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From: mmdh@cbnewsf.cb.att.com (Mamdouh Maher)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.islam
Subject: Re: Why Allah?
Message-ID: <1991May21.181050.5836@wpi.WPI.EDU>
Date: 21 May 91 18:10:50 GMT
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Assalamu 'alaykum, brother Mohammad Fadel writes:

>As a matter of philology, the word "Allah" is simply "Ilah" (god) plus the
>definite article "al", which produces "al-Ilah."  Hence, in Arabic we have
>the two names "'Abd Allah," and "'Abd al-Ilah," which are synonomous.  As
>for Allah not having any linguistic roots, this is entirely spurious.  The
>root of Allah is hamza (alif), lam, and ha.  From this root other verbs and
>other nouns are derived.
>
>Moreover, if "Allah" is taken to be the special name of God, how do we under-
>stand "Ilah an-nas," in Surat al-Nas?  Is it a different Ilah? (Astaghfir
>Allah!)

  Using the root hamza-lam-ha, one derives ilah (deity), and other related 
words, but not Allah. For instance, Allah includes the heavy L, (L as in mall,
otherwise, Arabic uses the light L as in black) which is not in the root.
  
  Al-ilah (the god, ie: the one god - God) and Ilah-al-nas (the god of people)
refer to Allah, same way Al-Rahman (the Merciful) does. Each means something
different, yet they all refer to Allah.
 
Assalamu 'alaykum,

Mamdouh Maher