<p>Muhammad is not an infamous name in america many people have that name here</p>
<p>Infamous doesn’t mean that many people have the name. Look it up.</p>
<p>don’t have the name*</p>
<p>Infamous was used correctly if I am understanding the post. I read barrk123’s post to mean that there are so many Muhammads in this country that it does not have a negative meaning. Arguably, our most famous Muhammad, is Muhammad Ali, and he changed his name to that from Cassious Clay. Go figure.</p>
<p>That was before 9/11 haha. And if that was what barrk123 meant then I’m sorry bout’ that I guess. But just because a name is spread doesn’t mean it’s still not ‘negative’.</p>
<p>If you really want to change it go ahead, but I wouldn’t say that “Muhammad” is infamous here at all. I’d see your point if it was Osama or Saddam or something but at least in my experience Muhammad is too common a name to carry any negative connotations. I don’t think you’d get any negative reactions to it so if you like your name why bother changing it?</p>
<p>It isn’t a negative name many people here have it and are not harassed about it.</p>
<p>Well that’s good to hear. At the same time shocking a bit… I thought my whole religion didn’t have a very positive reputation in America. Of course that’s because of how the media portrays it…</p>
<p>If you want to get a really funny look, introduce yourself as Muhammad, but say that you are considering changing it to Cassius Clay. It has to be someone middle-aged to get the biggest impact. </p>
<p>Most Americans are open minded and really don’t think too much about religion, even their own. It’s the radical Americans on the fringes that make the rest of us look bad.</p>
<p>I’m super conservative Christian from the deep south and I know Muslims and have some as friends and had classes with some.</p>
<p>It isn’t a big deal. You can have a nickname if you want, but no one’s going to give you any grief for it (for the most part anyways). There are always exceptions, but most people won’t.</p>
<p>It’s totally up to you! There’s this one guy I know whose name is Jesus, but he isn’t a Christian and he gets spiritual jokes at his expense. BUT, he isn’t ashamed. He doesn’t care! It’s his name and people, most of the time, don’t even think twice about it. It’s just a name and people accept that. Soooo… again, it’s your decision. But honestly, in my experience anyways, when i meet people with “out there” names, I really don’t care. It’s their name. It doesn’t define who they are! Definitely, though, if you’re uncomfortable with it change it! But like MD Mom said, change it everywhere!</p>
<p>You don’t really need to change it legally. Officially, on class rosters and transcripts, cell phone account, whatever- and Facebook- you could be Muhammad . But, you could have people call you, eg, “Max” or your choice. Even in class. This happens all the time with Asian names, as noted. </p>
<p>On the Common App, they ask for official name, then have a space for what you prefer to be called. There’s no confusion when, eg, the transcript is the legal name and LoRs use the everyday preference. As long as you made that distinction, so people know. Even Prince Harry, in England, is really Henry.</p>
<p>It’s only complicated when you wish to permanently change your official name.</p>
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<p>Well, there are some loudmouth bigots (stirring up political controversies about building mosques and the like), no doubt about that. But there are also plenty of friendly people. There are also [restaurants</a> with nice pictures on the wall](<a href=“Photos for Darda Seafood Restaurant - Yelp”>Photos for Darda Seafood Restaurant - Yelp).</p>
<p>Muhammed is not a particularly “infamous” name in the US, unlike Osama, Bin Laden, or Saddam. As noted above, the name might be most commonly associated with the champion boxer.</p>
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<p>I think that’s my best bet. That’s what I was going for initially actually. Maybe though I’ll just go by my last name since it doesn’t stir religion with my name, and is actually related to me. I hate people who judge based on religion, but from the sounds of it, it’s not as bad as I thought it was over there.</p>
<p>Bound4aCollege lol. I had a Muslim friend named ‘Issa’ and we all called him JESUS in Saudi. We were in an international school though so go figure. I’m actually originally from Jordan so culturally I don’t really have many issues, it’s just the name that had me worried just a bit, but not much anymore! </p>
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<p>Well that’s nice! And the loudmouth bigots can go to hell! But really I wouldn’t blame some people that judge Islam wrongfully, I mean when you see the crap you do on CNN these days you’d have to be at least skeptical… but at the same time you should dig in a bit more before you make a judgment! Anyway.</p>
<p>My piece of advice is don’t come here with preconceived notions about how people are going to react to you. Have an open mind and don’t be judgmental yourself.</p>
<p>You’ve already said that you expected people to basically hate you for your name alone. While some may, most won’t. Just come here. Be open minded. Be friendly and courteous and most people will respect you.</p>
<p>If you go in with the mindset that “People aren’t going to like me because I’m Muslim”, then it will come off that way and that’ll probably happen. If you don’t make it an issue and are just nice to everyone, then you’ll probably have a much more positive experience.</p>
<p>And I loved Jordan when I visited there as a little girl. Such a friendly country and culture.</p>
<p>It’s easier for friends here to call someone by his last name, than the next level distant. Ie, profs, administrators and ordinary folks you interact with, if they are referring to others as Mike, Rashid and Pedro, may not feel as comfortable calling out your last name.</p>
<p>Don’t forget, most of us know Muhammad is a significant name to Muslims. In general, it sounds like you’ll come with some name ideas. Hope it’s a great experience for you. Do you want to mention the area you’ll be in?</p>
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<p>Isn’t it common for Muslims to name their children after [url=<a href=“Prophets and messengers in Islam - Wikipedia”>Prophets and messengers in Islam - Wikipedia]prophets[/url</a>] (Issa / Jesus being one)?</p>
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<p>The loudmouth bigots (domestically and internationally) do tend to get the most sensational news coverage when they stir something up.</p>
<p>change your name to Usama</p>
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<p>Or “Mo” / “Moe” for “Mohammed” / “Muhammed”, as it is a relatively natural shortening of a name to one syllable that is a common thing to do in the US (e.g. “Abe” for “Abraham”, “Joe” for “Joseph”).</p>
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<p>Yup thanks for the advice, and I sure wasn’t planning on not being nice. I am pretty open minded and I definitely tolerate jokes, I mean how dull would life be without some poking fun? I’m not judgemental and I know that most Americans will not judge me on my religion, and that wasn’t really my question. I wanted to change my name just to avoid complications as I said, or to just fit in more than I would with a ‘foreigner’ name. </p>
<p>And I’m sure Jordan was lucky to have you over! I miss it already haha. </p>
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<p>Thanks. I’m going to be attending TTU 
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<p>Yes it is. That was his name and his father was Muslim. I referred to “international school” because instead of calling him Issa we called him (the English word) Jesus. </p>
<p>And as for your nickname advice; for some reason I’m not too fond of “Moe”. It just doesn’t sound like me haha, I don’t know.</p>