What Are Prophet Yunus’s Different Names in the Quran?
ما أسماء يونس عليه السلام في القرآن الكريم؟
1. Yunus (Jonah), as in the previously cited verses and in the surah named after him:
(And Jonah was indeed one of the messengers.) As-Saffat 37:139
2. (Tha Al-noon) and noon in Arabic is the name of the whale. So he is the Man of the whale. (And ˹remember˺ when the Man of the Whale stormed off ˹from his city˺ in a rage) Al-Anbiya 21:87
3. The man of the whale.
(So be patient with your Lord’s decree, and do not be like ˹Jonah,˺ the Man of the Whale,) Al-Qalam 68:48
سُمّي يونس، كما في الآيات السابقة وفي السورة التي سميت باسمه.
قال الله تعالى: “وَإِنَّ يُونُسَ لَمِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ” (الصافات 37: 139)
(ذا النون): والنون هو الحوت، ومعنى (ذا) أي صاحب، فهو إذن صاحب الحوت.
وقال تعالى: “وَذَا النُّونِ إِذْ ذَهَبَ مُغَاضِبًا فَظَنَّ أَنْ لَنْ نَقْدِرَ عَلَيْهِ” (الأنبياء 21: 87)
وجاء التصريح بذكر أنه صاحب الحوت:
وقال تعالى: “فَاصْبِرْ لِحُكْمِ رَبِّكَ وَلَا تَكُنْ كَصَاحِبِ الْحُوتِ إِذْ نَادَى وَهُوَ مَكْظُومٌ” (القلم 68: 48)
1. Yunus, His Given Name and a Surah’s Namesake | يونس: اسمه، واسم سورة كاملة
Yunus is his personal name, and an entire surah of the Quran, Surah Yunus, is named after him. Notably, that surah mentions him only once in closing, regarding his people’s belief, and does not itself contain the whale episode at all; that story is told in Surah As-Saffat, Al-Anbiya, and Al-Qalam instead.
يونس اسمه العلم، وقد سُمّيت باسمه سورة كاملة من القرآن الكريم هي سورة يونس. واللافت أن السورة لا تذكره إلا مرة واحدة في أواخرها، في شأن إيمان قومه، ولا تذكر قصة الحوت أصلًا، وإنما جاءت القصة في سور الصافات والأنبياء والقلم.
2. Dhun-Nun, Named at the Moment He Left in Anger | ذو النون، ذُكر به حين ذهب مغاضبًا
“Dhun-Nun” literally means “companion of the whale,” and the Quran uses it specifically at the point in the story when he stormed off from his city in anger, before the whale episode had even occurred. Scholars note this as the Quran naming him by an event that had not yet happened at that point in the narrative, a detail that only makes full sense once the rest of the story unfolds (see how Allah delivered Yunus from the whale’s belly).
معنى «ذو النون» صاحب الحوت، وقد سمّاه الله تعالى به في الموضع الذي ذكر فيه خروجه من بلده مغاضبًا، قبل أن تقع حادثة الحوت: (وَذَا النُّونِ إِذ ذَّهَبَ مُغَاضِبًا) (الأنبياء 21: 87). ويلاحظ العلماء أن الله لقّبه هنا بلقب يتصل بحادثة لم تكن وقعت بعدُ في ذلك الموضع من الخبر، وهو أمر لا يتضح معناه إلا بعد معرفة بقية القصة، كما بيّنا في جواب: كيف نجّى الله يونس عليه السلام من بطن الحوت؟
3. Sahib Al-Hut, Used as a Warning to Prophet Muhammad | صاحب الحوت: تحذيرٌ للنبي صلى الله عليه وسلم
The same title appears again in Surah Al-Qalam, but here Allah addresses Prophet Muhammad ﷺ directly, instructing him to be patient with his Lord’s decree and not to be like “the companion of the whale.” Scholars read this as Yunus’s episode being cited as a cautionary example for another prophet centuries later, not simply as background information about who he was.
ويأتي الوصف نفسه في سورة القلم، والخطاب فيها للنبي صلى الله عليه وسلم، يأمره الله تعالى بالصبر لحكم ربه، وينهاه أن يكون كصاحب الحوت: (فَاصْبِرْ لِحُكْمِ رَبِّكَ وَلَا تَكُن كَصَاحِبِ الْحُوتِ) (القلم 68: 48). ويرى العلماء في ذلك أن قصة يونس ذُكرت عظةً لنبي آخر بعد قرون، لا خبرًا عن شخصه فحسب.
4. Two Moods Captured in Two Verses | حالان في آيتين
The Al-Anbiya verse describes him leaving “in a rage,” while the Al-Qalam verse describes him calling out “overwhelmed.” Naming him by the same title in both places while describing two very different emotional states, anger before the trial and anguish during it, traces the arc of his story through his own state of mind rather than only through outward events.
وصفه الله تعالى في سورة الأنبياء بأنه ذهب (مُغَاضِبًا) (الأنبياء 21: 87)، ووصفه في سورة القلم بأنه نادى (وَهُوَ مَكْظُومٌ) (القلم 68: 48). وتسميته بالوصف نفسه في الموضعين، مع ذكر حالين مختلفين، الغضب قبل الابتلاء والكرب في أثنائه، ترسم مسار قصته بتقلّب حاله في نفسه، لا بالأحداث الظاهرة وحدها.
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
What does “Dhun-Nun” mean?
“Companion of the whale,” from the Arabic word “nun,” meaning whale.
Does Surah Yunus contain the whale story?
No, Surah Yunus mentions him only once, regarding his people’s belief; the whale episode is told in other surahs.
Who is addressed in the verse that calls him “Sahib Al-Hut”?
Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, who is told to be patient and not act like the companion of the whale.
What emotional states are described alongside these names?
Anger when he left his city, and anguish when he called out from inside the whale.
Which verses use these names?
Al-Anbiya 21:87 and Al-Qalam 68:48.