Sawda, which is a two syllable word (saw-da) with the stress on saw, is an indirect Quranic name for girls that means “land that has many palm trees”. It is a popular name among Muslims due to the fact that it was the name of one of the Mothers of the Believers (wives of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah upon him and his family and companions), whose full name was Sawda bint Zamaa. It is derived from the S-W-D (blackness, large number of palm trees) root which is used in a number of places in the Quran.