A guide to Islam's language

Scripps Howard News Service | September 19, 2001 | THOMAS HARGROVE

[SLB]

- The current terrorist crisis is prompting many Americans to learn more about Islamic culture with its rich and complex social and religious traditions. Here are some key Muslim terms and phrases.

This glossary is based on "Introducing Islam to Non-Muslims" by Hussein Khalid Al-Hussein and Ahmad Hussein Sakr. There are variant spellings for most of these terms:

Allah -The Islamic word for God. Muslims worship the God of Abraham as described in the Book of Genesis and believe they are descended from this patriarch. Islam teaches that Allah is the only God and creator of the universe. Muslims usually offer praises when they speak Allah's name, such as "the merciful, beneficent, wise, the loving God."

Allahu akbar - This is probably the most commonly spoken phrase in the world. Meaning "God is great," most Muslims will say this many times each day, during their frequent prayers, when they express approval and when they are happy.

Al-Qaeda - A phrase meaning "the base," a name given to Osama bin Laden's terrorist network. He almost certainly does not use this term himself.

Amir - A leader or commander.

Asr - The obligatory salah, or prayer, said in the afternoon.

Barakallah - When a Muslim expresses thanks, he or she will say this, which means "may the blessings of Allah" be upon you.

Fajr - The obligatory salah, or prayer, said at dawn.

Fatwa - A legal opinion concerning Islamic law.

Fitnah - Civil strife, war, riots.

Ghazi - A Muslim soldier or warrior.

Hajj - One of the five pillars of Islam. It's a holy pilgrimage to the Saudi Arabian city of Mecca, which every follower is expected to accomplish.

Halal - Something that is lawful and permitted in Islam.

Haraam - The opposite of "halal," it defines something that is unlawful or forbidden under Islam. Several prominent Muslim religious scholars throughout the Middle East have declared the suicide attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon to be "haraam" under tenants of their faith.

Hudud - The limits ordained by Allah, including punishment for crimes.

Imam - Anyone who leads congregational prayer, but is not considered infallible. As a religious leader, an Imam (also called an "Amir" or a "Caliph") can be a community and political leader.

Injil - The revelations of Allah transmitted through the Prophet Isa, the Arabic name for Jesus of Nazareth who is revered as one of God's prophets but who is neither worshipped nor considered divine. The term can also be used to describe the books of the Christian New Testament.

Islam - The Arabic word for peace, purity, acceptance and commitment. The word came to summarize Arab feeling for its monotheistic faith. Muslims consider the Western word "Mohammedanism" to be a vulgar, perhaps blasphemous, term since it wrongly suggests deification of their great prophet.

Issha - The obligatory salah, or prayer, said in the evening.

Jihad - A complex concept that most Muslim scholars say is improperly translated by Westerners as "holy war." It is more properly described as a defensive conflict, especially against an unjust regime that represses Islam. Under the faith, warriors are expressly forbidden to harm women, children, the elderly, civilians in general, and spiritual leaders like priests or rabbis.

Ka'bah - The cubical structure in Mecca revered by Muslims as mankind's first house of worship built by Adam and reconstructed first by Abraham and then his son, Ishmael. It is toward this building that every Muslims faces during the five daily prayers.

Koran - The holy book of revelations given by Allah to Muhammad through the angel Gabriel.

La ilaha illallah - The most important expression in Islam, and part of the first pillar of faith: "There is no lord worthy of worship except Allah."

Maghrib - The obligatory salah, or prayer, said immediately after sunset.

Mu-adhin - A person who calls for the five daily prayers.

Muhammad - The great prophet born in Mecca in 570. He brought a monotheistic faith and political unity to the diverse, pagan tribes of the Arab world. Muhammad is revered as God's final prophet who defined Islam, the last, true religion to be practiced on earth until God brings the Day of Judgment.

Ramadan - The holy month of fasting. It was during this month that the revelation of the Koran began.

Rasul - A messenger of God.

Salah - One of the five pillars of Islam, "salah" is the Arabic word meaning spiritual relationship and communication between God and his creation. Prayers are said five times a day.

Shahadah - One of the five pillars of Islam. A declaration of faith when a person converts to Islam. The convert must say: "I testify that there is no god but Allah and I testify that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah."

Shari'ah - The canonical laws of Islam.

Sawn - One of the five pillars of Islam, all Muslims must fast from first light until sundown during the holy month of Ramadan, abstaining from food, drink and sexual relations.

Sujud - The required position a believer must prostrate himself or herself when making one of the five daily prayers of salah. The worshiper must make certain that the forehead, nose, hands, knees and toes are all touching the floor.

Zakah - One of the five pillars of Islam, this is the act of purification and the giving of alms or charitable contributions to the poor.

Zuhr - The obligatory salah, or prayer, said at noon.

[AppyPappy]

The god of the Bible is named YHWH. Abraham referred to God as YHWH as can be clearly seen in the text of the book of Genesis.

Actually he is not named i.e I AM

[SunnyUsa]

"Whatthefu - What a muslim terrorist says just before the bomb hits"

Very Educational !!!

[TKEman]

Jihad -

A complex concept that most Muslim scholars say is improperly translated by Westerners as "holy war." It is more properly described as a defensive conflict, especially against an unjust regime that represses Islam. Under the faith, warriors are expressly forbidden to harm women, children, the elderly, civilians in general, and spiritual leaders like priests or rabbis.

Well, I guess the meaning of this word has changed since September 11, 2001. Probably not enough time to update the dictionary since then.

Thanks for posting this.

[TKEman]

Well, the Quran should be subject to the same scholarly analysis that the Bible is. It's been proven that some books of the Bible were written by two or three different hands, over significant time periods. The book of Job comes to mind. In that case, the ending was changed.

It really should surprise no one that this also happens in other religions.

[Captain Ugly]

Your comparrison of Islamic Fundamentalists as regular Moslems, is like saying that the KKK preaches mainstream christianity.

[Drew68]

They forgot the term Kafir which is what non-muslims are referred to.

Here is how Kafirs are treated in Islamic states. I found the following on an interestic web site written from a Hindu perspective. I'm not Hindu, but I've been bumping this author's site quite frequently as it is a very interesting read. The following is taken from the from the Koran.

IX/29: Fight those who do not profess the true faith (Islam) till they pay the jiziya (poll tax) with the hand of humility.

This verse in Quran gave birth to the law that all non muslims living in an Islamic state have to pay the jiziya or poll tax for the privilege of being there. These people are called zimmis and are allowed to live and work in the Islamic lands under the following 20 disabilities: (one has to wonder if apartheid was derived from this)

1. They are not to build any new places of worship.
   
2. They are not to repair any old places of worship which have been destroyed by the muslims.
   
3. They are not to prevent muslim travellers from staying in their places of worship.
   
4. They are to entertain for 3 days any Muslim who wants to stay in their homes and for a longer period if the muslim falls ill.
   
5. They are not to harbor any hostility or give aid and comfort to hostile elements.
   
6. They are not to prevent any one of them from getting converted to Islam.
   
7. They have to show respect to every Muslim.
   
8. They have to allow Muslims to participate in their private meetings.
   
9. They are not to dress like muslims.
   
10. They are not to name themselves with Muslim names.
    
11. They are not to ride on horses with saddle and bridle.
    
12. They are not to possess arms.
    
13. They are not to wear signet or seals on their fingers.
    
14. They are not to sell or drink liquor openly
    
15. They are to wear a distinctive dress which shows their inferior status and separates them from Muslims.
    
16. They are not to propagate their custom and usages among the muslims.
    
17. They are not to build their houses in the neighbourhood of muslims.
    
18. They are not to bring their dead near the graveyards of the muslims.
    
19. They are not to observe their religious practices publicly or mourn their dead loudly.
    
20. They are not to buy muslim slaves.

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Sounds like fun!

Mohommad was a false prophet who led a bunch of marauding thieves, rapists and murderers with a promise of an afterlife (paradise) filled with material abundance and an orgy of sex. (Read it. It is in the Koran) Islam is not a religion. It is an excuse for criminal behavior. Mohommad was a 7th century gangland thug. Nothing more.

[Prodigal Daughter]

Saying Allah is God is blasphemy.

Priorities of Islamic Activities in the West.

[NOLA_homebrewer]

Allahu akbar - This is probably the most commonly spoken phrase in the world. Meaning "God is great," most Muslims will say this many times each day, during their frequent prayers, when they express approval and when they are happy.

They'll also say this right before death if they can.

[freefly]

Thanks to both of you for good info.
Knowing your enemy is the key to defeating him.

[Drew68]

Bump for these excellent links!

[Attillathehon]

Whatthefu - What a muslim terrorist says just before the bomb hits

Laughing so hard, I'm crying. This one really caught me by surprise.

[jonatron]

You want to put money on that? I have a hebrew copy of the book of Genesis right here.