Amen (, ; , ; , ; , ) is an

Abrahamic The term Abrahamic religions is used to group together monotheistic religions revering the Biblical figure Abraham, namely Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The religions share doctrinal, historical, and geographic overlap that contrasts them wit ...

declaration of affirmation which is first found in the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

. It is used in

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

, and

Islamic Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

practices as a concluding word, or as a response to a

prayer File:Prayers-collage.png, 300px, alt=Collage of various religionists praying – Clickable Image, Collage of various religionists praying ''(Clickable image – use cursor to identify.)'' rect 0 0 1000 1000 Shinto festivalgoer praying in front ...

. Common English translations of the word ''amen'' include "verily", "truly", "it is true", and "let it be so". It is also used colloquially, to express strong agreement.

Pronunciations

In English, the word ''amen'' has two primary pronunciations, () or (), with minor additional variation in emphasis (e.g., the two syllables may be equally stressed instead of placing primary stress on the second). In Anglophone North American usage, the ''ah-men'' pronunciation is used in performances of

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

and in churches with more formalized

liturgy Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...

. The ''ay-men'' pronunciation is a product of the Great Vowel Shift (i.e., it dates from the 15th century); it is associated with Irish Protestantism and with conservative

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...

denominations generally. It is also the pronunciation typically used in

gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music vary according to culture and social context. Gospel music is compo ...

Etymology

''Amen'' is a word of

Biblical Hebrew Biblical Hebrew ( or ), also called Classical Hebrew, is an archaic form of the Hebrew language, a language in the Canaanite languages, Canaanitic branch of the Semitic languages spoken by the Israelites in the area known as the Land of Isra ...

origin.Paul Joüon, SJ, ''A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew'', trans. and revised by T. Muraoka, vol. I, Rome: Editrice Pontificio Instituto Biblico, 2000. It appears many times in the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' ''Understanding Your Neighbor's Faith'', Philip Lazowski, (KTAV), 2004, p. 43 The basic triconsonantal root א-מ-נ, from which the word is derived, is common to a number of languages in the Semitic branch of the

Afroasiatic languages The Afroasiatic languages (also known as Afro-Asiatic, Afrasian, Hamito-Semitic, or Semito-Hamitic) are a language family (or "phylum") of about 400 languages spoken predominantly in West Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, and parts of th ...

, including biblical Aramaic. Meanings of the root in Hebrew include ''to be firm or confirmed, to be reliable or dependable, to be faithful, to have faith, to believe.'' The word was imported into Greek from the Judaism of the

early Church Early Christianity, otherwise called the Early Church or Paleo-Christianity, describes the historical era of the Christian religion up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325. Christianity spread from the Levant, across the Roman Empire, and bey ...

. From Greek, ''amen'' entered other European languages. According to a standard dictionary etymology of the English word, ''amen'' passed from Greek into

Late Latin Late Latin is the scholarly name for the form of Literary Latin of late antiquity.Roberts (1996), p. 537. English dictionary definitions of Late Latin date this period from the 3rd to 6th centuries CE, and continuing into the 7th century in ...

, and thence into English. From Hebrew, the word was later adopted into the

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

religious vocabulary and leveled to the Arabic root , which is of similar meanings to the Hebrew. The interjection occurs in the Christian and Islamic lexicons, most commonly in prayer, as well as secularly, albeit less commonly, so as to signify complete affirmation or deference. In religious texts, it occurs in Arabic translations of the Bible and after reciting the traditionally first chapter of the Quran, which is formally akin to religious supplications. Popular among some theosophists, proponents of Afrocentric theories of history, and adherents of esoteric Christianity is the

conjecture In mathematics, a conjecture is a conclusion or a proposition that is proffered on a tentative basis without proof. Some conjectures, such as the Riemann hypothesis or Fermat's conjecture (now a theorem, proven in 1995 by Andrew Wiles), ha ...

that ''amen'' is a derivative of the name of the Egyptian god

Amun Amun was a major ancient Egyptian deity who appears as a member of the Hermopolitan Ogdoad. Amun was attested from the Old Kingdom together with his wife Amunet. His oracle in Siwa Oasis, located in Western Egypt near the Libyan Desert, r ...

(which is sometimes also spelled Amen). Some adherents of Eastern religions believe that ''amen'' shares roots with the Hindu

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

word '' Aum''. Such external etymologies are not included in standard etymological reference works. The Hebrew word, as noted above, starts with aleph, while the Egyptian name begins with a

yodh Yodh (also spelled jodh, yod, or jod) is the tenth letter of the Semitic abjads, including Phoenician ''yōd'' 𐤉, Hebrew ''yod'' , Aramaic ''yod'' 𐡉, Syriac ''yōḏ'' ܝ, and Arabic ''yāʾ'' . It is also related to the Ancient Nort ...

. In French, the Hebrew word ''amen'' is sometimes translated as ''Ainsi soit-il'', which means "So be it." The linguist

Ghil'ad Zuckermann Ghil'ad Zuckermann (, ; ) is an Israeli-born language revivalist and linguist who works in contact linguistics, lexicology and the study of language, culture and identity. Zuckermann was awarded the Rubinlicht Prize (2023) "for his researc ...

argues that, as in the case of Hallelujah, the word ''amen'' is usually not replaced by a translation due to the speakers' belief in

iconicity In functional- cognitive linguistics, as well as in semiotics, iconicity is the conceived similarity or analogy between the form of a sign (linguistic or otherwise) and its meaning, as opposed to arbitrariness (which is typically assumed i ...

, their perception that there is something intrinsic about the relationship between the sound of the signifier (the word) and what it signifies (its meaning).

Hebrew Bible

The word occurs in the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' # Initial ''amen'', referring back to words of another speaker and introducing an affirmative sentence, e.g. 1 Kings 1:36. # Detached ''amen'', again referring to the words of another speaker but without a complementary affirmative sentence, e.g. Nehemiah 5:13. # Final ''amen'', with no change of speaker, as in the subscription to the first three divisions of

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament. The book is an anthology of B ...

New Testament

In the New Testament, the Greek word ἀμήν is used as an expression of faith or as a part of a liturgical formula. It also may appear as an introductory word, especially in sayings of Jesus. Unlike the initial ''amen'' in Hebrew, which refers back to something already said, it is used by Jesus to emphasize what he is about to say (ἀμὴν λέγω, "truly I say to you"), a rhetorical device that has no parallel in contemporary Jewish practice. Raymond Brown says that Jesus's peculiar and authentic reminiscent use of amen in the Fourth Gospel is an affirmation that what he is about to say is an echo from the Father. The word occurs 52 times in the

Synoptic Gospels The gospels of Gospel of Matthew, Matthew, Gospel of Mark, Mark, and Gospel of Luke, Luke are referred to as the synoptic Gospels because they include many of the same stories, often in a similar sequence and in similar or sometimes identical ...

; the

Gospel of John The Gospel of John () is the fourth of the New Testament's four canonical Gospels. It contains a highly schematic account of the ministry of Jesus, with seven "Book of Signs, signs" culminating in the raising of Lazarus (foreshadowing the ...

has 25. In the

King James Bible The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version (AV), is an Early Modern English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, by ...

, the word ''amen'' is seen in a number of contexts. Notable ones include: * The

catechism A catechism (; from , "to teach orally") is a summary or exposition of Catholic theology, doctrine and serves as a learning introduction to the Sacraments traditionally used in catechesis, or Christian religious teaching of children and adult co ...

of curses of the

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

found in

Deuteronomy Deuteronomy (; ) is the fifth book of the Torah (in Judaism), where it is called () which makes it the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible and Christian Old Testament. Chapters 1–30 of the book consist of three sermons or speeches delivered to ...

27. * A double ''amen'' ("amen and amen") occurs in

Psalm The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament. The book is an anthology of H ...

89 (Psalm 41:13; 72:19; 89:52), to confirm the words and invoke the fulfillment of them. * ''Amen'' occurs in several doxology formulas in Romans 1:25, 9:5, 11:36, 15:33, and several times in Chapter 16. It also appears in doxologies in the Psalms (41:14; 72:19; 89:53; 106:48). This liturgical form from

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

. * It concludes all of Paul's general

epistle An epistle (; ) is a writing directed or sent to a person or group of people, usually an elegant and formal didactic letter. The epistle genre of letter-writing was common in ancient Egypt as part of the scribal-school writing curriculum. The ...

s. * In

Revelation Revelation, or divine revelation, is the disclosing of some form of Religious views on truth, truth or Knowledge#Religion, knowledge through communication with a deity (god) or other supernatural entity or entities in the view of religion and t ...

3:14, Jesus is referred to as, "the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation." The whole passage reads as "And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God". Notably, the text never specifically says that Jesus is the Amen. Although the letter is attributed to Jesus, the text refers to the Amen as having spoken the information that is being reported by Jesus in the letter. That the Amen is a witness, suggest some scholars, implies that the Amen is a being of some kind whose words are being referenced. * ''Amen'' concludes the last book of the

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

, at Rev. 22:21.

Congregational use

Judaism

Although amen, in Judaism, is commonly used as a response to a blessing, it also is often used by Hebrew speakers as an affirmation of other forms of declaration (including outside of religious context). Jewish rabbinical

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

requires an individual to say ''amen'' in a variety of contexts. With the rise of the synagogue during the

Second Temple The Second Temple () was the Temple in Jerusalem that replaced Solomon's Temple, which was destroyed during the Siege of Jerusalem (587 BC), Babylonian siege of Jerusalem in 587 BCE. It was constructed around 516 BCE and later enhanced by Herod ...

period, ''amen'' became a common response, especially to benedictions. It is recited communally to affirm a

blessing In religion, a blessing (also used to refer to bestowing of such) is the impartation of something with doctrines of grace, grace, Sacred, holiness, spiritual Redemption (theology), redemption, or Will of God, divine will. Etymology and Germani ...

made by the prayer reader. It is also mandated as a response during the kaddish doxology. The congregation is sometimes prompted to answer "amen" by the terms ''ve-'imru'' () = "and owsay (pl.)," or, ''ve-nomar'' (ונאמר) = "and we will say." Contemporary usage reflects ancient practice: As early as the 4th century BCE, Jews assembled in the

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

responded "amen" at the close of a doxology or other prayer uttered by a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

. This Jewish

liturgical Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...

use of amen was adopted by the Christians. But Jewish law also requires individuals to answer ''amen'' whenever they hear a

recited, even in a non-liturgical setting. The

Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...

teaches homiletically that the word ''amen'' is an

acronym An acronym is a type of abbreviation consisting of a phrase whose only pronounced elements are the initial letters or initial sounds of words inside that phrase. Acronyms are often spelled with the initial Letter (alphabet), letter of each wor ...

for אל מלך נאמן (, "God, trustworthy King"), Tractate Shabbat 119b and Tractate Sanhedrin 111a the phrase recited silently by an individual before reciting the Shma. Jews usually use Hebrew pronunciations of the word: (Israeli and Sephardi) or (

Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim) form a distinct subgroup of the Jewish diaspora, that Ethnogenesis, emerged in the Holy Roman Empire around the end of the first millennium Common era, CE. They traditionally spe ...

Christianity

The use of "amen" has been generally adopted in Christian worship as a concluding word for prayers and hymns and an expression of strong agreement. The liturgical use of the word in apostolic times is attested (1 Corinthians 14:16), and

Justin Martyr Justin, known posthumously as Justin Martyr (; ), also known as Justin the Philosopher, was an early Christian apologist and Philosophy, philosopher. Most of his works are lost, but two apologies and a dialogue did survive. The ''First Apolog ...

(c. 150) describes the congregation as responding "amen" to the benediction after the celebration of the Eucharist. Its introduction into the baptismal formula (in the Eastern Orthodox Church it is pronounced after the name of each person of the Trinity) was probably later. In Isaiah 65:16, the authorized version has "the God of truth" ("the God of amen" in

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

). Jesus often used amen to put emphasis to his own words (translated: "verily" or "truly"). In John's Gospel, it is repeated, "Verily, verily" (or "Truly, truly"). Amen is also used in oaths (Numbers 5:22; Deuteronomy 27:15–26; Nehemiah 5:13; 8:6; 1 Chronicles 16:36). ''Amen'' is also used in standard, international French, but in

Cajun French Louisiana French (Louisiana French: ''français louisianais''; ) includes the dialects and varieties of the French language spoken traditionally by French Louisianians in colonial Lower Louisiana. As of today Louisiana French is primarily use ...

' ("so be it") is used instead. Amen is used at the end of the Lord's Prayer, which is also called the Our Father or the ''Pater Noster''. In some Christian churches, the "amen corner" or "amen section" is any subset of the congregation likely to call out "Amen!" in response to points in a preacher's

sermon A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present context ...

. Metaphorically, the term can refer to any group of heartfelt traditionalists or supporters of an authority figure. The term has also been used as a place name, and as a title for musical and literary works; see '' Amen Corner''.

Islam

''ʾĀmīn'' () is the Arabic form of ''Amen''. In Islam, it is used with the same meaning as in Judaism and Christianity; when concluding a prayer, especially after a supplication (

du'a In Islam, ( , plural: ' ) is a prayer of invocation, supplication or request, asking help or assistance from God in Islam, God. Duʿāʾ is an integral aspect of Islamic worship and spirituality, serving as a direct line of communi ...

) or reciting the first surah Al Fatiha of the

Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...

, as in

(

salat ''Salah'' (, also spelled ''salat'') is the practice of formal ibadah, worship in Islam, consisting of a series of ritual prayers performed at prescribed times daily. These prayers, which consist of units known as rak'a, ''rak'ah'', include ...

), and as an assent to the prayers of others. Arabic dictionaries define ''ʾāmīn'' as an imperative

verbal noun Historically, grammarians have described a verbal noun or gerundial noun as a verb form that functions as a noun. An example of a verbal noun in English is 'sacking' as in the sentence "The ''sacking'' of the city was an epochal event" (wherein ...

, whose meaning is ''answer'' or ''reply'' (i.e., imploring God to grant one's prayer). The word was borrowed from Hebrew into Arabic in only this context, thus it is strictly used in Arabic as a final ''amen'' to conclude supplications or to declare affirmation, and has no initial ''amen'' usage with the meaning of ''truly'' or ''certainly'' as found in the word’s original Hebrew language grammar.

References

External links

{{Wikiquote *
Amen
from the ''

Catechism of the Catholic Church The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' (; commonly called the ''Catechism'' or the ''CCC'') is a reference work that summarizes the Catholic Church's doctrine. It was Promulgation (Catholic canon law), promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1992 ...

''
Strong's Concordance H543

Strong's Concordance G281
Christian prayer Hebrew words and phrases in the Hebrew Bible Interjections New Testament Hebrew words and phrases Religious terminology Hebrew words and phrases in Jewish prayers and blessings Redirects from closing lines