Islam

[is-lahm, iz-, is-luh m, iz-]

noun

the religious faith of Muslims, based on the words and religious system founded by the prophet Muhammad and taught by the Koran, the basic principle of which is absolute submission to a unique and personal god, Allah.

the whole body of Muslim believers, their civilization, and the countries in which theirs is the dominant religion.

Origin of Islam

First recorded in 1605–15, Islam is from the Arabic word islām literally, submission (to God)

Also called Muhammadanism.

Related formsIs·lam·ic

[is-lam-ik, -lah-mik, iz-] /ɪsˈlæm ɪk, -ˈlɑ mɪk, ɪz-/, Is·lam·it·ic

[is-luh-mit-ik, iz-] /ˌɪs ləˈmɪt ɪk, ˌɪz-/, adjectivenon-Is·lam·ic, adjectivenon-Is·lam·it·ic, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for islam

His discourse is now more detailed: submission, which is the meaning of islam in Arabic, gives him a kind of enjoyment.
Houellebecq’s Incendiary Novel Imagines France With a Muslim President|Pierre Assouline|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It was followed by several told-you-so articles with titles like “Have No Illusion: Islam Is the Enemy.”
Europe’s Islam Haters Say We Told You So|Barbie Latza Nadeau|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
As far as I can tell, this magazine spent as much time making fun of French politicians as it did of Muslims or Islam.
Harry Shearer on The Dangerous Business of Satire|Lloyd Grove|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
In any case, Pakistan as a nation has been unforgiving of any slights against Islam.
Disco Mullah Blasphemy Row Highlights Pakistan’s Hypocrisy|Shaheen Pasha|December 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST

When Christians and Hindus are accused of insulting Islam in Pakistan, the punishment is harsh.
Disco Mullah Blasphemy Row Highlights Pakistan’s Hypocrisy|Shaheen Pasha|December 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
With Massoudy begins also the formal discussion of geographical problems affecting Islam.
Prince Henry the Navigator, the Hero of Portugal and of Modern Discovery, 1394-1460 A.D.|C. Raymond Beazley
Your Majesty, the day is scarcely full born, yet see how Islam is rueing it.
The Prince of India, Volume II|Lew. Wallace
Would not each party have some little reason to claim for it alone first rank in the Prophet's affection and the annals of Islam?
The Life of Mohammad|Etienne Dinet
But the revolution, the new Islam, if it could not be conquered must be made to suffer for its triumph.
The Liberation of Italy|Countess Evelyn Martinengo-Cesaresco
They even declared that if Cansu Alguri consented to treat with the infidels, he was no true son of Islam.
De Orbe Novo, Volume 1 (of 2)|Trans. by Francis Augustus MacNutt

British Dictionary definitions for islam

Islam

noun

the religion of Muslims, having the Koran as its sacred scripture and teaching that there is only one God and that Mohammed is his prophet; Mohammedanism

Muslims collectively and their civilization
the countries where the Muslim religion is predominant

Derived FormsIslamic, adjective

Word Origin for Islam

C19: from Arabic: surrender (to God), from aslama to surrender

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for islam

Islam

"religious system revealed by Muhammad," 1818, from Arabic islam, literally "submission" (to the will of God), from root of aslama "he resigned, he surrendered, he submitted," causative conjunction of salima "he was safe," and related to salam "peace."

... Islam is the only major religion, along with Buddhism (if we consider the name of the religion to come from Budd, the Divine Intellect, and not the Buddha), whose name is not related to a person or ethnic group, but to the central idea of the religion. ["The Heart of Islam: Enduring Values for Humanity," Seyyed Hossein Nasr, 2002]

Earlier English names for the faith include Mahometry (late 15c.), Muhammadism (1610s), Islamism (1747), and Ismaelism (c.1600), which in part is from Ishmaelite, a name formerly given (especially by Jews) to Arabs, as descendants of Ishmael (q.v.), and in part from Arabic Ismailiy, name of the Shiite sect that after 765 C.E. followed the Imamship through descendants of Ismail (Arabic for Ishmael), eldest son of Jafar, the sixth Imam. The Ismailians were not numerous, but among them were the powerful Fatimid dynasty in Egypt and the Assassins, both of whom loomed large in European imagination.

Culture definitions for islam

Islam

A religion, founded by Muhammad, whose members worship the one God of Jews (see also Jews) and Christians (see also Christian)(God is called Allah in Arabic) and follow the teachings of the Koran. Islam means “submission to the will of God”; adherents of Islam are called Muslims. The fundamental belief of Islam is “There is only one God, and Muhammad is his prophet.”

Muslims are obliged to pray five times a day, to fast in the daytime during the holy month of Ramadan, to abstain from pork and alcohol, and to make gifts to the poor. All of them are expected to make a pilgrimage to Mecca (see also Mecca), Muhammad's birthplace, at least once in their lives.

Note

Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims make up the two main branches of Islam.

Note

Islam is the dominant faith in Arab nations, a number of countries of central Asia, and Malaysia and Indonesia.

Islam

noun

RELATED CONTENT

Origin of Islam

Examples from the Web for islam

Islam

noun

Word Origin for Islam

Islam

Islam

Note

Note