WHY DO MUSLIMS CALL GOD “ALLAH”?

 

Almost everyone has heard that Muslims call God “Allah.” But have you ever wondered why Muslims use this particular name? What does the word Allah mean, and what does it tell us about how Muslims understand God?

The word is not simply a name that distinguishes the Muslim God from the gods of other religions. In Islam, Allah refers to the one and only God—the Creator of the universe, the source of all existence, and the One worthy of worship. Understanding the meaning of the word Allah therefore also helps us understand the Islamic concept of God.

What does “Allah” mean?

The word is closely related to the Arabic term ilāh, meaning “a god” or “a deity.” The form Allah refers specifically to the one God. The Qur’an repeatedly emphasizes that God is one and unique:

Say: He is Allah, One. Allah, the Eternal Refuge. He neither begets nor is born, nor is there anything comparable to Him.” [The Qur’an 112:1-4]

Thus, when Muslims say Allah, they are not referring to one God among many. They are referring to the one Creator and Lord of all existence.

The word Allah is the Arabic word for God. It is used by Arabic-speaking Muslims as well as by Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews when referring to God. In this sense, Allah is not the name of a deity exclusive to Muslims. Rather, it is the Arabic word for God.

Arabic-speaking Christians, for example, also use the word Allah in their Bibles and prayers. More broadly, Islam teaches that God is the same Creator who sent prophets such as Abraham, Moses, and Jesus. What distinguishes Islam is not the use of a completely different divine being, but its particular understanding of God’s nature and His relationship with humanity.

At the heart of this understanding is tawḥīd, the Islamic doctrine of God’s absolute oneness.

What does the name of “Allah” tell us about His Attributes?

The name Allah also points to important aspects of how Muslims understand God.

Linguistically, the word Allah is distinct from the Arabic word ilāh, which means “a god” or “a deity.” While ilāh can be used in different forms, including its plural ālihah (“gods”) or a feminine form, Allah refers specifically to the one and only God. This linguistic distinction reflects a central principle of Islam: God is one, unique, and without any equal or counterpart.

The Qur’an repeatedly emphasizes this absolute oneness. Allah is not one deity among many, nor is He one member of a divine family or a group of supernatural beings. He is the one Creator, the one Sustainer, and the only One worthy of worship.

The name Allah also points beyond human categories. In Islam, God is not understood as a human-like being. He does not possess the limitations or physical characteristics of His creation. Therefore, Muslims do not attribute to Allah human needs or biological characteristics such as eating, drinking, sleeping, or having a biological sex.

This does not mean that Muslims believe Allah is “male” in the human sense. Rather, Allah transcends the categories that apply to human beings. The Qur’an expresses this principle clearly:

There is nothing like Him. [The Qur’an 42:11]

Why is Allah referred to as “He”?

You may have noticed that Allah is often referred to as “He” in English translations of the Qur’an. Does this mean that God is male?

No. The use of “He” is related to the grammatical structure of the Arabic language, not to God’s biological sex.

Languages do not all express ideas in the same way. Some languages, including Arabic and Spanish, assign grammatical gender to nouns and use masculine and feminine forms in ways that do not necessarily refer to biological sex. Arabic, for example, has grammatical gender even for things that are not living beings.

The Arabic pronoun used for “he” is huwa (هُوَ). In Arabic grammar, huwa is the third-person singular masculine pronoun and is also used in contexts where there is no biological gender to identify. Therefore, when the Qur’an refers to Allah as huwa, this should not be understood as saying that Allah is a male human being or possesses a male body.

English translations use “He” because it is the closest grammatical equivalent of huwa. The translation therefore preserves the grammatical form of the Arabic, but it should not be understood as attributing human biological characteristics to God.

What About “We”?

The Qur’an also sometimes refers to Allah using “We” or “Us.” At first, this may seem surprising. Does this mean that Islam believes in more than one God?

Again, the answer is no. The Qur’an is unequivocal about God’s oneness. The use of “We” in the Qur’an is traditionally understood as a form of majestic or royal language, sometimes called the royal we. It expresses greatness, authority, and majesty rather than numerical plurality.

This phenomenon is not unique to Arabic. In various languages and historical traditions, rulers and other figures of authority have used plural forms when speaking about themselves. In the Qur’an, however, this grammatical and rhetorical form does not change the fundamental Islamic belief in one God.

Thus, neither “He” nor “We” should be understood as indicating that Allah is male or that there is more than one God. These expressions reflect the linguistic and rhetorical conventions through which the Qur’an communicates its message in human language.

His Other Names

Allah is not the only name by which God is described in the Qur’an. Muslims also refer to Him through many other names, each of which highlights a particular divine attribute.

These names are known as al-Asmāʾ al-Ḥusnā, meaning “the Most Beautiful Names.” They include al-Raḥmān (the Most Compassionate), al-Raḥīm (the Most Merciful), al-ʿAlīm (the All-Knowing), al-Ghafūr (the Ever-Forgiving), al-Khāliq (the Creator), and al-Ḥakīm (the All-Wise).

These are not the names of different gods or separate beings. Rather, they describe different attributes and qualities of the one God. His mercy, knowledge, wisdom, power, and forgiveness all belong to the same divine reality.

The Qur’an encourages believers to call upon God by these beautiful names:

To Allah belong the Most Beautiful Names, so call upon Him by them. [The Qur’an 7:180]

The diversity of these names also reflects the different ways in which human beings can come to know God. Someone seeking forgiveness may call upon al-Ghafūr, “the Ever-Forgiving”; someone in need of mercy may turn to al-Raḥmān, “the Most Compassionate”; and someone reflecting upon the universe may contemplate al-Khāliq, “the Creator.”

In this way, the names of Allah are not simply titles. They invite Muslims to reflect on who God is and how He relates to His creation.