The Prophet ﷺ said: “The most beloved of your names to Allah are ʿAbd Allah and ʿAbd al-Rahman” (Muslim 2132), and scholars add to them all names formed on a name of Allah. The name al-Karim occurs 3 times in the Quran; its page in the 99 Names section gives its meaning and verses.
ʿAbd al-Karim joins ʿabd with al-Karim, from the root k-r-m of generosity and nobility: the One who gives without counting, even before He is asked, and who forgives nobly. In the Maghreb the form Abdelkrim is associated with ʿAbd al-Karim al-Khattabi, leader of the Rif War in the 1920s.
Said one who had knowledge from the Scripture, "I will bring it to you before your glance returns to you." And when [Solomon] saw it placed before him, he said, "This is from the favor of my Lord to test me whether I will be grateful or ungrateful. And whoever is grateful - his gratitude is only for [the benefit of] himself. And whoever is ungrateful - then indeed, my Lord is Free of need and Generous."
