Side by side

Same word,
different mouths

The names of God in Hebrew, Aramaic and Arabic, and the Names of Allah they echo.

Bowl with Arabic Inscription. Unknown maker. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1965 · CC0 1.0

Three faiths · Same word, different mouths

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Many of the ways Jews, Christians and Muslims speak of God come from the same family of words. The strongest parallels share a root; others share a meaning. We only show the real ones.

Try it

Same word, three scriptures

Pick a word. Guess whether Hebrew and Arabic share its root, then see it in each scripture's own words.

	Hebrew	Christian usage	The Names in Islam	How close
Merciful	רַחוּם · Raḥum	Merciful One; Father of mercies	ar-Raḥmān, ar-Raḥīm	Same root, r-ḥ-m: “womb”
Peace	שָׁלוֹם · Shalom	The God of peace (Romans 15:33)	as-Salām	Same root, š-l-m; a divine name in both Jewish law and Islam
Holy	קָדוֹשׁ · Kadosh	Holy, holy, holy (the Sanctus)	al-Quddūs	Same root, q-d-š; Isaiah 6:3 in synagogue and church
One	אֶחָד · Eḥad	“The Lord is one” (Mark 12:29)	al-Aḥad, al-Wāḥid	The same old Semitic word for one
Creator	בּוֹרֵא · Borei	Maker of heaven and earth	al-Bāriʾ, al-Khāliq	Same root, b-r-ʾ
Most High	אֵל עֶלְיוֹן · El Elyon	The Most High (Luke 1:32)	al-ʿAliyy, al-Mutaʿālī	Same idea, related roots
King	מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם · Melekh ha-olam	King of kings	al-Malik, Mālik al-Mulk	Same root, m-l-k; opens every Jewish blessing
Living	אֱלָהָא חַיָּא · Elāhā ḥayyā	The living God	al-Ḥayy al-Qayyūm	Daniel 6:27 and Qur'an 2:255: “the living God, enduring for ever”
Forgiving	נֹשֵׂא עָוֹן · Nosé avon	Forgiveness of sins	al-Ghafūr, at-Tawwāb	All three link turning back and forgiveness
Lord	אֲדֹנָי · Adonai	Lord (Kyrios)	Rabb	Saadia's Torah: “Allah our Lord”

Watch

Watch more

**How Similar Are ARABIC and HEBREW? (Massive reboot)**Langfocus · 24 minLangfocus: Arabic and Hebrew side by side.

**How Similar Are Biblical Hebrew and Biblical Aramaic?**Langfocus · 22 minLangfocus: Biblical Hebrew and Biblical Aramaic.

Hear it

The Shema in Hebrew, the Lord's Prayer in Arabic in a London church, al-Ikhlas recited: on the Listen page, each in its own tradition's voice.

Source: standard Hebrew and Arabic lexicons; we leave out parallels that scholars think are only surface likeness.

Watch more: Same word, different mouths

6 films and talks, chosen for this page. They play here.

Jewish, Muslim and Christian Arabic: Dr Esther-Miriam Wagner
WoolfInstitute · 8 min
What Is the Difference between God and Hashem?
Jewish Learning Institute · 46 min
Beautiful Names of Allah (Part 2): The Name "Allah"
Yasir Qadhi · 14 min
Dr Yasir Qadhi on the Name "Allah".
Are All Religions Talking About the Same God? | John Behr
Closer To Truth · 10 min
Is Allah God? | Prof. Miroslav Volf
Emir-Stein Center · 9 min
The Origins of Hebrew
ReligionForBreakfast · 11 min
More films and talks on F-ILMWatch free