Hadiya

Hadiya can represent two Arabic names whose differences become less visible in English spelling. Hādiya is the feminine counterpart of Hadi and means a guide or one who leads. Hadiyya, with a different vowel pattern and doubled consonant in careful transliteration, means a gift. Both can appear as Hadiya on an English-language birth certificate.

These are two established interpretations, so a family's intended Arabic spelling is the best guide to the meaning. The guide form has an association with direction and guidance, while the gift form expresses the idea of something given. Hadia and Hadya are related Latin-letter spellings. Keeping the original script alongside the English name can preserve this distinction for a child growing up between languages, without requiring the everyday spelling to carry every sound difference.