Do the Arabic names of the prophets have any meaning?

Question

In the bible, many (most?) of the major characters are given meaningful names. For example, the name of the prophet Ishmael literally means "God has heard" in Hebrew, and is derived from the following Biblical revelation (from [Genesis 16](http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2016;&version=KJV;)):> ¹¹ And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Behold, thou art with child and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name **Ishmael**; *because the LORD hath heard thy affliction*.Similarly, in Islam, the name of the prophet Muhammad also has the clear meaning of "Praised one" in Arabic.Given that the languages of Arabic and Hebrew are so closely related, do the Arabic names of the Biblical prophets in the Qur'an (or any of the major Biblical persons) maintain such meaning to their names, or were these simply transliterations?

Answer 1

The name Mohammed never existed before the prophet. God chose this name for him. In Torah his name was Farklits , in Christianity it was Ahmed. The name Mohammed dirigés from HAMD, AL-MAHMOUD which means the praises, the commendable . But in Islam it is not the best name for kids. The best names are Abdulllah and Abdurahmane