How Do You Write Allah in Arabic?
ٱللَّٰه
al-LAAH (stress on the second syllable, with a long a)
Allah is written ٱللَّٰه in Arabic, and it is the name Muslims use for the one Creator; Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews use the same word. It is pronounced with a doubled, stretched L sound: al-LAAH.
The letters
The word is made of four letters read right to left: alif (ا), two lams (لل) and ha (ه). In fully voweled text, a shaddah (a small mark like a w) sits over the second lam to show it is doubled, and a small upright alif above it shows the long a sound. Many printed copies also show a little mark on the first alif to show it joins smoothly to the word before it.
Because it is written so often, many fonts and keyboards offer a single combined character for it, ﷲ, and calligraphers have shaped it in countless ways.
Pronunciation
Say it as al-LAAH, holding the double l slightly and stretching the final a. After a word ending in a or u, such as in Subhan Allah or Abdullah, the l is pronounced full and heavy. After an i sound, as in Bismillah, it is pronounced lightly. The final h is soft but should still be heard.
What the word means
Allah is the proper name of the Creator in Arabic. Many classical scholars explain it as coming from al-ilah, meaning the god, contracted into one word. Others hold that it is a unique name that is not derived from any other word. Both views agree that it refers to the One who has no partner.
Unlike the English word god, Allah has no plural and no feminine form. Arabic-speaking Christians use the same word in their Bibles and prayers.
How the Quran speaks of Allah
Surah Al-Ikhlas (112:1-4) is the shortest description of who Allah is: One, the one everyone turns to in need, who does not give birth and was not born, with nothing comparable to Him. Ayat al-Kursi (2:255) describes Allah as the Living, who never sleeps, whose knowledge and throne take in everything.
The Quran also speaks of Allah's most beautiful names in 7:180 and 17:110, and lists many of them together at the end of Surah Al-Hashr (59:22-24), such as the Most Merciful, the Holy, the Source of Peace and the Creator. A hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim says Allah has ninety-nine names. The well-known list of those ninety-nine comes from a narration in Sunan at-Tirmidhi, and many scholars consider the list itself to have been added by a narrator.
Verses mentioned here
قُلۡ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ ﴿١﴾
Say, “He is Allah, the One.
ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلۡحَيُّ ٱلۡقَيُّومُۚ لَا تَأۡخُذُهُۥ سِنَةࣱ وَلَا نَوۡمࣱۚ لَّهُۥ مَا فِي ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِۗ مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِي يَشۡفَعُ عِندَهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِإِذۡنِهِۦۚ يَعۡلَمُ مَا بَيۡنَ أَيۡدِيهِمۡ وَمَا خَلۡفَهُمۡۖ وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَيۡءٖ مِّنۡ عِلۡمِهِۦٓ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَۚ وَسِعَ كُرۡسِيُّهُ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضَۖ وَلَا يَـُٔودُهُۥ حِفۡظُهُمَاۚ وَهُوَ ٱلۡعَلِيُّ ٱلۡعَظِيمُ ﴿٢٥٥﴾
Allah! There is no god except He, the Living, the Everlasting. Neither slumber overtakes Him, nor sleep. To Him belongs everything in the heavens and everything on earth. Who is he that can intercede with Him except with His permission? He knows what is before them, and what is behind them; and they cannot grasp any of His knowledge, except as He wills. His Throne extends over the heavens and the earth, and their preservation does not burden Him. He is the Most High, the Great.
هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِي لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَۖ عَٰلِمُ ٱلۡغَيۡبِ وَٱلشَّهَٰدَةِۖ هُوَ ٱلرَّحۡمَٰنُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ ﴿٢٢﴾
He is Allah. There is no god but He, the Knower of secrets and declarations. He is the Compassionate, the Merciful.
Questions
Is Allah a different God from the God of Christians and Jews?
In Arabic, Allah simply means the one God, and Arab Christians and Jews use the same word. Muslims believe Allah is the God of Abraham, Moses and Jesus, while differing from Christians and Jews on some beliefs about Him.
Does Allah have 99 names?
A hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim mentions ninety-nine names. The Quran mentions many names, and scholars note that Allah's names are not limited to ninety-nine.
How do you type Allah in Arabic?
Type the letters alif, lam, lam, ha (الله). Many keyboards also offer the single character ﷲ.