the origin of ALLAH's name

[habibii zahra]

Allah (/ˈælə, ˈɑːlə, əlˈlɑː/;[1][2] Arabic: الله‎, translit. Allāh‎, pronounced [ɑɫ'ɫɑh] ( listen)) is the Arabic word for God in Abrahamic religions. In the English language, the word traditionally refers to God in Islam.[3][4][5] The word is thought to be derived by contraction from al-ilāh, which means "the god", and is related to El and Elohim, the Hebrew words for God.[6][7]

The word Allah has been used by Arabic people of different religions since pre-Islamic times.[8] More specifically, it has been used as a term for God by Muslims (both Arab and non-Arab) and Arab Christians. It is now mainly used by Muslims and Arab Christians to refer to God.[9] It is also often, albeit not exclusively, used in this way by Bábists, Bahá'ís, Indonesian and Maltese Christians, and Mizrahi Jews.[10][11][12] Similar usage by Christians and Sikhs in West Malaysia has recently led to political and legal controversies.

The etymology of the word Allāh has been discussed extensively by classical Arab philologists.[17] Grammarians of the Basra school regarded it as either formed "spontaneously" (murtajal) or as the definite form of lāh (from the verbal root lyh with the meaning of "lofty" or "hidden").[17] Others held that it was borrowed from Syriac or Hebrew, but most considered it to be derived from a contraction of the Arabic definite article al- "the" and ilāh "deity, god" to al-lāh meaning "the deity", or "the God".[17] The majority of modern scholars subscribe to the latter theory, and view the loanword hypothesis with skepticism.[18]

Cognates of the name "Allāh" exist in other Semitic languages, including Hebrew and Aramaic.[19] The corresponding Aramaic form is Elah (אלה), but its emphatic state is Elaha (אלהא). It is written as ܐܠܗܐ (ʼĔlāhā) in Biblical Aramaic and ܐܲܠܵܗܵܐ (ʼAlâhâ) in Syriac as used by the Assyrian Church, both meaning simply "God".[20] Biblical Hebrew mostly uses the plural (but functional singular) form Elohim (אלהים), but more rarely it also uses the singular form Eloah (אלוהּ).

Allah - Wikipedia

 

[habibii zahra]

The Aramaic word for "God" in the language of Assyrian Christians is ʼĔlāhā, or Alaha. Arabic-speakers of all Abrahamic faiths, including Christians and Jews, use the word "Allah" to mean "God".[10] The Christian Arabs of today have no other word for "God" than "Allah".[29] (Even the Arabic-descended Maltese language of Malta, whose population is almost entirely Roman Catholic, uses Alla for "God".) Arab Christians, for example, use the terms Allāh al-ab (الله الأب) for God the Father, Allāh al-ibn (الله الابن) for God the Son, and Allāh al-rūḥ al-quds (الله الروح القدس) for God the Holy Spirit. (See God in Christianity for the Christian concept of God.)

Arab Christians have used two forms of invocations that were affixed to the beginning of their written works. They adopted the Muslim bismillāh, and also created their own Trinitized bismillāh as early as the 8th century.[30] The Muslim bismillāh reads: "In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful." The Trinitized bismillāh reads: "In the name of Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, One God." The Syriac, Latin and Greek invocations do not have the words "One God" at the end. This addition was made to emphasize the monotheistic aspect of Trinitarian belief and also to make it more palatable to Muslims.[30]

According to Marshall Hodgson, it seems that in the pre-Islamic times, some Arab Christians made pilgrimage to the Kaaba, a pagan temple at that time, honoring Allah there as God the Creator.[31]

Some archaeological excavation quests have led to the discovery of ancient pre-Islamic inscriptions and tombs made by Arab Christians in the ruins of a church at Umm el-Jimal in Northern Jordan, which contained references to Allah as the proper name of God, and some of the graves contained names such as "Abd Allah" which means "the servant/slave of Allah".[32][33][34]

The name Allah can be found countless times in the reports and the lists of names of Christian martyrs in South Arabia, as reported by antique Syriac documents of the names of those martyrs from the era of the Himyarite and Aksumite kingdoms.[35][36]

A Christian leader named Abd Allah ibn Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad was martyred in Najran in 523, as he had worn a ring that said "Allah is my lord".[35][37]

In an inscription of Christian martyrion dated back to 512, references to Allah can be found in both Arabic and Aramaic, which called him "Allah" and "Alaha", and the inscription starts with the statement "By the Help of Allah".[35][38][39]

In pre-Islamic Gospels, the name used for God was "Allah", as evidenced by some discovered Arabic versions of the New Testament written by Arab Christians during the pre-Islamic era in Northern and Southern Arabia.[40][41][42]

Pre-Islamic Arab Christians have been reported to have raised the battle cry "Ya La Ibad Allah" (O slaves of Allah) to invoke each other into battle.[43]

"Allah" was also mentioned in pre-Islamic Christian poems by some Ghassanid and Tanukhid poets in Syria and Northern Arabia.[

 

[Dave-W]

That all may be true, but the God of Islam and the God of Christianity are NOT the same entity.

 

[Kerensa]

Thank you, Habibii Zahra. I must admit I get tired of hearing fellow Christians (and others) claim that Muslims worship "a god called Allah". No. Muslims worship God. That's what (and who) the word Allah means, as your posts explain in detail. We people of the Abrahamic faiths may have many differences between us, but we do all agree there is only one God of the whole universe and that He alone is to be worshipped. Praise Him — and as-salaamu alaikum, sister.

 

[mark kennedy]

I wanted to read the Koran so I tracked down an online English translation. In the introduction there was some background information, including something about Allah and Elohim. Apparently this Professor, who specialized in Semitic languages, was convinced the at one time Allay and Elohim were the same word and probably pronounced more like Allay then Elohim. Thought nothing of it at the time but later got into a word search for Elohim and really means God Almighty. The single plural form is in original creation which some Trinitarians think implies a plurality of persons but it's actually the plurality of Magesty , or power. Just from the way it's used and how Muslims emphasis the Allah is almighty, the word is obviously intended to convey the same idea.

 

[JackRT]

That all may be true, but the God of Islam and the God of Christianity are NOT the same entity.

You are suggesting two Gods? There is only one God but that God is understood differently in different religions and even in different Christian denominations.

 

[Dave-W]

You are suggesting two Gods? There is only one God but that God is understood differently in different religions and even in different Christian denominations.

No I am not saying there are 2 Gods. There is only One God.

What I am saying is that Islam got ahold of a different being that they call "god." In actuality it is the demon spirit of antichrist.

 

[JackRT]

No I am not saying there are 2 Gods. There is only One God.

Agreed.

What I am saying is that Islam got ahold of a different being that they call "god." In actuality it is the demon spirit of antichrist.

Speculation.

 

[Dave-W]

Speculation.

1 John 2:22b This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son.

One of the major tenets of Islam (and it is emblazoned on the door of the Shrine of the Rock on the Temple mount) is "God has no son."

Denying the Son puts it clearly into antichrist.

 

[He is Risen 72]

1 John 2:22b This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son.

One of the major tenets of Islam (and it is emblazoned on the door of the Shrine of the Rock on the Temple mount) is "God has no son."

Denying the Son puts it clearly into antichrist.

I agree 100%. Denying the Son in any shape or form is most certainly anti-Christian and a sign of those that are of the Antichrist.

Allah is an Arabian moon god.

 

[JackRT]

as

fully understanding the 'im' at the end of Eloh'im' was as you say, plurality for Majesty.

Actually Elohim being plural does not refer to majesty. Judaism emerged out of the polytheism of the ancient mid-east. They originally believed in this entire pantheon of Gods but were only allowed to worship their own exclusive tribal deity, El. This is known as henotheism. Over the centuries El became not just their exclusive tribal god but the only God. There is an evolution here in religious thinking from polytheism to henotheism to monotheism. Elohim referred to the pantheon. It is a good question as to what extent first century Jews or Christians understood this.

 

[cloudyday2]

Could you please show us where Abraham pbuh or Moses pbuh ever taught Elohim has a literal begotten 'Son'?

It's interesting that "moses" in Egypt meant "son of". There is some evidence that Moses was originally imagined as the son of the god whose name was never to be spoken (YHWH). Maybe rather than "son of YHWH" it was simply "son of" - i.e. "Moses". ... So you ask when Moses taught that God had a divine Son? The answer is that Moses probably was the divine Son of God (before the monotheistic redactors cut him down to mortal dimensions). The book "From Gods to God" covers some of this, but it is likely that I have oversimplified and misunderstood many of their ideas. Anybody interested should read the book for yourself ( From Gods to God )

 

[Quid est Veritas?]

It's interesting that "moses" in Egypt meant "son of". There is some evidence that Moses was originally imagined as the son of the god whose name was never to be spoken (YHWH). Maybe rather than "son of YHWH" it was simply "son of" - i.e. "Moses". ... So you ask when Moses taught that God had a divine Son? The answer is that Moses probably was the divine Son of God (before the monotheistic redactors cut him down to mortal dimensions). The book "From Gods to God" covers some of this, but it is likely that I have oversimplified and misunderstood many of their ideas. Anybody interested should read the book for yourself ( From Gods to God )

Moses as 'son' is a possible etymology from Egyptian ms, but it is far from definite. There is also an argument it may mean Child of Water or of the Nile, fitting the biblical story - this is based on a Tanakh spelling mw-se.

Regardless, theophoric names with someone being termed the 'child of a god' are very common in the near east. This does not mean they were necessarily the actual divine son of said god. This is quite a leap of logic to make.

 

[Dave-W]

Could you please show us where Abraham pbuh or Moses pbuh ever taught Elohim has a literal begotten 'Son'?

Not Moses or Abraham. But the Prophet Daniel gave us this:

Daniel 7.9 “I kept looking
Until thrones were set up,
And the Ancient of Days took His seat;
His vesture was like white snow
And the hair of His head like pure wool.
His throne was ablaze with flames,
Its wheels were a burning fire.
10 “A river of fire was flowing
And coming out from before Him;
Thousands upon thousands were attending Him,
And myriads upon myriads were standing before Him;
The court sat,
And the books were opened.

11 Then I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking; I kept looking until the beast was slain, and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire. 12 As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but an extension of life was granted to them for an appointed period of time.

13 “I kept looking in the night visions,
And behold, with the clouds of heaven
One like a Son of Man was coming,
And He came up to the Ancient of Days
And was presented before Him.
14 “And to Him was given dominion,
Glory and a kingdom,
That all the peoples, nations and men of every language
Might serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
Which will not pass away;
And His kingdom is one
Which will not be destroyed.

15 “As for me, Daniel, my spirit was distressed within me, and the visions in my mind kept alarming me.​

What he saw would have been something he was familiar with - the change of reign of a monarch. It had happened there in Babylon. In the specifics of this it was a reigning King starting to hand over to his princely Son the authority of His kingdom. Clearly the "ancient of Days" was God the father. But who was this "Son of Man?" He was younger, and also clearly divine.

As a strict monotheist, having 2 divine rulers surely would be distressing to the prophet.

So the question is: Do you serve the SON?
I do.

 

[cloudyday2]

Moses as 'son' is a possible etymology from Egyptian ms, but it is far from definite. There is also an argument it may mean Child of Water or of the Nile, fitting the biblical story - this is based on a Tanakh spelling mw-se.

Regardless, theophoric names with someone being termed the 'child of a god' are very common in the near east. This does not mean they were necessarily the actual divine son of said god. This is quite a leap of logic to make.

That's true, but according the authors of "From Gods to God", the usual "water" etymology is unlikely. I don't remember exactly why they said it was unlikely. That book is actually pretty technical and there is a lot that I couldn't follow. There is probably some that I misunderstood too. The book would make more sense to somebody who knows Judaism and Hebrew.

 

[GeorgeTwo]

That all may be true, but the God of Islam and the God of Christianity are NOT the same entity.

And Isa (Jesus) in the Qur'an is not the real Jesus.

 

[GeorgeTwo]

The Trinity concept is a corruption of what Jesus, peace be upon him actually taught. None of the early Christians in Jerusalem believed in anything other than pure Monotheism, fully understanding the 'im' at the end of Eloh'im' was as you say, plurality for Majesty.

Wrong.

 

[GeorgeTwo]

Could you please show us where Abraham pbuh or Moses pbuh ever taught Elohim has a literal begotten 'Son'? Perhaps you are taking 'son of God', meaning pious God fearing person as understood by the Jews and giving it a Greek understanding, 'Sun of God'; perhaps that's why modern Scholars tell us the earliest Manuscripts of John don't have the word 'Begotten' in them.

You are right in Muslims are taught God has no literal son, but we are all sons and daughters of God in a spiritual sense, and though we don't refer to Elohim as 'Father', we do call him by one of the names he uses, Rabb meaning one who raises, nourishes, sustains, protects, loves etc. So just like father without the misunderstanding of the word and where that can lead.

What do you mean by "literal" son?

 

[GeorgeTwo]

I suppose the The Jewish counter argument would be, yes under the Egyptians and Assyrians some amongst the Jews were influenced by their cultures and beliefs bringing back practices like Baal worship, but we eventually returned to our supreme God?

NAMES OF GOD - JewishEncyclopedia.com

NAMES OF GOD.

Elohim.
The most common of the originally appellative names of God is Elohim (

), plural in form though commonly construed with a singular verb or adjective. This is, most probably, to be explained as the plural of majesty or excellence, expressing high dignity or greatness: comp. the similar use of plurals of "ba'al" (master) and "adon" (lord). In Ethiopic, Amlak ("lords") is the common name for God. The singular, Eloah (

), is comparatively rare, occurring only in poetry and late prose (in Job, 41 times). The same divine name is found in Arabic (ilah) and in Aramaic (elah). The singular is used in six places for heathen deities (II Chron. xxxii. 15; Dan. xi. 37, 38; etc.); and the plural also, a few times, either for gods or images (Ex. ix. 1, xii. 12, xx. 3; etc.) or for one god (Ex. xxxii. 1; Gen. xxxi. 30, 32; etc.). In the great majority of cases both are used as names of the one God of Israel.

The root-meaning of the word is unknown. The most probable theory is that it may be connected with the old Arabic verb "alih" (to be perplexed, afraid; to seek refuge because of fear). Eloah, Elohim, would, therefore, be "He who is the object of fear or reverence," or "He with whom one who is afraid takes refuge" (comp. the name "fear of Isaac" in Gen. xxxi. 42, 53; see also Isa. viii. 13; Ps. lxxvi. 12). The predominance of this name in the later writings, as compared with the more distinctively Hebrew national name Yhwh, may have been due to the broadening idea of God as the transcendent and universal Lord.

El.
The word El (

) appears in Assyrian (ilu) and Phenician, as well as in Hebrew, as an ordinary name of God. It is found also in the South-Arabian dialects, and in Aramaic, Arabic, and Ethiopic, as also in Hebrew, as an element in proper names. It is used in both the singular and plural, both for other gods and for the God of Israel. As a name of God, however, it is used chiefly in poetry and prophetic discourse, rarely in prose, and then usually with some epithet attached, as "a jealous God." Other examples of its use with some attribute or epithet are: El 'Elyon ("most high God"), El Shaddai ("God Almighty"), El 'Olam ("everlasting God"), El Ḥai ("living God"), El Ro'i ("God of seeing"), El Elohe Israel ("God, the God of Israel"), El Gibbor ("Hero God").

The commonly accepted derivation of this name from the Hebrew root

, "to be strong," is extremely doubtful. A similar root has been explained from the Arabic as meaning "to be in front," "to be foremost," "to lead," "to rule," which would give the meaning "leader," "lord." But the fact that the e in El was originally short, as seen in such proper names as Elkanah, Elihu (

), and in the Assyrian "ilu," is strong evidence against this derivation. As in the case of Elohim, it is necessary to admit that the original meaning is not certainly known.

So there's certainly some mystery behind the root word El, it appears to go back to various cultures. Islam teaches a Prophet/Messenger was sent to every Nation with the message of Monotheism, though over time people would fall into polytheism.

Judaism 101:

The most important of God's Names is the four-letter Name represented by the Hebrew letters Yod-Hei-Vav-Hei (YHVH). It is often referred to as the Ineffable Name, the Unutterable Name or the Distinctive Name. Linguistically, it is related to the Hebrew root Hei-Yod-Hei (to be), and reflects the fact that God's existence is eternal. In scripture, this Name is used when discussing God's relation with human beings, and when emphasizing his qualities of lovingkindness and mercy. It is frequently shortened to Yah (Yod-Hei), Yahu or Yeho (Yod-Hei-Vav), especially when used in combination with names or phrases, as in Yehoshua (Joshua, meaning "the Lord is my Salvation"), Eliyahu (Elijah, meaning "my God is the Lord"), and Halleluyah ("praise the Lord").

 

[GeorgeTwo]

You believe this to be the second coming of Jesus pbuh? If so, then Muslims accept and have no problem with this. However Islam teaches Jesus pbuh establishes God's Kingdom and implements his Laws for all mankind, after some years Jesus pbuh passes away in a natural death and is buried in the ground. The Kingdom is handed back to God for sometime before the final trumpet is blown.

So based on this, we would say son of man = mortal human being. I would start by using passages 13 and 14 to make my case. You say, God was presented before God and given something he did not have, dominion and authority over a Earthly Kingdom. God had to be given it? More like the Messiah is given authority to rule for a certain period of time.

What do you think?

The Son of Man is a divine figure.

The Messiah rules for ever.