صَبَا
Girl Arabic origin Ṣabā
“The east wind”, the gentle morning breeze sung by poets
The Prophet ﷺ said: “I was helped by the saba (the east wind), and the people of ʿAd were destroyed by the dabur (the west wind)” (al-Bukhari 3343). Commentators connect this help with the wind that scattered the confederates at the Battle of the Trench (33:9).
Saba is the east wind, the gentle breeze that blows at daybreak; Arab and Persian poets made it the messenger of lovers, carrying the beloved’s scent. The name evokes softness and freshness. It should not be confused with Sabaʾ (سبأ), the kingdom of the queen of Sheba, which gives its name to Surah 34 and is often written the same way in Latin letters.
The name Saba does not appear as such in the Quran, but its root (ص ب و) occurs 3 times. Examples:
قَالَ رَبِّ ٱلسِّجْنُ أَحَبُّ إِلَىَّ مِمَّا يَدْعُونَنِىٓ إِلَيْهِ وَإِلَّا تَصْرِفْ عَنِّى كَيْدَهُنَّ أَصْبُ إِلَيْهِنَّ وَأَكُن مِّنَ ٱلْجَٰهِلِينَ ٣٣
He said, "My Lord, prison is more to my liking than that to which they invite me. And if You do not avert from me their plan, I might incline toward them and [thus] be of the ignorant."
يَٰيَحْيَىٰ خُذِ ٱلْكِتَٰبَ بِقُوَّةٍ وَءَاتَيْنَٰهُ ٱلْحُكْمَ صَبِيًّا ١٢
[Allāh said], "O John, take the Scripture [i.e., adhere to it] with determination." And We gave him judgement [while yet] a boy
فَأَشَارَتْ إِلَيْهِ قَالُوا۟ كَيْفَ نُكَلِّمُ مَن كَانَ فِى ٱلْمَهْدِ صَبِيًّا ٢٩
So she pointed to him. They said, "How can we speak to one who is in the cradle a child?"
All the words of the root ص ب و in the Quran (3 occurrences)
نُصِرْتُ بِالصَّبَا، وَأُهْلِكَتْ عَادٌ بِالدَّبُورِ "
No text or scholarly opinion concerns the name Saba in particular: the general rules of Islam apply.
Read the rules for choosing a name
This page is an aid to reflection, not a fatwa. For a personal case, ask a person of knowledge.
