شَهْد
Girl Arabic origin Shahd
“Honeycomb”, honey still in its wax
The word shahd is not in the Quran, which calls honey ʿasal. It promises the God-fearing “rivers of purified honey” (47:15) and says of bees: “From their bellies comes a drink of varying colours, in which there is healing for people” (16:69); Surah 16 is named after the bee, al-Nahl.
Shahd (also shuhd) is honey before it has been pressed out of its wax: the honeycomb. Poets made it an image of sweetness, that of a pleasant word or a happy moment. Lexicographers list it under the root sh-h-d, that of testimony (shahada), but it is a different word. The name is very popular in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan; in the Gulf it is often pronounced and written Shahad.
The name Shahad does not appear as such in the Quran, but its root (ش ه د) occurs 160 times. Examples:
شَهِدَ ٱللَّهُ أَنَّهُۥ لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ وَٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةُ وَأُو۟لُوا۟ ٱلْعِلْمِ قَآئِمًۢا بِٱلْقِسْطِ لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ ١٨
Allāh witnesses that there is no deity except Him, and [so do] the angels and those of knowledge - [that He is] maintaining [creation] in justice. There is no deity except Him, the Exalted in Might, the Wise.
All the words of the root ش ه د in the Quran (160 occurrences)
No text or scholarly opinion concerns the name Shahad 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.
