Haroon Al-Qahtani? How? Why?

Many people wonder how exactly an American convert to Islam chose, or rather even ended up with the last name "Al-Qahtani." I am constantly bombarded with one or all of the following questions: "Why on earth did you choose the last name Al-Qahtani?" "How come you didn't choose [insert that person's family name here]? My tribe is so much better; Qahtanees are nothing but Bedouins!" Or the example of one person I met recently who said: "If you're originally Syrian how can you have the name Al-Qahtani?" I have to admit - the last person asked a reasonable question . . . however that is all null and void since Qahtan is the best tribe of all Arabs!

How did it start?

About two years ago I visited Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah. When I returned to America I was wearing thawb, shamag, and agal. Because of how I was wearing my shamag (a type of Arab headdress) some brothers began to joke and say I was "Qahtani." At that time I didn't really know what that meant - but it seemed okay.

A short time after that I began reading the book "Ar-Raheeq Al-Makhtum." In the first chapter of the book it discusses the origins of all Arab tribes leading up to the Prophet Muhammad (SAW.) It is the following excerpt in particular that made me want to take the name "Al-Qahtani":

Arab kinfolks have been divided according to lineage into three groups:

1. Perishing Arabs: The ancient Arabs, of whose history little is known, and of whom were 'Ad, Thamud, Tasam, Jadis, Emlaq, and others.

2. Pure Arabs: Who originated from the progeny of Ya'rub bin Yashjub bin Qahtan. They were also called Qahtanian Arabs.

3. Arabized Arabs: Who originated from the progeny of Ishmael. They were also called 'Adnanian Arabs.

The pure Arabs - the people of Qahtan - originally lived in Yemen and comprised many tribes, two of which were very famous:

a. Himyar: The most famous of whose septs were Zaid Al-Jamhur, Quda`a and Sakasic.

b. Khalan: The most famous of whose septs were Hamdan, Anmar, Tai`, Mudhhij, Kinda, Lakhm, Judham, Azd, Aws, Khazraj and the descendants of Jafna - the kings of old Syria.

When I read that all Arabs had come from Qahtan I was very impressed. I started to become very fond of the title "Al-Qahtani" because it had a very symbolic meaning to me. One of the reasons I researched and later accepted Islam is because I had an interest in my Arab roots. Since learning about my Arab roots was one of the reasons I became Muslim, what better way to show it than to choose the name "Al-Qahtani?" In a nutshell, this is my logic in initially choosing the name "Al-Qahtani."

Another reason I chose the name "Al-Qahtani" is because of my sincere belief in loyalty; loyalty is perhaps the best quality a human can have. If a person is loyal to me I have a tendency to overlook any flaw he may possess - and that may be a flaw in itself. But nevertheless this is how I think, and probably will remain to think for sometime.

One of my friends said something interesting while discussing the subject of loyalty and disloyalty. He said that: "Disloyalty is one of the reasons many people will be in the hellfire." I had never heard any evidence for that so I asked him what he meant. He went on to say: "The majority of the people in the hellfire will be women, and they will be women who would go behind the backs of their husbands' and gossip, when their husbands are the ones who provide and do everything for them. Because of the disloyalty they had for their husbands they are in the hellfire." His statement is backed up by an authentic saying of The Prophet (SAW), which most of us are probably familiar with.

Whether we can apply this saying to all relationships, not just marriage, I don't know. But if anything it does show us the importance of loyalty in a Muslim's life. By choosing the name of a tribe, or a family name, I am showing my loyalty to someone; and to me this is the ultimate form of respect. It is the ultimate form of respect both to Islam and to Arabs. It is a service to Islam because many Qahtanees in Najd were responsible for correcting the ills that Imam Muhammad Ibn Abdul-Wahab had pointed out to people. A great number of Qahtanees during the Imam's time were responsible for fighting the deviants who dwelled in Najd, and later ridding the area of polytheism. And it shows a service to Arabs because Qahtanees are the fathers of all Arab peoples today: from Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan, etc . . .

And what man cannot respect pure Bedouin values? To me the simple values that the Bedouins believe in are the best. This is another reason I accepted the name "Al-Qahtani."

Okay, but isn't this haram?

Many people feel that changing the last name is haram in Islam. I don't dispute them entirely, but I do feel that there are other views out there.

I asked a Sheikh once about the permissibility of changing one's name. The answer he gave me was interesting. He explained that the reason that we should not change our name in Islam is because it could cause us to unknowingly marry into our own family. But since in America our lineage is well documented, changing one's name becomes less of a problem.

For those who say that I am not "naming myself after my father" I disagree. If I were to name myself "Haroon ibn Abdallah Al-Qahtani" you could say I am committing a questionable act. Calling myself Haroon Al-Qahtani is no different than calling myself "Haroon Al-Ameriki," "Al-Hanbali," or any other titles you can think of.

After legally changing my name I can assure you that there is no way to "erase" your father from your birth records. No matter how much money I pay the judge (well probably) there is no way to erase my father or mother's name from my birth certificate; my name and identification still clearly shows who I come from.