A Name Story by Houdhoud
اِقْرَأ
Iqra
IQ-rah
“Read, recite.”
About Iqra
Iqra is a Muslim baby girl's name meaning "read, recite" — an Arabic-Urdu name carried for centuries across the Muslim world.
The Arabic imperative 'read, recite', from the root ق-ر-أ — the same root as the word Qur'an. Grammatically a verb rather than a noun, it is used as a given name mainly in South Asia, expressing a love of learning.
Very popular in Pakistan and India; rare as a given name in the Arab world.
Origin & roots
Origin
Arabic · Urdu
Gender
Girl
Also spelled
Iqraa, Ikra
Root letters
In Arabic, root letters are the seed that gives a word its meaning. Every word built from them inherits that family of meaning — and Iqra is one such word.
How to say it
Stressed syllable in capitals
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Common questions about Iqra
- What does the name Iqra mean?
- Iqra (اِقْرَأ) means "Read, recite". The Arabic imperative 'read, recite', from the root ق-ر-أ — the same root as the word Qur'an. Grammatically a verb rather than a noun, it is used as a given name mainly in South Asia, expressing a love of learning.
- Is Iqra a name from the Qur'an?
- Iqra does not appear directly in the Qur'an in our verified records, though it is an Arabic-Urdu name long carried across the Muslim world. We only list a Qur'anic verse when it's verified against the Tanzil corpus.
- Is Iqra a boy or a girl name?
- Iqra is traditionally a girl's name.
- Where does the name Iqra come from?
- Iqra is an Arabic-Urdu name, built on the root letters Q-R-ʾ. Very popular in Pakistan and India; rare as a given name in the Arab world.
- How is Iqra spelled?
- Iqra is the most common English spelling. The same Arabic name (اِقْرَأ) is also written Iqraa and Ikra. They are one name, not different names — the spelling only reflects how each family or country transliterates the Arabic.
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