Allah (English)

Where does "Allah" come from?

The word 'Allah' originates from the Proto-Semitic root *ʾil-, a foundational term for 'deity' that also gave rise to the Hebrew 'el' and Aramaic 'alah'. In Arabic, it evolved as a contraction of 'al-' (the) and 'ilah' (deity), functioning as 'The God'. This term shares a deep linguistic lineage across Semitic languages, ultimately expressing the singular concept of the divine.

Full etymology tree

• Allah (English), 'God, in Islamic or Arabic contexts'
  • borrowed allāh (Arabic)
    • compound al- (Arabic)
    • compound ʔilah (Arabic)
      • inherited *ʾil- (Proto-Semitic)

Direct ancestors

• אלה (Aramaic)

Updated June 2026

Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris