A Name Story by Houdhoud
مُصْطَفَى
Mustafa
mus-TA-fah
“The chosen one.”
About Mustafa
Mustafa is a Muslim baby boy's name meaning "the chosen one" — an Arabic name carried for centuries across the Muslim world.
From the Arabic root ص-ف-و meaning 'to choose, to select the purest'. The passive participle of istafa, 'to choose'. Al-Mustafa, 'the Chosen', is one of the best-known epithets of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
Among the most common names in the entire Muslim world — Egypt, Turkey, the Levant, South Asia.
Origin & roots
Origin
Arabic
Gender
Boy
Also spelled
Moustapha, Mustapha, Moustafa, Mostafa
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 Mustafa is one such word.
Across history
Who has carried Mustafa before.
- The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, by the epithet al-Mustafa
- Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (1881–1938), founder of the Republic of Turkey
How to say it
Stressed syllable in capitals
Discover names like Mustafa
Other names with the same heart — close in origin, sound, and spirit.
moo-HAM-mad · Arabic
“The Praised One.”
AH-lee · Arabic
“Elevated, noble, exalted.”
AH-mad · Arabic
“Most praised; worthy of praise.”
moo-HAH-mad · Indonesian · Arabic
“Praised (Indonesian spelling of Muhammad).”
YOO-suf · Arabic-Hebrew · Arabic
“He shall add; God increases.”
ib-raa-HEEM · Arabic-Hebrew · Arabic
“Father of many; patriarch.”
Common questions about Mustafa
- What does the name Mustafa mean?
- Mustafa (مُصْطَفَى) means "The chosen one". From the Arabic root ص-ف-و meaning 'to choose, to select the purest'. The passive participle of istafa, 'to choose'. Al-Mustafa, 'the Chosen', is one of the best-known epithets of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
- Is Mustafa a name from the Qur'an?
- Mustafa does not appear directly in the Qur'an in our verified records, though it is an Arabic name long carried across the Muslim world. We only list a Qur'anic verse when it's verified against the Tanzil corpus.
- Is Mustafa a boy or a girl name?
- Mustafa is traditionally a boy's name.
- Where does the name Mustafa come from?
- Mustafa is an Arabic name, built on the root letters Ṣ-F-W. Among the most common names in the entire Muslim world — Egypt, Turkey, the Levant, South Asia.
- How is Mustafa spelled?
- Mustafa is the most common English spelling. The same Arabic name (مُصْطَفَى) is also written Moustapha, Mustapha, Moustafa, and Mostafa. They are one name, not different names — the spelling only reflects how each family or country transliterates the Arabic.
Browse names like Mustafa
Collections Mustafa belongs to.
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