# What does Lupe Fiasco's name Wasalu mean, and how was he raised?

*What does 'Wasalu' mean? A name and being born Muslim*

- URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/oyiipehuiha/s/2/
- Date: 2021-04-26 · Kind: discussion · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: Lupe Fiasco | Stardom, Semiotics & Soul-searching | MindTrap#56 | Mufti Abu Layth al-Maliki MALM (3:14–6:52)
- Status: a view quoted in order to be discussed, not a position held
- Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYiiPEhuiHA&t=194s
- Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/oyiipehuiha/

**Topics:** Guest conversations; Converts and newcomers

**Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** The guest says he has never confirmed what his name Wasalu means; Mufti Abu Layth suggests the Arabic 'to connect'. Born to convert parents, he says he was born Muslim.

## Longer summary

Mufti Abu Layth asks whether the guest's first name, Wasalu, comes from the Arabic root wasala, to connect. The guest says his father named him after an army friend, that he was told it means warrior but has never confirmed that in any language, and that he has also heard it is a place in Africa and heard it in a song in a restaurant. Mufti suggests it means to connect, and the guest agrees he is often the middle man. He says his family are American descendants of enslaved people, not African immigrants; his parents converted to Islam and met at the mosque, so he was born Muslim, saying that this life chose him.

## Sources and names cited

- Lupe Fiasco (guest)

## Transcript (machine tier, 3:14–6:52)

[2:37] i religiously watch uh the the shorts and from the uh the broadcast where you're sitting at the in the library yeah you know for my for my daily dose of fear i'm honored honestly i'm deeply honored by that man that's uh it really means a lot wow ah lupe what for for many of you that of all of you know come on i don't need to go into some all of you know the the the incredible journey

[3:14] that lupe has been through is that from the i take it from the arabic root to connect wassal to kind of is that what it means so sort of you know let my father tell it uh my dad named me after uh one of his army buddies so the only other wasalu that i know or know of um was you know my father's army buddy

[3:52] and he named me kind of after well he named me after him um now what i was told is that wasalu means warrior right but i have yet to substantiate that in any language anywhere in the world so i've been told that it's it uh i've been told that it's a city somewhere in africa called wasalu i've also been in a restaurant actually what kind of restaurant was it it was like a i don't think it was turkish they don't do belly dancing in turkish

[4:31] there was a guy there uh who was like entertaining and kind of like a dj and he played this song that had wasalu in it and i remember trying to do my best to like figure out like yo where'd that song come from what's that mean so through my life i have yet to have find a a truly substantiated meaning of what my name means so i'll take whatever you got because i mean wassala generally means to connect in arabic and i i'm assuming if it's of some urban arabic origin it's connected and that's what that's what you do you connect to

[5:10] millions how do you how do you spell it how do you spell it in how to and so it'd be like wow that would be the root wasala in english if you had to like translate that into english what the what with the letters so it'd be like uh so as in transliterate so it'd be w w a

[5:45] that's what i do i do connect a lot of i'm definitely the middle man in in more than a few situations for sure that's definitely part of my my peace but uh the muhammad of course comes from prophet muhammad saw yeah um but my my dad we're not african you know we're not like immigrant we're not like migrated from africa we're like the descendants of like slaves like my mom um was from mississippi uh and my dad was born in chicago um but there was no like we're from senegal we're from this place or for that place it's like proper american uh kind of piece and my

[6:24] dad actually converted uh to islam uh i can't remember when mom he he converted and my mom converted then they met at the mosque and got married like two weeks later or something like that that's and then every all the kids in that in that situation that were born were born muslim so i was born muslim this life chose me i didn't choose it look at that that's a wrap right there people

## Cite

Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment oYiiPEhuiHA/s/2. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/oyiipehuiha/s/2/

Not a fatwa: these answers were given to specific people at specific times. Ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.