اللہ آپ کو سلامت رکھے
Allah aap ko salamat rakhay
The English phrase 'God bless you' can be translated into Urdu as اللہ آپ کو سلامت رکھے (Allah aap ko salamat rakhay).
This phrase is an interjection used to respond to someone who has sneezed.
Meaning: said to somebody who has sneezed (intj)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase translates literally to 'May Allah keep you safe' or 'May Allah keep you sound', where salamat means safe or sound and rakhay means keep.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase uses the subjunctive mood in the word rakhay to express a wish or a prayer.
How do you pronounce it?
Allah aap ko salamat rakhay
Did you know?
- The word کو which means 'to' in this phrase evolved from an ancient word for 'armpit' through a sequence of meanings involving 'at the side' and 'towards'.
- In many Urdu-speaking households, the person who sneezes often responds to اللہ آپ کو سلامت رکھے with a prayer for the other person in return.
- Because اللہ آپ کو سلامت رکھے uses the formal آپ, using the informal تم would be considered inappropriate or overly blunt when blessing a stranger or elder.
Example conversation
Fatima and Ahmed are sitting in a living room.
- فاطمہ Fatimaآچھیو!Achhoo!*Sneeze*
- احمد Ahmedاللہ آپ کو سلامت رکھے، فاطمہ۔Allah aap ko salamat rakhe, Fatima.God bless you, Fatima.
- فاطمہ Fatimaشکریہ، احمد۔Shukriya, Ahmed.Thank you, Ahmed.
- احمد Ahmedکوئی بات نہیں۔Koi baat nahi.No problem.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries آپ, اللہ, سلامت, کو, CC BY-SA 4.0.
