new to extreme bans: Saudi women are forbidden to drive, to go to the gym and to travel alone without authorisation signed by a male guardian.

Freedom of religion, cinemas and music schools and the celebration of Valentine's Day are also forbidden.

FULL LIST OF NAMES BANNED IN SAUDI ARABIA

Malaak (angel)

Abdul Aati

Abdul Naser

Abdul Musleh

Nabi (prophet)

Nabiyya (female prophet)

Amir (prince)

Sumuw (highness)

Al Mamlaka (the kingdom)

Malika (queen)