Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Numberup AT worldnet.att.net]

Henry Churchyard wrote:

> If you want to get parallels with Arabic "Allah", then look at Hebrew
> 'Eloah ('aleph,h.at.eph-s@ghol,lamedh,h.olem,pathah.-g@nubha,he-mappiq)
> which corresponds to Arabic 'Ilaahu by regular sound correspondence
> rules.  Arabic "Allah" actually seems to be a kind of contraction of
> 'Al-'Ilaahu ("the god").  The Old Testament Aramaic cognate to Hebrew
> 'Eloah and Arabic 'Ilaahu is 'Elah ('aleph,h.at.eph-s@ghol,lamedh,qames.,
> he-mappiq), showing the Aramaic absence of the Canaanite long a to o
> change which is seen in Hebrew 'Eloah.
>

However, orthodox (Sunni) Muslim scholars insist that "Allah" does not mean 
"the God"
and is not formed by a contraction of al (the) + ilah (god).  It should not be
overlooked that Syriac ("Christian Aramaic") pronounces the word as "Alaha" 
(as in the
Peshitta), and this is a more probable influence upon the Arabic, especially 
the
Arabic of Muhammad ibn Abdullah, to whom the Qur'an was given.

Solomon Landers
Memra Institute for Biblical Research
http://www.memrain.org