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From: jnawaz@skat.usc.edu (Jemshed Nawaz)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.islam
Subject: Re: Why Allah?
Message-ID: <1991May9.134847.4629@nntp-server.caltech.edu>
Date: 9 May 91 13:48:47 GMT
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Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena
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In article <1991May8.161725.21798@wpi.WPI.EDU> sinnott@iastate.edu
(Sinnott Susan Buthaina) writes:
>
>	EXACTLY!  I have been wanting to ask the say question for a long time.
>Allah is the Arabic word for God, Dieu is the French word for God, etc.
>Many people think that Allah is the name of a "god", which is not correct.
>	And while we are at it, since we are writing in English on this 
>board, let us try to stick to English as much as possible.  I get really
>tired to trying to decipher all the Arabic.
>
>Susan


	NO NO NO!!
	I disagree with what you are trying to do.
	First you cast doubt on the requirements of Hijab (which are
	very explicit) .... Insha-Allah I'll try to respond to that
	post of yours in the near future.
		ALLAH is the personal name of God, the Creator, the
	Sustainer,... ALLAH cannot be translated to God, Dieu, or
	whatever. The Arabic word for God is Ilah. ALLAH has no roots
	from which it has been derived. If non-Muslims get confused
	then it is your duty to inform them what the word means. The
	word God has connotaions that the word ALLAH doesn't, such as
	God having a son or a human being a God, etc ... ALLAH is free
	of such association. If non-Muslims object to the usage, tell
	them we refer to God as ALLAH because ALLAH means the One and
	Universal God, the Self-Sufficient who has no need of a
	partner or a son.
		As to your second objection, I think we should stick
	to Arabic, but as suggested before we can include the meaning
	of the Arabic words. 
		Translating all the Arabic words just because the
	English-speaking people object is impractical; consider
	writing "Surrender/Submission" instead of "Islam", or "those
	who submit" instead of "Muslims" ... and soon you'll be
	suggesting writing "the praised one" instead of "Muhammad".

Jemshed Nawaz