Queen Latifah's stage name has a meaningful origin tied to her family and personal identity. Her birth name is Dana Elaine Owens. She chose the name "Latifah," which means "delicate," "sensitive," "kind," and "nice" in Arabic, after finding it in a book of Arabic names when she was eight years old. The "Queen" part of her name was inspired by her mother's philosophy that all women are queens and should be treated as such. Queen Latifah has said that the name reflects both the strength and gentleness in her personality. Her family initially had mixed feelings about the name; her mother laughed and said, "Queen? I ain't calling you Queen," but the name stuck and became her iconic stage name