---
title: "What Does Assalamu Alaikum Mean? | Islam Is Mercy"
description: "Assalamu alaikum means \"peace be upon you\". It is the everyday Muslim greeting, and the usual reply is wa alaikum assalam."
lang: en
url: https://islamismercy.com/en/glossary/assalamu-alaikum/
---

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3.  What Does Assalamu Alaikum Mean?

# What Does Assalamu Alaikum Mean?

Written by **Islam Is Mercy Editorial Team**· 1 min readAwaiting scholar review

## The short answer

Assalamu alaikum means "peace be upon you". It is the greeting Muslims use everywhere in the world, and the reply is wa alaikum assalam — "and upon you be peace". It is both a hello and a short prayer for the other person's wellbeing.

## On this page

1.  Meaning
2.  How Muslims use it
3.  Example

**Assalamu alaikum** (Arabic: السلام عليكم) is pronounced *as-sa-LAA-mu a-LAY-kum*. The reply is *wa alaikum assalam* (وعليكم السلام), “and upon you be peace”.

## Meaning

*As-salam* means “peace” — and *As-Salam* is also one of the names of God, the Source of peace. *Alaikum* means “upon you”. So the greeting is more than “hello”: it is a small prayer that the other person be safe, well and at peace. Fuller forms add *wa rahmatullah* (“and God’s mercy”) and *wa barakatuh* (“and His blessings”).

## How Muslims use it

Muslims greet each other with it when they meet, when they enter a home, at the start of a phone call or message, and at the end of every prayer. The Qur’an teaches that a greeting should be returned with one equal or better (Qur’an 4:86).

The Prophet ﷺ encouraged greeting people generously, not only friends:

> Narrated 'Abdullah bin 'Amr: A man asked the Prophet (ﷺ) , "What sort of deeds or (what qualities of) Islam are good?" The Prophet (ﷺ) replied, 'To feed (the poor) and greet those whom you know and those whom you do not Know (See Hadith No)

[Sahih al-Bukhari 12](https://sunnah.com/bukhari/2#:~:text=A%20man%20asked%20the%20Prophet)Grade: Sahih (in Sahih al-Bukhari)

The words are not limited to Muslims as a phrase of peace: many Arab Christians also use *as-salamu alaikum* in daily life.

## Example

*“Assalamu alaikum!” — “Wa alaikum assalam, come in!”*

To see how greetings fit into wider Muslim manners, read [Good Character in Islam](https://islamismercy.com/en/views/good-character-in-islam/).

## Key takeaways

-   Assalamu alaikum means "peace be upon you"; the reply is wa alaikum assalam.
-   It is both a greeting and a short prayer for the other person.
-   Spreading this greeting is a recommended part of good character.

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## Sources

-   [Sahih al-Bukhari 12](https://sunnah.com/bukhari/2#:~:text=A%20man%20asked%20the%20Prophet)

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