But The Word “Allah” Is A Word In The English Dictionary
by
N.H. CHAN
If you look for the word “Allah” in any English dictionary you will find it there and it will read something like this:
Allah /al-luh/ noun the name of God among the Muslims.
I find the above in a little Oxford English Dictionary. If you are using Collins English Dictionary you will also find the word “Allah” there and it gives this meaning of the word:
Allah n. Islam. The principal Muslim name for God; the one Supreme Being.
[C16: from Arabic, from al the + Ilah God; compare Hebrew eloah]
These two English dictionaries give the same meaning for the word “Allah”. Since it is a word in the English Dictionary, it clearly shows that the word has been adopted as an English word; it means “a Muslim name for God”. But the Collins English Dictionary even supplied the etymology of the word in the English language. “C16” stands for sixteenth century. The etymology says that the word “Allah” came from the Arabic phrase, al Ilah which means “the God”. The dictionary explains how a word with a foreign origin came to be adopted in the English language.
The Collins English Dictionary shows that the word “Allah” has been adopted in the English language since the sixteenth century and it means in English, “the Muslim name for God”. If you use the word in English in another connotation then you have misused the word. Since English is not our mother tongue it is not unusual for Malaysians to misuse English words. I do not advocate the misuse of English words if one were to speak or write in English. If you must use this “sensitive” English word – this English word appears to be ‘sensitive’ to some myopic people – like Allah, do ensure that you use the word in its correct connotation. However, I am not surprised that many Malaysians do have a tendency to misuse English words. But, it is unthinkable for anyone to suggest that we should be penalized for misusing an English word which is a foreign word to us Malaysians. If the word ‘Allah’ is in a sentence written in English then it is an English word.
For those of us who would like to know how an Arabic word “ilah” or phrase “al ilah” which sounds like – English writers have to rely on sound as they do not write Arabic – the original Arabic al Ilah has found its way into the English language, see The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Edited by C.T. Onions, Oxford at the Clarendon Press, 1979 reprint, which reads:
Allah the deity among the Mohammedans. XVI. – Arab. allah, for al-ilah, i.e. al AL- [al- Arab. def. art. al the], ilah god = Aram. elah, Heb. eloah
(Early forms in Eng. Writers are Alla, Allah, Ala, Allough, Alha.)
“XVI” stands for sixteenth century. So that this tells us that the etymology of the word “Allah” in English has been used in the English language since the sixteenth century. In Arabic it is “al-ilah” meaning “the God”. In Aramaic, it is “elah”. In Hebrew, it is “eloah”.
If you do not already know, Arabic is the language of the Arabs who is one of a branch of the Semitic race. Aramaic pertains to the northern Semitic languages. And Hebrew is a person belonging to the Semitic race descended from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; Jewish; their language. Source: The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology.
Also in the same Dictionary of English Etymology you will find:
Semite Hebrew, Arab, Assyrian or Aramaean, regarded as a descendant of Shem (Gen. X): see The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology.
‘Gen. X’ stands for the book of Genesis, chapter 10 in the Old Testament of the Bible.
So that we now know that not even the Arabs or the Jews would pronounce the word for their God as ‘Allah’. The Muslim name for God as pronounced by the Arabs is ‘al-ilah’. The Jews would pronounce the name for their God as ‘eloah’. The word ‘Allah’ in English (as seen in any English dictionary) is a mispronunciation of both the Arabic and the Hebrew word for God.
Monotheism is the belief that there is only one God. It is not the preserve of the Muslims only. The Jews (Judaism) and the Christians also believe that there is only one God. Monotheism began with Abraham.
A heathen – according to the dictionary – is a person who does not acknowledge the God of Christianity, Judaism, or Islam. A non-believer of monotheism is an infidel.
A pagan is a person who holds religious beliefs other than those of the main world religions. For example, paganism includes such religions as Hinduism and Taoism.
Idolatry means the worship of idols. I believe the Hindus and the Taoist believe in idol worship.
Category: Commentary, Latest News, Opinion
Subscribe
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to receive more just like it.
SUCH NAIVETY
It is naïve of Dato’ N.H. Chan, a learned man and former court of appeal judge, to assume that just because a foreign word appears in the English dictionary it has become an English word. Chan made this observation in his article, “But The Word “Allah” Is A Word In The English Dictionary” (IE 90) thus implying that anyone can now use the word, “Allah”. There are many foreign words found in the English dictionaries, as in “The Great LIFCO Dictionary (English-English-Tamil)” and “Oxford Dictionary (English-English-Tamil)”. Here are some examples:
“masjid” (n) – mosque.
“Kaaba” (n) – small building in the holy mosque in Mecca.
“Quran” (n) – the scared book of Islam.
“kameez” (n) – a piece of clothing like a long shirt worn by people in South Asia and Middle East.
“temasha” (n) – an entertainment, fun.
Have all these words become English? A foreign word may find its way into an English dictionary but that does not make it English. It would be ridiculous for a non-Muslim, when asked where he was going replied, “I am going to the mosque,” when, in actual fact, he was going to his prayer house (church or temple).
The Arabs did not pronounce “Al-ilah”. It is wrong to say that “not even the Arabs or the Jews would pronounce the word “Allah” for their God”. Jews do not but Arabs do. Not only now but even before the time of Prophet Mohammad (pbuh). When King Abrahah of Yemen invaded Mecca with the intention of demolishing the Kaaba, he camped some distance away from the Kaaba. When his soldiers seized the Meccans’ livestock, Abdul Mutalib, leader of the Quraishi tribe and grandfather of Prophet Mohammad, rode up to him and requested the king to release his tribe’s livestock. A surprised King Abrahah asked, “Why the livestock and not Kaaba?” Abu Mutalib replied, “We own the livestock. Kaaba belongs to Allah. He’ll take care of it”. This episode took place 40 years before Prophet Mohammad (pbuh). Abu Mutalib said “Allah” not “Al-ilah”. Therefore, “Allah” is not an Arabic mispronunciation.
The phrase “Allah the deity among the Mohammedans” from the Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology is a mischievous ploy to discredit Islam. “Allah” is not a deity, as deities have physical forms and it is not “Mohammedans”. Unlike the followers of other religions (Christians followers of Jesus Christ; Buddhists followers of Buddha, etc.), followers of Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) are not called “Mohammedans” but “Muslims”.
Books and dictionaries will not teach us new knowledge but learned scholars do, as the Quran states: “Ask those who know if you do not now” (Chapter 16: Verse 43).
I shall be happy to meet N.H. Chan to further clarify. If he can forward me his address, I shall send him my recent article, “All Religions Are One”.
Dr. Mohamed Amir
Perak Islamic Information Centre
piic@streamyx.com
We respect your views, David but in the same breath you should too treat Dato’ NH Chan, a noted former appeal court judge, with respect.
There’s certainly no malice in HN Chan’s assertions regarding the use of the word “Allah”. It’s purely his take on the issue. It may sound prejudicial to you but that’s that. We would have done the same if you have proffered yours.
Ipoh Echo, incidentally, is not a magazine per se but a community newspaper. Our primary objective is to provide Ipohites with a platform to air their views and objections without fear or favour. We are the Voice of the Ipoh Community.
Cheers.
What is this writer trying to say? Religion is a sensitive subject and should either be written by experts or left untouched. Honestly sentences like
“paganism includes such religions as Hinduism and Taoism”
“I believe the Hindus and the Taoist believe in idol worship.”
display the ignorance of the writer. I am surprised that you publish articles like this. You are in danger of being labelled as a rojak/rubbish magazine. Pls go back to yr mission statement to discover why yr magazine existed in the first place.