Chinese officials have banned dozens of baby names with a religious meaning in an ongoing crackdown that could lead to families being denied education and healthcare.
The ruling applies across the northwestern region of Xinjiang and targets Muslims with the list of forbidden names including Islam, Quran, Mecca, Jihad, Imam, Saddam, Hajj, and Medina, according to Radio Free Asia.
Any reference to the Islamic star and crescent moon symbol are also banned and families who contravene these rules will be denied household registration – a key document that allows access to social services, healthcare and education.
Under the Chinese Communist Party's 'Naming Rules for Ethnic Minorities', so-called 'abnormal beards' and 'naming of children to exaggerate religious fervour' are also prohibited.
Although a full list of banned names has not yet released, an official at the regional capital's police station confirmed: 'You're not allowed to give names with a strong religious flavor, such as Jihad or names like that.'
He told Radio Free Asia: 'The most important thing here is the connotations of the name ... [it mustn't have] connotations of holy war or of splittism [Xinjiang independence].'
Asked if names of Islamic scholars were acceptable, the employee replied: 'Get him to change it; it's the sort of thing that [could be regarded as] promoting terror and evil cults.'
It is part of a wider crackdown targeting Christians and Muslims across the region with authorities blaming the Muslim Uighur minority for a host of violent incidents in recent years.
But Uighur campaign groups say they attacks are isolated local incidents and not part of a wider terror campaign.
China director at Human Rights Watch, Sophie Richardson, said: 'This is just the latest in a slew of new regulations restricting religious freedom in the name of countering 'religious extremism.'
'These policies are blatant violations of domestic and international protections on the rights to freedom of belief and expression.
'If the government is serious about bringing stability and harmony to the region as it claims, it should roll back – not double down on – repressive policies.'
