Who Is Allah?

Some people imagine that “Allah” is a different god, worshipped only by Muslims. In fact, the word is much simpler — and much more familiar — than that. To understand Islam, it helps to start with the God at its centre.

“Allah” is the Arabic word for God

Allah is the word for God in the Arabic language. It is a close linguistic relative of the Hebrew Eloah (plural Elohim) and the Aramaic Alaha — Aramaic being the language Jesus (peace be upon him) is thought to have spoken. Arabic-speaking Christians have used Allah for centuries: open an Arabic Bible and you will find it on the very first page, in the story of creation.

So when Muslims say Allah, they mean the one God who created the universe — the God of Abraham, Moses and Jesus. Muslims and Christians understand God differently in important ways, which we discuss honestly in Is Allah the Same God? But the word itself simply means God.

One God, with no partner and nothing like Him

The most important thing Muslims believe about God is that He is One. This belief is called tawhid — the oneness of God. One short chapter of the Qur’an sums it up so clearly that the Prophet ﷺ said it is equal to a third of the whole Qur’an (Sahih al-Bukhari 5013):

قُلْ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ ﴿١﴾ ٱللَّهُ ٱلصَّمَدُ ﴿٢﴾ لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ ﴿٣﴾ وَلَمْ يَكُن لَّهُۥ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌۢ ﴿٤﴾

¹Say, "He is Allah, [who is] One, ²Allah, the Eternal Refuge. ³He neither begets nor is born, ⁴Nor is there to Him any equivalent."

This oneness is something Muslims share with the earliest teachings of the Bible: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD” (Deuteronomy 6:4, KJV) — words that Jesus himself repeated (Mark 12:29, KJV).

The Qur’an also teaches that God is completely unlike His creation. He is not a man, He is not part of nature, and nothing we imagine can capture Him — nothing at all is like Him (Qur’an 42:11). For more, see God Is One.

How God describes Himself

Because we cannot see God, Muslims come to know Him through how He describes Himself in the Qur’an. One of the best-loved passages is known as Ayat al-Kursi, “the Verse of the Throne”:

ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلْحَىُّ ٱلْقَيُّومُ ۚ لَا تَأْخُذُهُۥ سِنَةٌۭ وَلَا نَوْمٌۭ ۚ لَّهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۗ مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِى يَشْفَعُ عِندَهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِهِۦ ۚ يَعْلَمُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ ۖ وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَىْءٍۢ مِّنْ عِلْمِهِۦٓ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَ ۚ وَسِعَ كُرْسِيُّهُ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ ۖ وَلَا يَـُٔودُهُۥ حِفْظُهُمَا ۚ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَلِىُّ ٱلْعَظِيمُ ﴿٢٥٥﴾

Allah - there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of [all] existence. Neither drowsiness overtakes Him nor sleep. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is [presently] before them and what will be after them, and they encompass not a thing of His knowledge except for what He wills. His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth, and their preservation tires Him not. And He is the Most High, the Most Great.

This verse shows a God who is fully alive, never tired and never sleeping, who knows everything and holds the whole universe together — not a distant force, but a Lord who is constantly caring for His creation.

The most beautiful names

The Qur’an calls God by many names, each describing an aspect of who He is. Near the end of chapter 59, a series of them appears together:

هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِى لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ عَٰلِمُ ٱلْغَيْبِ وَٱلشَّهَٰدَةِ ۖ هُوَ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ ﴿٢٢﴾ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِى لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلْمَلِكُ ٱلْقُدُّوسُ ٱلسَّلَٰمُ ٱلْمُؤْمِنُ ٱلْمُهَيْمِنُ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْجَبَّارُ ٱلْمُتَكَبِّرُ ۚ سُبْحَٰنَ ٱللَّهِ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ ﴿٢٣﴾ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْخَٰلِقُ ٱلْبَارِئُ ٱلْمُصَوِّرُ ۖ لَهُ ٱلْأَسْمَآءُ ٱلْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ يُسَبِّحُ لَهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ ﴿٢٤﴾

²²He is Allah, other than whom there is no deity, Knower of the unseen and the witnessed. He is the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. ²³He is Allah, other than whom there is no deity, the Sovereign, the Pure, the Perfection, the Bestower of Faith, the Overseer, the Exalted in Might, the Compeller, the Superior. Exalted is Allah above whatever they associate with Him. ²⁴He is Allah, the Creator, the Inventor, the Fashioner; to Him belong the best names. Whatever is in the heavens and earth is exalting Him. And He is the Exalted in Might, the Wise.

The Prophet ﷺ taught that knowing these names by heart is a path to Paradise:

…Allah has ninety-nine Names, one-hundred less one; and he who memorized them all by heart will enter Paradise.…

Some of the names Muslims call on most are Ar-Rahman (the Entirely Merciful), Ar-Raheem (the Especially Merciful), Al-Ghafoor (the Forgiving), Al-Wadud (the Loving), Al-Adl (the Just) and Al-Hakeem (the Wise). Notice how many of them speak of mercy and love — which is why we say that Islam is mercy.

Above everything, yet very near

God in Islam is greater than anything we can imagine. Yet He is also close. Muslims do not need a priest, a saint or any go-between to speak to Him. Anyone can call on God directly, at any time, in any language:

وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِى عَنِّى فَإِنِّى قَرِيبٌ ۖ أُجِيبُ دَعْوَةَ ٱلدَّاعِ إِذَا دَعَانِ ۖ فَلْيَسْتَجِيبُوا۟ لِى وَلْيُؤْمِنُوا۟ بِى لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْشُدُونَ ﴿١٨٦﴾

And when My servants ask you, [O Muhammad], concerning Me - indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me [by obedience] and believe in Me that they may be [rightly] guided.

This is the heart of a Muslim’s relationship with God: awe at His greatness, love for His mercy, and the confidence that He hears every prayer.

Getting to know God

Muslims believe that every human being has a natural sense that there is a Creator. Learning about God’s names and qualities simply gives that inner sense a clear picture. If you would like to keep exploring, read What Does the Word “Islam” Mean? — about what it means to submit to this God — or return to What Is Islam?