شاء الله
shaa Allah/ʃaː.ʔa aɫ.ɫaː(h)/word by word
In Arabic, the phrase "God did" is expressed as شاء الله (shaa Allah).
The phrase شاء الله is used to attribute a positive outcome or success to the will of God. It can also be used to express the hope that a specific event will occur in the future, functioning as "God willed" or "If God wills."
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the verb شاء (shaa), meaning "to will" or "to wish" and الله (Allah), meaning "God".
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /ʃaː.ʔa aɫ.ɫaː(h)/.
Did you know?
- In many Arabic dialects, a person might respond to a compliment or a compliment about their success by saying ما شاء الله to ward off the 'evil eye'.
- While شاء الله is commonly used by Muslims, it is also used by Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews to express the same sentiment of divine will.
- The word الله is widely believed to be a contraction of الٱِلٰه, which means 'the deity'.
Examples in context
- قام الله بعمل كبير في حياتي.God did a great thing in my life.
- هذا الإنجاز لا يصدق، صنعه الله فقط.This accomplishment is unbelievable, God did it alone.
- خلاص نجينا، الله أكبر!We made it, God is great!
Example conversation
Two friends are discussing a recent job promotion.
- يوسف Youssefلقد حصلت على الوظيفة يا مريم!Laqad hasaltu ala al-wad hifa ya Maryam!I got the job, Maryam!
- مريم Maryamهذا خبر رائع يا يوسف!Hadha khabar ra'i ya Yusuf!That is great news, Yusuf!
- يوسف Youssefكل شيء تم، شاء الله.Kull shay' tamm, sha' Allah.Everything happened, God willed it.
- مريم Maryamأنا سعيدة جداً من أجلك.Ana sa'ida jiddan min ajlik.I am very happy for you.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (شاء, الله) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries الله, شاء, CC BY-SA 4.0.
