The 99 Names of Allah

Where do the 99 names come from?

The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said: “Allah has ninety-nine names; whoever enumerates them will enter Paradise.” This hadith is recorded with slight variations in Sahih al-Bukhari (no. 2736) and Sahih Muslim (no. 2677). In these narrations the Prophet ﷺ did not list the names — he gave their number and the great reward of knowing them.

The specific enumeration of ninety-nine names — the list from Ar-Rahman to As-Sabur that Muslims have recited for centuries — comes through a narration in Jami’ at-Tirmidhi (no. 3507). Scholars of hadith note that the enumerated list within it was likely added by an early narrator, which is why the exact ordering can differ slightly between classical sources. The list remains the most widely transmitted and beloved rendering of the promise.

Many of the individual names appear directly in the Qur’an — you can meet them in context while reading the Qur’an — and others come from the Prophet’s ﷺ supplications, preserved in the dua library. For Arabic terms used on this page, see the Islamic glossary.

How to use the names in dua

The Qur’an itself teaches the method: “And to Allah belong the best names, so call upon Him by them” (Qur’an 7:180). To call on Allah by a name is to ask by what that name means. When you need forgiveness, call on Al-Ghafur, the Great Forgiver. When you are afraid, call on Al-Hafiz, the Preserver. When you have lost someone or something, call on As-Sabur, the Patient, and Al-Baqi, the Everlasting.

Classical scholars describe three levels of engaging with the names: memorizing them (the word translated “enumerate” in the hadith implies faring well with them), understanding their meanings, and then living them — letting Al-‘Alim make you careful with what He sees, letting Ar-Rahman make you merciful to people. A simple daily practice: pick one name, repeat it with your tasbih counter, and ask Allah by it before you sleep.