Fatima (given name)

Fatima (Arabic: فَاطِمَة, Fāṭimah), also spelled Fatimah, is a feminine given name of Arabic origin used throughout the Muslim world. Several relatives of the Islamic prophet Muhammad had the name, including, most famously, his daughter Fatimah bint Muhammad. The literal meaning of the name is one who separates or one who abstains. It is used in the context of "separating people from Hell" "being separated from Hell" "weaning from the punishment of Hell" "separating good from evil" or "being separated from evil," so it is also considered to mean "one who splits from Hell."
The name "Fatimah" is derived from the infinitive "F-Ṭ-M" (Arabic: ف-ط-م) meaning "to separate, to cut something from another." Several reasons have been mentioned for naming Fatimah daughter of Muhammed with this name including the narration, in which her father said said, "God named her Fatimah, because He separated and kept her and her lovers (and in another tradition: "her followers") away from fire." It is narrated from Imam Jafar al-Sadiq that, "she was named Fatima because she was kept away from evil."
The colloquial Arabic pronunciation of the name in some varieties (e.g., Levantine and Egyptian) often omits the unstressed second syllable and renders it as Fatma when romanized. Incidentally, this is also the usual Turkish form of the name (another variant, Fadime, is less common). In South Asian countries, such as India (most commonly), Pakistan, it may be spelt as Fathima. In Persian, the name is rendered as Fatemeh in the Iranian dialect, Fatima Afghan dialect, Fatimə (pronounced Fátimeh) in Azerbaijani, and Fotima (Фотима) in Tajik dialect. The name Fatima is given in honor of Prophet Muhammad’s daughter Fatima, who, in Islamic traditions, was given this name because she would save her followers from Hell.
Many other names and titles have also been given to Fatimah such as Zahra (luminous; radiant), Batul (cut off: ascetic), Zahida (ascetic), Norea (girl of light), Aludra (the chaste), Adara (chaste), Hurra (free), Hawra Insiya (human in nymph form), Shahida (martyred), Siddiqa (truthful), Raqiya (girl who casts incantation) Abeda (girl who worships), Karima (generous) and Jemila (beautiful). Other examples of commonly and rarely known names of Fatimah include Muhammedah, Saphiya, Walia (Valia), Hania, Mutahara, Sharifa, Hakima, Qanita, Umm Abiha, and Daphia.
Fatima is also used by non-Muslims: the town of Fátima, Portugal (originally named after an Arab princess) was the site of a famous Marian apparition in 1917, after which it achieved some popularity as a female personal name among Catholic populations, particularly in the Portuguese-speaking and Spanish-speaking countries.
This name has many variations in different languages. The Turkish and Azerbaijani transliteration of the name is either Fatma or Fatimeh. In Somali the name became Fadumo. It is Faḍma in Kabyle. In South Asia, it is spelt Fathima. Spelled as Fátima, the name is also common amongst Spanish and especially Portuguese speaking peoples in Iberia as well as in the Americas. Due to the Berber influence on Moroccan Arabic, other variations exist in Morocco, such as Fatna, Fadma, Fettoosh, Fattoom.