Manar — Name Meaning in Islam

Root: ن-و-ر (n-w-r), light. Manār is the noun of place (mafʿal): the place where a light is set — a lighthouse, a raised fire, a beacon put up so that travellers can find their way. The word implies both the light and its purpose, which is to be seen from far off by someone who needs it.

From the same root: nūr (light — the twenty-fourth chapter of the Qur'an, and one of the names of Allah), munīr (giving light; the Qur'an calls the moon qamaran munīran, al-Furqan 25:61), manāra (a lighthouse, and the minaret of a mosque, which was originally a tower with a fire on it), anwār, tanwīr, and the names Nur, Nura, Anwar, Munir.

In usage: classical writing speaks of manār al-Islām — the standing signs of Islam, the things by which it is recognised from a distance. The name carries that sense: not a light kept for itself, but one raised where others can steer by it.

Spellings: Manar, Manaar, Menar (Turkish transcription), Manar (Indonesian), Manar (Urdu), Manar (Maghrebi), منار.

Pronunciation: ma-NĀR, stress on the long second syllable.

Masculine counterpart: Munir (منير), Anwar (أنور).

Note: Manāra (منارة), with the feminine ending, is the lighthouse or minaret itself and is also given as a name.