Islamic Glossary

Turkey, Istanbul, Suleymaniye Mosque, crowd praying

If you regularly read this blog, you’ll know that at the moment I’m reading through the Qur’an, chapter by chapter. Each day I have been posting a brief entry discussing the material I’ve read that day. I’ve also been recording my questions about the text which I will ask when I meet one of the local San Diego Imams.

Since these posts contain words from Islam which may be unfamiliar to many Christians, this blog entry will act as a glossary of terms. I’ll be updating this post as I continue my reading each day.

UPDATE: Since this glossary is starting to get a little big, I’ve going to put the more obscure glossary items in a lighter font so that it’s easier to see which terms are more important.

Aad: The tribe of people who rejected the prophet Hud

Abrahah al-Ashram: A general who tried to attack Mecca with an elephant in the days before Muhammad.

Abrogation: The process through which later texts override earlier text in the Qur’an.

Abu Lahab: The uncle of Muhammad who opposed Islam. He is condemned to Hell in Surah 111.

Adam: The father of mankind and regarded as a prophet in Islam.

Ahadith: Plural of hadith.

al-‘Azeez: The name used for Potifar. It is, however, also the name used for Joseph after he rises to the service of Pharaoh.

al-Lat: Arabian goddess mentioned in the Qur’an and the Satanic Verses.

al-Uzza: Arabian goddess mentioned in the Qur’an and the Satanic Verses. 

Al-Isra: See Night Journey.

Allah: The name used in Islam for God. It This name is also used by Arabic-speaking Christians.

Ayah: A verse in the Qur’an. The plural of Ayah is Ayat.

Dhul-Kifl: A prophet in Islam, typically associated with Ezekiel.

Gardens: A common description of Paradise in the Qur’an.

Hadith: The written version of the oral traditions concerning the sayings and deeds of Muhammad. The Hadith are vitally important in Islam since they form the primary lens through which Muslims interpret the Qur’an. The plural of hadith is “ahadith”.

Halal: Arabic word which means “permissible”. It typically refers to the food, and in particular the meat, which Muslims can eat. It relates to several factors which make a meat halal, but principally it relates to how the animal is killed.

Hud: A prophet who was sent to (and rejected by) the people of Aad.

Ibrahim: The name of Abraham in Islam. He is regarded as prophet of Islam.

Iblees: An alternative spelling of Iblis.

Iblis: The name used by Muslims for the particular jinn whom they identify as Satan. According to Islam, God commanded the angels and jinn to bow before Adam and Iblis refused.

Idris: See Indrees.

Imam: A man in a leadership position at a mosque and is typically in charge of leading the prayers and gives spiritual guidance.

Indrees: Second prophet after Adam. Commonly associated in Islam with Enoch.

In-sha-Allah: A phrase which is used often by Muslims which means “If God wills it”, equivalent to the common English phrase “God-willing”.

Injil: The Gospel which the Qur’an says was given by Allah to Jesus.

Isa: The name of Jesus in Islam. In Islam, Jesus is not divine, but simply a human prophet. He was not killed on the cross (it was only “made to appear so”). He will come again to break the cross and kill the pigs.

Isma’il: Alternative spelling of Ishmael. He is believed to be a prophet in Islam.

Jibril: The angel Gabriel. Muslims believe that the Qur’an was given to Muhammad by Gabriel.

Jinn: Creatures made by God from smokeless fire. They are sometimes called devils. They have free will. Iblis used his free will to rebel against Allah.

Joseph: A prophet of Isalm. He goes by the name al-‘Azeez once he is released by Pharaoh.

Jonah: The prophet from the Old Testament, who is also regarded as a prophet in Islam. 

Kaaba: See Ka’bah.

Ka’bah: The shrine in Mecca towards which Muslims pray. Also spelt Kaaba.

Koran: Alternative spelling of Qur’an.

Laylat al-Qadr: See the Night of Decree.

Makkah: See Mecca.

Manat: Arabian goddess mentioned in the Qur’an and the Satanic Verses. 

Masjid: Literally this means “Place of prostration”. It can refer to a mosque or simply to a place of prayer.

Mecca: The city in Saudi Arabia where Muhammad began his ministry. It is also spelt Makkah.

Messenger: This is someone who is charged by Allah to reform society. In Arabic, this is known as a rasul.

Miriam: The name of Mary, the Mother of Isa.

Mosque: A house of Muslim prayer.

Muhammad: The founding figure of Islam. The Qur’an repeatedly asserts that he is not a madman but a prophet of God. If Islamic literature you will see PBUH written after his name. Muslims will also say this at the mention of his name.

Musa: The name Moses in Islam, who is regarded as a prophet.

Muslim: An adherent of the Muslim religion

Nabi: See Prophet.

Night Journey: A reference to when Muhammad travelled on the steed Buraq from Mecca to Jerusalem in a single night.

The Night of Decree: The night on which the Qur’an was given to Gabriel.

Nuh: The name of Noah in the Qur’an. He is regarded as a prophet.

Potifar: In Islam, he is known as al-‘Azeez

PBUH: The abbreviation written after Muhammad’s name, or the name of any prophet. It is short for “Peace Be Upon Him”.

Prophet: This is someone has has received a revelation from Allah. In arabic this is known as a nabi.

Qiblah: The direction in which prayers should be offered. This is indicated in a mosque by a wall niche known as a mihrab. In early Islam the Qiblah was towards Jerusalem, it soon changed towards the Ka’bah at Mecca.

Qur’an: The Islamic scripture. It is sometimes spelt Koran. Literally, it means “the recitation”, which points to the oral form of Muhammad’s message. Unlike the Bible which has both Divine and human authors, Muslims regard the Qur’an as the Word of God in the most literal sense possible. They believe that it exists in Heaven and was dictated by Jibil to to Muhammad.

The Qur’an is divided into chapters. There is no clear schema behind the arrangement of these chapters. Each chapter (surah) is divided into a series of verses. Each verse is known as an ayah.

Quraysh: The merchant tribe which was in control of Mecca at the beginning of Muhammad’s ministry.

Rasul: See Messenger.

Salat: Prayer.

Saleh: See Salih.

Salih: Regarded as a prophet to the Thamud people. Allah gave them a she-camel as a sign to the people of Salih’s prophethood. In response, they hamstrung and killed the camel. In punishment, there was a blast from the sky and they were buried in their own homes, with the exception of Salih and his followers. His name is sometimes spelt Saleh.

Samiri: “The Samaritan” who was ultimately at fault in the Qur’anic telling of the Gold Calf.

Saqar: One of the proper names for Hell. The theme of hellfire is constant in the Qur’an.

Satanic Verses: Verses which Muhammad allegedly revealed, claiming that al-Lat, al-Uzza and Manat were worthy of veneration. The early ahadith say that Muhammad was fooled by Iblis into thinking that this was a revelation from Allah. He later realized his error and the verses were no longer recited.

SAW: An abbreviation of the Arabic phrase salla Allah alaihi wa sallam, meaning “May Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him” Variants include SAS, SAWS, SAAWS and S. Most English-speaking Muslims use PBUH instead.

Shahada: The Muslim profession of faith: “There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah”. This is similar to the Shema in Judaism and an equivalent to the Nicene Creed in Christianity.

Shirk: The sin of practicing idolatry or polytheism, which includes the worship of anything other than Allah.

Shu’ayb: A prophet who is connected with “the companions of the well” and “the companions of the thicket”. He was a prophet to the Midianites and is identified by some as Jethro from the Old Testament.

Surah: A chapter of the Qur’an. The plural of of “surah” is suwar.

Shuiab: See Shu’ayb.

Suwar: Plural of Surah.

Tawhid: The oneness of God. Monotheism in Islam is unitarian (as opposed to trinitarian).

Tawrat: The Torah.

Thamud: The people to whom the Prophet Salih was sent.

Ummah: Literally means “community”. It is the Islamic equivalent of the Body of Christ.

Zabur: The Psalms given to David. 

Zakah: See Zakat.

Zakat: Alms-giving which is treated as a religious tax.

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