Names of God in Islam

This article is part of the series:
Islam
Beliefs Oneness of God Prophets · Revealed books Angels · Predestination Day of Resurrection
Practices Profession of faith · Prayer Fasting · Alms · Pilgrimage
Texts & laws Quran · Sunnah · Hadith Fiqh · Sharia · Kalam
History & leaders Timeline · Muhammad Ahl al-Bayt · Sahaba Rashidun · Imamate Caliphate · Spread of Islam
Denominations Sunni · Shia Sufi · Ibadi · Ahmadiyya · Quraniyoon
Culture & society Academics · Animals · Art Calendar · Children Dawah · Demographics Festivals · Mosques Philosophy · Politics Science · Women
See also Other religions · Glossary Islam portal This box: view · talk · edit

The 99 Names of God, (Arabic: أسماء الله الحسنى‎ ʾasmāʾ allāh al-ḥusnā), are the Names of God (specifically, attributes) by which Muslims regard God and which are described in the Qur'an, and Sunnah, amongst other places.^[1] There is, according to hadith, a special group of 99 names but no enumeration of them. Thus the exact list is not agreed upon, and the Names of God (as adjectives, word constructs, or otherwise) exceed 99 in the Qur'an and Sunnah. According to a hadith narrated by Abd Allah ibn Mas'ud some of the names of God have been hidden from mankind,^[2] therefore there are not only 99 names of God but there are more.

Origin

According to Islamic tradition,^[3] Muhammad is said to have invoked God by a number of Names. According to a Sunni hadith, Sahih Muslim:

Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: There are ninety-nine names of Allah; he who commits them to memory would get into Paradise. Verily, Allah is Odd (He is one, and it is an odd number) and He loves odd number. And in the narration of Ibn 'Umar (the words are): "He who enumerated them."

—Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj Nishapuri, Sahih Muslim^[4]

Over time it became custom to recite a list of 99 Names, compiled by al-Walid ibn Muslim as an addendum to the hadith.

Mahmoud Abdel-Razek (2005) compiled an alternative list, endorsing only 69 from the list of al-Walid.^[5]

The Qur'an refers to the Attributes of God as God's "most beautiful Names" (Arabic: al-ʾasmāʾ al-ḥusnā) (see the following sura, Al-A'raf 7:180, Al-Isra 17:110, Ta-Ha 20:8, Al-Hashr 59:24). According to Gerhard Böwering, {{Quote|They are traditionally enumerated as 99 in number to which is added as the highest Name (al-ism al-ʾaʿẓam), the Supreme Name of God, Allāh. The locus classicus for listing the Divine Names in the literature of Qurʾānic commentary is 17:110, “Call upon God, or call upon The Merciful; whichsoever you call upon, to Him belong the most beautiful Names,” and also 59:22–24 q 59:22-4, which includes a cluster of more than a dozen Divine epithets.

The Islamic list of "99 Names of God" has similarities with the Zoroastrian 101 Names of God.^[6] Parsi tradition expanded this to a list of "1001 names of God".^[7]

List of 99 Names of God as found in the Qur'an

#	Arabic	Transliteration	Translation (can vary based on context)	Qur'anic usage
1	الرحمن	Ar-Raḥmān	The Exceedingly Compassionate, The Exceedingly Beneficent, The Exceedingly Gracious	Beginning of every chapter except one, and in numerous other places. Name frequently used in surah 55, Ar-Rahman
2	الرحيم	Ar-Raḥīm	The Exceedingly Merciful	Beginning of every chapter except one, and in numerous other places
3	الملك	Al-Malik	The King	59:23, 20:114, 23:116
4	القدوس	Al-Quddūs	The Holy, The Pure, The Perfect	59:23, 62:1
5	السلام	As-Salām	The Peace, The Source of Peace and Safety, The Savior	59:23
6	المؤمن	Al-Mu'min	The Guarantor, The Affirming	59:23
7	المهيمن	Al-Muhaymin	The Guardian	59:23
8	العزيز	Al-‘Azīz	The Almighty, The Invulnerable, The Honorable	3:6, 4:158, 9:40, 48:7, 59:23
9	الجبار	Al-Jabbār	The Irresistible, The Compeller, The Lofty	59:23
10	المتكبر	Al-Mutakabbir	The Majestic, The Supreme	59:23
11	الخالق	Al-Khāliq	The Creator	6:102, 13:16, 39:62, 40:62, 59:24
12	البارئ	Al-Bāri'	The Evolver, The Fashioner, The Designer	59:24
13	المصور	Al-Muṣawwir	The Fashioner of Forms	59:24
14	الغفار	Al-Ghaffār	The Repeatedly Forgiving	20:82, 38:66, 39:5, 40:42, 71:10
15	القهار	Al-Qahhār	The Subduer	12:39, 13:16, 14:48, 38:65, 39:4, 40:16
16	الوهاب	Al-Wahhāb	The Bestower	3:8, 38:9, 38:35
17	الرزاق	Ar-Razzāq	The Provider	51:58
18	الفتاح	Al-Fattāḥ	The Opener, The Victory Giver	34:26
19	العليم	Al-'Aleem	The All Knowing, The Omniscient	2:158, 3:92, 4:35, 24:41, 33:40
20	القابض	Al-Qābiḍ	The Restrainer, The Straightener	2:245
21	الباسط	Al-Bāsiṭ	The Extender / Expander	2:245
22	الخافض	Al-Khāfiḍ	The Abaser	95:5
23	الرافع	Ar-Rāfi'	The Exalter	58:11, 6:83
24	المعز	Al-Mu'izz	The Giver of Honour	3:26
25	المذل	Al-Mudhill	The Giver of Dishonour	3:26
26	السميع	As-Samī'	The All Hearing	2:127, 2:256, 8:17, 49:1
27	البصير	Al-Baṣīr	The All Seeing	4:58, 17:1, 42:11, 42:27
28	الحكم	Al-Ḥakam	The Judge, The Arbitrator	22:69
29	العدل	Al-'Adl	The Utterly Just	6:115
30	اللطيف	Al-Laṭīf	The Gentle, The Subtly Kind	6:103, 22:63, 31:16, 33:34
31	الخبير	Al-Khabeer	The All Aware	6:18, 17:30, 49:13, 59:18
32	الحليم	Al Haleem	The Forbearing, The Indulgent	2:235, 17:44, 22:59, 35:41
33	العظيم	Al-'Aẓeem	The Magnificent	2:255, 42:4, 56:96
34	الغفور	Al Ghafūr	The Much-Forgiving	2:173, 8:69, 16:110, 41:32
35	الشكور	Ash-Shakūr	The Grateful	35:30, 35:34, 42:23, 64:17
36	العلي	Al-'Alīy	The Sublime	4:34, 31:30, 42:4, 42:51
37	الكبير	Al-Kabīr	The Great	13:9, 22:62, 31:30
38	الحفيظ	Al-Ḥafeeẓ	The Preserver	11:57, 34:21, 42:6
39	المقيت	Al-Muqeet	The Nourisher	4:85
40	الحسيب	Al-Ḥaseeb	The Bringer of Judgment	4:6, 4:86, 33:39
41	الجليل	Al-Jalīl	The Majestic	55:27, 39:14, 7:143
42	الكريم	Al-Karīm	The Bountiful, The Generous	27:40, 82:6
43	الرقيب	Ar-Raqīb	The Watchful	4:1, 5:117
44	المجيب	Al-Mujīb	The Responsive, The Answer	11:61
45	الواسع	Al-Wāsi'	The Vast, The All-Embracing, The Omnipresent, The Boundless	2:268, 3:73, 5:54
46	الحكيم	Al-Ḥakīm	The Wise	31:27, 46:2, 57:1, 66:2
47	الودود	Al-Wadūd	The Loving	11:90, 85:14
48	المجيد	Al-Majīd	All-Glorious, The Majestic	11:73
49	الباعث	Al-Bā'ith	The Resurrecter	22:7
50	الشهيد	Ash-Shahīd	The Witness	4:166, 22:17, 41:53, 48:28
51	الحق	Al-Ḥaqq	The Truth, The Reality	6:62, 22:6, 23:116, 24:25
52	الوكيل	Al-Wakīl	The Trustee, The Dependable, The Advocate	3:173, 4:171, 28:28, 73:9
53	القوي	Al-Qawwīy	The Strong	22:40, 22:74, 42:19, 57:25
54	المتين	Al-Matīn	The Firm, The Steadfast	51:58
55	الولي	Al-Walīy	The Friend, Patron and Helper	4:45, 7:196, 42:28, 45:19
56	الحميد	Al-Ḥamīd	The All Praiseworthy	14:8, 31:12, 31:26, 41:42
57	المحصي	Al-Muḥṣīy	The Accounter, The Numberer of All	72:28, 78:29, 82:10-12
58	المبدئ	Al-Mubdi'	The Originator, The Producer, The Initiator	10:34, 27:64, 29:19, 85:13
59	المعيد	Al-Mu'īd	The Restorer, The Reinstater Who Brings Back All	10:34, 27:64, 29:19, 85:13
60	المحيي	Al-Muḥyīy	The Giver of Life	7:158, 15:23, 30:50, 57:2
61	المميت	Al-Mumīt	The Destroyer, The Bringer of Death	3:156, 7:158, 15:23, 57:2
62	الحي	Al-Ḥayy	The Living	2:255, 3:2, 25:58, 40:65
63	القيوم	Al-Qayyūm	The Subsisting, The Guardian	2:255, 3:2, 20:111
64	الواجد	Al-Wājid	The Perceiver, The Finder, The Unfailing	38:44
65	الماجد	Al-Mājid	The Illustrious, The Magnificent	85:15, 11:73,
66	الواحد	Al-Wāḥid	The One, The Unique	2:163, 5:73, 9:31, 18:110
67	الاحد	Al-'Aḥad	The Unity, The Indivisible	112:1
68	الصمد	Aṣ-Ṣamad	The Eternal, The Absolute, The Self-Sufficient	112:2
69	القادر	Al-Qādir	The Omnipotent, The All Able	6:65, 36:81, 46:33, 75:40
70	المقتدر	Al-Muqtadir	The Determiner, The Dominant	18:45, 54:42, 54:55
71	المقدم	Al-Muqaddim	The Expediter, He Who Brings Forward	16:61, 17:34,
72	المؤخر	Al-Mu'akhkhir	The Delayer, He Who Puts Far Away	71:4
73	الأول	Al-'Awwal	The First, The Beginning-less	57:3
74	الأخر	Al-'Akhir	The Last, The Endless	57:3
75	الظاهر	Aẓ-Ẓāhir	The Manifest, The Evident, The Outer	57:3
76	الباطن	Al-Bāṭin	The Hidden, The Unmanifest, The Inner	57:3
77	الوالي	Al-Wālīy	The Patron, The Protecting Friend, The Friendly Lord	13:11, 22:7
78	المتعالي	Al-Muta'ālīy	The Supremely Exalted, The Most High	13:9
79	البر	Al-Barr	The Good, The Beneficent	52:28
80	التواب	At-Tawwāb	The Ever Returning, Ever Relenting	2:128, 4:64, 49:12, 110:3
81	المنتقم	Al-Muntaqim	The Avenger	32:22, 43:41, 44:16
82	العفو	Al-'Afūw	The Pardoner, The Effacer, The Forgiver	4:99, 4:149, 22:60
83	الرؤوف	Ar-Ra'ūf	The Kind, The Pitying	3:30, 9:117, 57:9, 59:10
84	مالك الملك	Mālik-ul-Mulk	The Owner of all Sovereignty	3:26
85	ذو الجلال والإكرام	Dhū-l-Jalāli wa-l-'ikrām	The Lord of Majesty and Generosity	55:27, 55:78
86	المقسط	Al-Muqsiţ	The Equitable, The Requiter	7:29, 3:18
87	الجامع	Al-Jāmi'	The Gatherer, The Unifier	3:9
88	الغني	Al-Ghanīy	The Rich, The Independent	3:97, 39:7, 47:38, 57:24
89	المغني	Al-Mughnīy	The Enricher, The Emancipator	9:28
90	المانع	Al-Māni'	The Withholder, The Shielder, The Defender	67:21
91	الضار	Aḍ-Ḍārr	The Distressor, The Harmer, The Afflictor	6:17
92	النافع	An-Nāfi'	The Propitious, The Benefactor, The Source of Good	30:37
93	النور	An-Nūr	The Light	24:35
94	الهادي	Al-Hādīy	The Guide, The Way	22:54
95	البديع	Al-Badī'	The Incomparable, The Unattainable	2:117, 6:101
96	الباقي	Al-Bāqīy	The Immutable, The Infinite, The Everlasting	55:27
97	الوارث	Al-Wārith	The Heir, The Inheritor of All	15:23
98	الرشيد	Ar-Rashīd	The Guide to the Right Path	2:256
99	الصبور	Aṣ-Ṣabūr	The Timeless, The Patient	2:153, 3:200, 103:3

The greatest name

The 99 names point to the inherent unity of the all-embracing Greatest Name.^[8] In Islamic traditions, it is stated "The Greatest Name of Allah is the one which if He [Allah] is called (prayed to) by it, He will Answer."^[9]

Personal names

According to Islamic tradition,^[10] a Muslim may not be given any of the 99 names of Allah in exactly the same form. For example, nobody may be named al-Malik (The King), but may be named Malik (King). This is because of the belief that Allah is almighty, and no human being is the equivalent of Allah, and no human being will ever be the equivalent of Allah. Muslims are allowed to use the 99 names of Allah for themselves but should not put 'Al' at the front of them.

However the names/attributes of Allah can be combined with the word "‘Abd -" which means "servant/Worshiper" (of Allah) and are commonly used as personal names among Muslims. For example ‘Abd ar-Raḥmān ("Servant of the Most Compassionate/the Beneficent"). The two parts of the name may be written separately (as above) or combined as one transliterated name; in such a case, the vowel transcribed after ‘Abd is often written as u when the two words are transcribed as one: e.g., Abdurrahman, Abdul'aziz, "Abdul Jabbar", or even Abdullah ("Servant of Allah"). (This has to do with Arabic case vowels, the final u vowel showing the normal "quote" nominative/vocative case form: ‘abd-u.)

Some Muslim people have names resembling those 99. Examples include:

• Salaam, such as Salam Fayyad.
• Jabbaar, such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
• Shakoor, such as Tupac Shakur.
• Kareem, such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
• Hakeem, such as Sherman "Abdul Hakim" Jackson.
• Ra'oof, such as Ra'ouf Mus'ad.

Views of other religions

Bábí and Bahá'í view

Bahá'í sources state that the 100th name was revealed as "Bahá’" (an Arabic word بهاء meaning "glory, splendor" etc.), which is the root word for Bahá'u'lláh and Bahá'í. They also believe that it is the 'Greatest Name'.^[11][12] The Báb wrote a noted pentagram-shaped tablet with 360 derivatives of the word "Bahá'" used in it.^[11]

According to Bahá'í scholar ‘Abdu’l-Hamíd Ishráq-Khávari, Baha' ad-Din al-`Amili adopted the pen name (takhallus) 'Baha' after being inspired by words of Shi'a Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (the fifth Imam) and Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq (the sixth Imam), who had stated that the Greatest Name of God was included in either Du'ay-i-Sahar or A`amaal Ummi Dawud.^[11] In the first verse of the Du'ay-i-Sahar, a dawn prayer for the Ramadan, the name "Bahá" appears four times: "Allahumma inni as 'aluka min Bahá' ika bi Abháh va kulla Bahá' ika Bahí".^[13]

See also

• Basmala
• List of Arabic theophoric names
• Names of God
• The 99, a comic book based on the 99 names of God in Islam
• The Nine Billion Names of God, a short story by Arthur C. Clarke

Notes

1. ^ Fleming, Marrianne; Worden, David (2004). Religious Studies for AQA; Thinking About God and Morality. Oxford: Heinemann Educational Publishers. ISBN 0-435-30713-4. 
2. ^ Taymiyya, Ibn. The Goodly Word: al-Kalim al-Ṭayyib. Islamic Texts Society. p. 72. ISBN 1903682150. 
3. ^ Ibn Majah, Book of Du`a;<sup>[citation needed]</sup> and by Imam Malik in his Muwatta', Kitab al-Shi`r^{[citation needed]}
4. ^ Sahih Muslim, 35:6475
5. ^ Mahmoud Abdul Razek Al Radwany, “Of the 99 Names Of Allah That We Repeat: Only 69 Are Authentic” published in the Egyptian daily, Al Ahram, on Nov 18, 2005. His objections are mostly grammatical in that a ‘name’ in Arabic must be a noun: “only 69 of those Names are authenticated from the Quran and Sunnah, while 29 are not authentic in that 22 are verbs or adjectives, and 7 are 'modafa' or ‘added to.’” Islamic Forum
6. ^ Edalji Kersâspji Antiâ, Pazend texts, Bombay 1909, pp. 335-337
7. ^ Antonio Panainom, The lists of names of Ahura Mazdā (Yašt I) and Vayu (Yašt XV), 2002, p. 20.
8. ^ Schimmel, Annemarie (1993). The Mystery of Numbers. New York, USA: Oxford University Press. p. 271. ISBN 0195089197. http://books.google.com/?id=lBIZ9PRZvPIC&pg=PA271. 
9. ^ Momen, Moojan (2000). Islam and the Bahá'í Faith. Oxford, UK: George Ronald. pp. 241. ISBN 0853984468.  The endnote states: "Ibn Májah, Sunan, 34. (Kitáb ad-Du'á), ch. 9, no. 3856, vol. 2, p. 1267. See also: Ad-Dárimí, Sunan, 23 (Fada'il al-Qur'án), ch. 15, no. 3296, vol. 2, pp. 324-5. Similar statements in Shi'i Traditions include: Majlisí, Bihár al-Anwár, vol. 26. p. 7."
10. ^ Are there any names which it is forbidden to use? If so, what are they?
11. ^ ^{a b c} Lambden, Stephen (1993). "The Word Bahá': Quintessence of the Greatest Name". Bahá'í Studies Review 3 (1). http://bahai-library.com/lambden_quintessence_greatest_name. 
12. ^ Smith, Peter (2000). "greatest name". A concise encyclopedia of the Bahá'í Faith. Oxford: Oneworld Publications. pp. 167–8. ISBN 1-85168-184-1. 
13. ^ Khadem, Dhikru'llah (March 1976). "Bahá'u'lláh and His Most Holy Shrine". Bahá'í News (540): pp. 4–5. http://www.teachingandprojects.com/meansandmaterials.htm. 

External links

• http://asmaulhusna.info Asmaulhusna Information Site
• http://www.99namesallah.org A Site containing 99 names of Allah with complete reference in the Holy Quran with pdf , powerpoint format also.
• The Beautiful Names of Allah A site containing the derivation and meanings of the 99 names. Also has audio of someone saying each one.
• 99 Names of Allah a more concise account on the attributes of Allah
• The Most Beautiful Names of Allah Gives a list of the names in English and Arabic as well as the verses in which they are found in the Qur'an.
• Oil paintings of all the 99 names of Allah Also you can view 99 names of Muhammad.
• 319 Attributes of Allah Allah's Attributes with English and Urdu translations.