Naaz is a Persian and Arabic name meaning grace, pride, charm, or delicate coquetry.
Naaz (also spelled Naz or Naaz) is a Persian and Urdu word-name of singular elegance, carrying a cluster of meanings that resist easy translation: "coquetry," "gracefulness," "pride in being beloved," "the playful self-assurance of someone who knows they are cherished." In Persian poetic tradition, nāz (ناز) describes the lover's teasing, the deliberate withdrawal of attention that sharpens desire — a concept so culturally central that entire ghazals are constructed around the tension between nāz (the beloved's coy pride) and niyāz (the lover's longing and supplication). To name a child Naaz is to bless her with the quality of being cherished enough to be playful.
The name is woven deeply into classical Persian literature. Rumi, Hafez, and Saadi all deploy nāz as a term of beauty and spiritual longing in their poetry. In the Bollywood tradition, Naaz became the screen name of several actresses in mid-twentieth century Indian cinema, giving the name cinematic glamour.
The singer and actress Naaz (born Nazneen Hussain) was a notable figure in 1950s Hindi film. In Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, and among diaspora communities across Europe and North America, Naaz remains a name that feels both classical and sharply contemporary. Its brevity — one syllable in most pronunciations (nahz) — gives it a clean modern profile that works well across languages, while its meaning anchors it in one of the world's richest poetic traditions. For parents seeking a short name with extraordinary depth, Naaz offers a word that entire civilizations have spent centuries writing love poems about.