Is Allah a name or Title?

[Gray]

The question is in the title, as one could see I am not a moslem. But I am curious on the subject, is 'Allah' the name of the one monotheistic god, or Allah is simply a title for gods, as in Venus could be considered a female version of it in roman mythology?

[crimsontide06]

Allah is the arabic name of God. Remember, english is a relatively new language so the word "God" did not exist. Bibles,Torahs and Qurans were all in Arabic or Hebrew; so yahweh(hebrew) or Allah(arabic), was used in these books during these times.

[Muhammad]

Greetings Gray and welcome to the forum,

Here are some answers I found to your question:

In the Arabic language the word 'Allah' originated from the word 'ILAH', i.e. the Deity Who is worshipped.

And 'LA ILAHA ILLA ALLAHU' means: "None has the right to be worshipped but Allah."

And Allah is the One True God, The Creator of the Heavens and the earth and all that exists, The Self-Sufficient, The Sustainer, The Provider. He has no partners or associates, and none is equal to Him.

http://209.207.230.230/emainpage/ind...twaId&Id=88272

Does it Mean God?

The word "Allah" is the perfect description of the "One God" of monotheism for Jews, Christians and Muslims!

Is "Allah" only for Islam and Muslims?
[No! It is for All Three Abrahamic Faiths.]

"Allah" is the same word used by Christian Arabs and Jewish Arabs in their Bible, centuries before Islam came.

On page one [1] of Genesis in the Old Testament, we find the word "Allah" seventeen [17] times.

Every hotel and motel has a Bible. Next time you see one look in the introduction, you will find samples of the different languages they have translated. For Arabic they have translated the verse in the New Testament in Arabic from the famous verse in the Gospel John 3:16 -

"For God so loved the world..."
- and the word the translators used in Arabic for "God" is the very same word used by Muslims around the planet, "Allah."
Where Does the word "Allah" Come From?

"Allah" comes from the Arabic word "elah"a god' or something worshiped. - (Arabic) means '

This word (elah) can be made plural (gods), as in "aleha" and it can be male or female just as the word in English can be "goddess."

"Allah" comes from "elaha" but it brings more clarification and understanding.

Allah = Has no gender (not male and not female)

"He" is used only out of respect and dignity - not for gender
Allah = Always singular - Never plural

"We" is used only as the "Royal WE" just as in English for royalty
Allah = Means "The Only One to be Worshipped"

http://www.godallah.com/index.php

...Some non-Muslims are under the misconception that Allah is some particular "Muslim God" and not the Creator of the Heavens and the Earth. Some religious groups encourage this misconception among their followers to keep their people away from Islam. When Muslims are too insistent upon using the name "Allah" with non-Muslims, they can unwittingly reinforce that misconception.

The word Allah comes from the Arabic word “ilâh” meaning “deity, god, divine being” combined with the definite article “al”. Put together, they make “al-Ilâh” or literally “the God” which was then brought together as “Allah”. The name therefore, literally means "the One and Only God".

It is, of course, good to refer to Allah by His name – Allah – since this is how Allah refers to himself in the Qur'ân. Also, the name Allah is clear in asserting the uniqueness of God, since there is no way the name "Allah" can be made plural or changed to indicate gender, as is the case with the word "God"...

http://en.islamtoday.net/node/660

And Allaah :swt: knows best.

PS. You might wish to read: http://www.islamicboard.com/discover...allah-god.html
And there may be other similar threads

[Gray]

So its Yahweh.

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[Muhammad]

It's pretty clear from the above.

[glo]

Christians in Arabic countries also refer to God as Allah. It's simply the Arabic name for God.

[sister herb]

Similar; by English name of the God is the God. So it is just word means the God.

[MustafaMc]

I have a copy of the English translation by Victor Alexander of the NT from Aramaic text supposedly preserved by the Ancient Church of the East. He preserved the Aramaic word for God as a transliteration into English and he spelled it 'Allaha'.

[Insaanah]

Allah is the name of God, and has connotations of there being none worthy of being worshipped and none having the right to be worshipped in truth except He.

So when he came to it, he was called from the right side of the valley in a blessed spot - from the tree, "O Moses, indeed I am Allah, Lord of the worlds." (Qur'an 28:30)

Here you can see Allah introduces Himself by His name, and then describes who He is with a beautiful description.

O Moses, indeed it is I - Allah, the Exalted in Might, the Wise." (27:9)

And again in the above.

Indeed, I am Allah. There is no deity (none worthy of worship) except Me, so worship Me and establish prayer for My remembrance. (20:14)

is 'Allah' the name of the one monotheistic god

Yes.

or Allah is simply a title for gods, as in Venus could be considered a female version of it in roman mythology?

No. There are no versions of Allah.

[Ahmad H]

or Allah is simply a title for gods, as in Venus could be considered a female version of it in roman mythology?

The pagan Arabs had a paganistic concept of Allah as well. But their concept was different. The Qur'an explains Allah properly and removed the misguidance surrounding this name. They would have learned about Allah from Hazrat Ishmael (as), who believed in Allah and was a Hanif as his father, Ibrahim (as).

The proof in the Qur'an that the Arabs had a wholly different idea of Allah altogether is summarized in one verse (which shows how they viewed the proper Islamic concept):

38:5 "Has he made the gods (all) into one Allah? Truly this is a wonderful thing!"

So this was an objection they raised to the Holy Prophet (saw). The circumstance of the revelation can be read in Asbab An-Nuzul by Al-Wahidi which is available on the internet.

There is a translation of Aisha Bewely of Tafsir Al-Tabari Volume One, and in it there is a very good explanation of the linguistic interpretation of the word "Allah" on page 49/268 in the pdf:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/68878931/E...l-Tabari-Vol-1

I would write it our but I'm too lazy to do it right now.

[Gray]

So what would the be the title in arabic for Venus, or Zeus?

[Muhammad]

The following verses seem relevant here, and Allaah :swt: knows best:

There is no compulsion in religion. Verily, the Right Path has become distinct from the wrong path. Whoever disbelieves in Taghut and believes in Allah, then he has grasped the most trustworthy handhold that will never break. And Allah is All-Hearer, All-Knower.

Allah is the Wali (Protector or Guardian) of those who believe. He brings them out from darkness into light. But as for those who disbelieve, their Auliya (supporters and helpers) are Taghut [false deities and false leaders], they bring them out from light into darkness. Those are the dwellers of the Fire, and they will abide therein forever. [Qur'an 2: 256-257]

[sister herb]

So what would the be the title in arabic for Venus, or Zeus?

You mean what they are by arabic?

Venus - "fiinuus" - فينوس

Zeus - "zii(w)us" - زيوس

You can see that they are most likely loan words from some other language.