Khalid — Name Meaning in Islam

Root: خ-ل-د (kh-l-d), "to remain, to last, to abide without ending". Khālid is the active participle: one who abides, who endures. Classical Arabic also uses the verb for something that simply lasts a very long time, so the name promises length of life before it promises eternity.

From the same root: khuld (perpetuity — Jannat al-Khuld, the Garden of Abiding), khālidīn (those abiding, the plural that closes so many Qur'anic verses about the next life), takhlīd (to make something last, hence to immortalise a memory), Khulūd.

Who carried it: Khalid ibn al-Walid, the Companion and commander. He fought against the Muslims at Uhud before he accepted Islam, and afterwards led armies in Iraq and Syria; the Prophet ﷺ called him Sayf Allāh, a sword of Allah, and the title stayed with him. He was removed from command by Umar without protest and continued to serve under the man appointed over him — a detail the sources record as deliberately as they record the battles.

Spellings: Khalid, Khaled, Halit / Halid (Turkish), Kholid or Khalid (Indonesian), Khalid (Urdu), Khaled (Maghrebi), خالد.

Pronunciation: KHAA-lid — the opening kh is made at the back of the throat, as in Scottish "loch" or German "Bach", and is not an English k.

Feminine counterpart: Khalida (خالدة), Khulud.