Who is Allah?

One of the biggest misunderstandings about Islam is the belief that Muslims worship a different God than Christians and Jews. This is simply not true. The word "Allah" is just the Arabic term for "God"—the same God worshipped by Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, and Jesus (peace be upon them all). While Muslims, Christians, and Jews each have different perspectives on God, the core belief in one Almighty Creator remains the same.

For instance, Muslims—similar to Jews—do not accept the Christian concepts of the Trinity or the idea of God becoming human. But it’s important to know that Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews also use the word "Allah" to refer to God. If you open an Arabic Bible, you’ll see "Allah" used where English Bibles say "God." That's because "Allah" is the only Arabic word for God.

A unique aspect of the word "Allah" is that it cannot be made plural or assigned a gender, which aligns perfectly with the Islamic belief in one, indivisible God. In contrast, the English word "god" can become "gods" or "goddess."

Interestingly, the Aramaic word for God—"El"—which Jesus (peace be upon him) used, sounds much closer to "Allah" than the English "God." Similarly, Hebrew words for God, like "El" and "Elah," share linguistic roots with "Allah." This makes sense since Aramaic, Hebrew, and Arabic are all Semitic languages with common origins.

In English Bible translations, the Hebrew word "El" has been translated in different ways—as "God," "god," or even "angel"—which can lead to confusion. But "Allah" in Arabic is always used exclusively for the One True God, removing any ambiguity.

The word "Allah" itself carries deep meaning, derived from the Arabic verb "ta'allaha" (or "alaha"), which means "to be worshipped." So, at its core, "Allah" means "The One who deserves all worship"—which beautifully captures the essence of Islamic monotheism.