baby naming tradition 2025-09-18T11:55:42Z
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The scent of cardamom coffee still hung heavy when Aunt Fatima's question sliced through our iftar gathering: "Have you chosen?" Her eyes darted to my rounded belly. Seven relatives leaned forward, unleashing a torrent of suggestions - Omar! Aisha! Yusuf! - each name a dagger of expectation. My knuckles whitened around my phone. This wasn't joyful anticipation; it was cultural arbitration without a rulebook.