What are the sunnahs when a baby is born?

The adhan in the ear

The strongest of the birth sunnahs is to call the adhan in the newborn's right ear. The Hanbali manual Kashshaf al-Qina' states it plainly: it is sunnah to call the adhan in the right ear of the newborn, male or female, at the moment of birth, and to call the iqamah in the left. Ibn Qudamah reports the same recommendation in al-Mughni, citing the narration of Abu Rafi' رضي الله عنه that the Prophet ﷺ called the adhan in al-Hasan's ear when Fatimah gave birth to him.

The narration that adds the iqamah in the left ear — "Umm al-Sibyan will not harm him" — is reported by Ibn al-Sunni, and al-Albani graded it fabricated.

Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen explains the wisdom: the adhan is placed there so that the first thing the child hears is the call to prayer — the call to worship, to success, and the declaration of Allah's greatness and oneness.

The iqamah in the left ear

Here the scholars differ, and the difference is worth knowing.

Ibn Uthaymeen's reasoning is that the hadith for the iqamah is da'if (weak), so it does not carry the weight of a sunnah, while the adhan itself is established. IslamWeb notes that Malik's disapproval is recorded in al-Hattab's Mawahib al-Jalil and elsewhere, and that the practice of adhan in the ear is nonetheless followed by Muslims in many lands.

If the moment passes

The adhan is tied to the time of birth. Ibn Uthaymeen states that if the time of birth passes, it is a sunnah whose place has passed and it is not made up — you do not call the adhan in the ear of an older child to compensate.

Tahnik: the date on the palate

Tahnik is the practice of chewing a date until it softens, then placing it in the newborn's mouth and rubbing it against the upper palate so that some of it reaches the stomach. Ibn Baz describes it as mustahabb (recommended), done on the day of birth by the mother or father. The Hanbali text describes the method: the date is chewed, the inside of the mouth is rubbed with it, and the mouth is opened so that some of it descends.

The evidence is the hadith of Anas رضي الله عنه, who brought Abdullah ibn Abi Talhah to the Prophet ﷺ when he was born:

"Do you have any dates with you?" I handed him some dates. He chewed them, then opened the baby's mouth and put it in, and the baby began to move his tongue over it. The Prophet ﷺ said: "See how the Ansar love dates."— Sahih Muslim 2144, from Anas ibn Malik

Al-Nawawi said the scholars agree on the recommendation of tahnik at birth. Ibn Baz adds that if dates are not available, something sweet such as honey may be used — the sunnah is the date, but there is no harm in a substitute when it is not to hand.

Naming the child

The name may be given on the day of birth or on the seventh day. Ibn Uthaymeen explains the reasoning from two hadiths: the Prophet ﷺ named his son Ibrahim on the night he was born, saying

"A son was born to me tonight and I have named him Ibrahim" (Sahih Muslim 2315)

and he instructed that on the seventh day the child is named along with the aqiqah. The reconciliation is that if a name has been chosen beforehand, it is given at birth; if not, it waits until the seventh day.

Ibn Uthaymeen also advises choosing a good name. The most beloved names to Allah are those of servitude — Abdullah, Abd al-Rahman, and the like — then the names of the prophets, then whatever names people customarily use, provided they carry no wrongdoing, no name of an idol, and no name that implies self-praise.

The seventh day: shaving and aqiqah

On the seventh day, several things come together.

• Shaving the head of a boy, not a girl: the Hanbali text specifies the male child, and the hair is weighed and its weight given in silver as charity. Ibn Baz says this is the better practice, and that it should not be delayed until after the sacrifice — the head is shaved on the seventh day whether or not the aqiqah is offered.
• The aqiqah: Ibn Baz reports that the majority of scholars hold it to be a confirmed sunnah, based on the Prophet's ﷺ words "Whoever wishes to offer a sacrifice for his child, let him do so." Ibn Uthaymeen gives the details: two sheep for a boy, one for a girl, slaughtered on the seventh day, with the meat eaten, given as gifts, and given in charity.
• If the seventh day is missed: IslamWeb states that the aqiqah may be done on the fourteenth, then the twenty-first, and if that is not possible, at any time it becomes feasible. There is no harm in delaying it for one who cannot afford it until he can.

What is not from the sunnah

Ibn Baz was asked about taking the newborn to shaykhs for the naming or the tahnik. He replied that he knows no basis for this — it was something specific to the Prophet ﷺ. He notes that if a family wishes to honour an elder by having him perform the naming, there is no objection to that as a matter of courtesy, but it is not a religious requirement.

Key takeaways

• Call the adhan in the newborn's right ear — this is the established sunnah, and the child should hear it as the first sound of his life.
• The iqamah in the left ear is disputed: the Shafi'is and Hanbalis recommend it, while Ibn Uthaymeen holds the narration too weak to establish it as sunnah.
• Tahnik with a softened date is recommended and agreed upon; honey or something sweet may substitute if dates are unavailable.
• Name the child at birth if the name is ready, otherwise on the seventh day when the aqiqah is offered.
• On the seventh day: shave the boy's head and give its weight in silver, and offer the aqiqah — two sheep for a boy, one for a girl — with the option of the fourteenth or twenty-first if the seventh is missed.

Further reading

• Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, Tuhfat al-Mawdud bi Ahkam al-Mawlud
• Ibn Qudamah, al-Mughni

And Allah knows best.