Pronunciation |
Arabic: [ħuˈseːn, ħoˈseːn, ħʊ'seːn] Egyptian Arabic: [ħeˈseːn, ħoˈseːn] Persian: [ho'sejn] |
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Gender | Male |
Word/name | Arabic |
Meaning | Handsome |
Related names | Hassan |
Hussein (/huːˈseɪn/; also spelled Husein, Husejin, Husejn, Husain, Hussain, Husayin, Hussayin, Hüseyin, Husseyin, Huseyn, Hossain, Hosein, Hossein, or Husseyn) (Arabic: حُسَين, Ḥusayn), coming from the triconsonantal root Ḥ-S-N, is an Arabic name which is the diminutive of Hassan, meaning "good", "handsome" or "beautiful". It is commonly given as a male given name, particularly among Shias. In some Persian sources the forms Ḥosayn, Hosayn, or Hossein are used. On the Subcontinent or South Asia, the form used is "Hussain" or "Hossain" in the Bengal region.
This name was not used in the pre-Islamic period, and is recorded to have been first used by the Islamic prophet Muhammad when he named his grandson Husayn ibn Ali, saying he had been commanded to do so by the archangel Gabriel.