A family of Syrian refugees have named their newborn daughter after a volunteer who gave up her time to teach them English.

Omar Al-Hamdan and Manar Al-Kaadee arrived in Aberdeen on March 2 last year, after fleeing Daraa in 2012.

As part of the resettlement project, a volunteer scheme has been launched by Abereen City Council to encourage English speakers to work with Syrian families to help them learn the language.

Volunteer Maria Fowler, 25, left such an impression the couple named their second child Marya when she was born on March 24.

Speaking with the help of an interpreter, Omar said: “We thought Maria’s name was good. One of the Arabic versions of it, Marya, means fair, bright and beautiful.

Source: dailyrecord.co.uk