
There are various names of God, many of which enumerate the various
qualities of a Supreme Being. The English word ''
god
In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
'' (and its equivalent in other languages) is used by multiple religions as a
noun
In grammar, a noun is a word that represents a concrete or abstract thing, like living creatures, places, actions, qualities, states of existence, and ideas. A noun may serve as an Object (grammar), object or Subject (grammar), subject within a p ...
to refer to different deities, or specifically to the Supreme Being, as denoted in English by the capitalized and uncapitalized terms ''
God
In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
'' and ''
god
In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
''.
Ancient
cognate
In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language.
Because language change can have radical effects on both the s ...
equivalents for the
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 ...
''
Elohim
''Elohim'' ( ) is a Hebrew word meaning "gods" or "godhood". Although the word is plural in form, in the Hebrew Bible it most often takes singular verbal or pronominal agreement and refers to a single deity, particularly but not always the Go ...
'', one of the most common
names of God in the Bible,
include
proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Semitic languages. There is no consensus regarding the location of the linguistic homeland for Proto-Semitic: scholars hypothesize that it may have originated in the Levant, the Sahara, ...
''
El'',
biblical Aramaic
Biblical Aramaic is the form of Aramaic that is used in the books of Daniel and Ezra in the Hebrew Bible. It should not be confused with the Targums — Aramaic paraphrases, explanations and expansions of the Hebrew scriptures.
History
During ...
''
Elah'', and
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 ...
''
ilah
' (; plural: ') is an Arabic term meaning "god". In Arabic, ilah refers to anyone or anything that is worshipped. The feminine is ' (, meaning "goddess"); with the article, it appears as ' (). The Arabic word for God (') is thought to be derive ...
''.
The personal or proper name for
God
In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
in many of these languages may either be distinguished from such
attributes, or
homonym
In linguistics, homonyms are words which are either; '' homographs''—words that mean different things, but have the same spelling (regardless of pronunciation), or '' homophones''—words that mean different things, but have the same pronunciat ...
ic. For example, in
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 ...
the
tetragrammaton
The TetragrammatonPronounced ; ; also known as the Tetragram. is the four-letter Hebrew-language theonym (transliteration, transliterated as YHWH or YHVH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four Hebrew letters, written and read from ...
is sometimes related to the ancient Hebrew ''
ehyeh'' ("
I will be").
It is connected to the passage in in which God gives his name as (), where the verb may be translated most basically as "
I Am that I Am
"I Am that I Am" is a Bible translations into English, common English translation of the Hebrew language, Hebrew phrase (; )– also "I am who (I) am", "I will become what I choose to become", "I am what I am", "I will be what I will be", "I cre ...
", "I shall be what I shall be", or "I shall be what I am". In the passage,
YHWH
The TetragrammatonPronounced ; ; also known as the Tetragram. is the four-letter Hebrew-language theonym (transliterated as YHWH or YHVH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four Hebrew letters, written and read from right to left, a ...
,
the personal name of God, is
revealed directly to
Moses
In Abrahamic religions, Moses was the Hebrews, Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery in the The Exodus, Exodus from ancient Egypt, Egypt. He is considered the most important Prophets in Judaism, prophet in Judaism and Samaritani ...
.
Correlation between various theories and interpretation of the name of "the one God", used to
sign
A sign is an object, quality, event, or entity whose presence or occurrence indicates the probable presence or occurrence of something else. A natural sign bears a causal relation to its object—for instance, thunder is a sign of storm, or me ...
ify a
monotheistic
Monotheism is the belief that one God is the only, or at least the dominant deity.F. L. Cross, Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. A ...
or ultimate Supreme Being from which all other divine attributes derive, has been a subject of
ecumenical
Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...
discourse between Eastern and Western scholars for over two centuries. In
Christian theology
Christian theology is the theology – the systematic study of the divine and religion – of Christianity, Christian belief and practice. It concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Ch ...
the word is considered a personal and a proper name of God. On the other hand, the names of God in a different tradition are sometimes referred to by symbols. The question whether divine names used by different religions are equivalent has been raised and analyzed.
Exchange of names held sacred between different religious traditions is typically limited. Other elements of religious practice may be shared, especially when communities of different faiths are living in close proximity (for example, the use of
Khuda or
Prabhu
''Prabhu'' means ''master'' or ''prince'' in Sanskrit and many of the Indian languages; it is a name sometimes applied to God.
Surname
Prabhu is a surname among Gaud saraswat Brahmins, saraswat Brahmins and other Brahmins across the Ko ...
within the Indian Christian community) but usage of the names themselves mostly remains within the domain of a particular religion, or even may help define one's religious belief according to practice, as in the case of the recitation of names of God (such as the
japa
''Japa'' () is the meditative repetition of a mantra or a divine name. It is a practice found in Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism, and Buddhism, with parallels found in other religions.
''Japa'' may be performed while sitting in a meditation posture ...
).
Guru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh (; born Gobind Das; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708) was the tenth and last human Sikh gurus, Sikh Guru. He was a warrior, poet, and philosopher. In 1675, at the age of nine he was formally installed as the leader of the ...
's
Jaap Sahib, which contains 950 names of God is one example of this. ''The Divine Names'', the classic treatise by
Pseudo-Dionysius
Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite (or Dionysius the Pseudo-Areopagite) was a Greek author, Christian theologian and Neoplatonic philosopher of the late 5th to early 6th century, who wrote a set of works known as the ''Corpus Areopagiticum'' or ...
, defines the scope of traditional understandings in Western traditions such as Hellenic, Christian, Jewish and Islamic theology on the nature and significance of the names of God. Further historical lists such as ''The 72 Names of the Lord'' show parallels in the history and interpretation of the name of God amongst
Kabbalah
Kabbalah or Qabalah ( ; , ; ) is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. It forms the foundation of Mysticism, mystical religious interpretations within Judaism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ...
, Christianity, and Hebrew scholarship in various parts of the
Mediterranean world.
The attitude as to the transmission of the name in many cultures was surrounded by secrecy. In
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 ...
, the pronunciation of the name of God has always been guarded with great care. It is believed that, in ancient times, the sages communicated the pronunciation only once every seven years; this system was challenged by more recent movements. The nature of a holy name can be described as either personal or attributive. In many cultures it is often difficult to distinguish between the personal and the attributive names of God, the two divisions necessarily shading into each other.
Abrahamic and related religions
Judaism
El comes from a root word meaning "god" or "deity", reconstructed in the
Proto-Semitic language
Proto-Semitic is the Linguistic reconstruction, reconstructed common ancestor of the Semitic languages. There is no consensus regarding the location of the linguistic homeland for Proto-Semitic: scholars hypothesize that it may have originated i ...
as ''
ʾil''. Sometimes referring to God and sometimes the mighty when used to refer to the God of Israel, El is almost always qualified by additional words that further define the meaning that distinguishes him from
false god
The phrase ''false god'' is a derogatory term used in Abrahamic religions (namely Judaism, Samaritanism, Christianity, the Baháʼí Faith, and Islam) to indicate cult images or deities of non-Abrahamic Pagan religions, as well as other competi ...
s. A common title of God in the Hebrew Bible is Elohim (Hebrew: ). The root ''
Eloah
''Elohim'' ( ) is a Hebrew word meaning "gods" or "godhood". Although the word is plural in form, in the Hebrew Bible it most often takes singular verbal or pronominal grammatical agreement, agreement and refers to a single deity, particularly b ...
'' () is used in poetry and late prose (e.g., the
Book of Job
The Book of Job (), or simply Job, is a book found in the Ketuvim ("Writings") section of the Hebrew Bible and the first of the Poetic Books in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The language of the Book of Job, combining post-Babylonia ...
) and ending with the masculine plural suffix ''-im'' creating a word like ''
ba`alim'' ('owners') and ''
adonim'' ('lords', 'masters') that may also indicate a singular identity.
In the
Book of Exodus
The Book of Exodus (from ; ''Šəmōṯ'', 'Names'; ) is the second book of the Bible. It is the first part of the narrative of the Exodus, the origin myth of the Israelites, in which they leave slavery in Biblical Egypt through the strength of ...
, God commands Moses to tell the people that 'I AM' sent him, and this is revered as one of the most important names of God according to
Mosaic
A mosaic () is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/Mortar (masonry), mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and ...
tradition.
In , when Moses first spoke with God, God said, "I used to appear to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as El Shaddai, but I did not make myself known to them by my name YHWH."
YHWH () is the proper name of God in Judaism. Neither vowels nor
vowel points were used in ancient Hebrew writings and the original vocalisation of YHWH has been lost.
["How the ]Name
A name is a term used for identification by an external observer. They can identify a class or category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given context. The entity identified by a name is called its referent. A person ...
was originally vocalized is no longer certain. Its pronunciation was in time restricted to the Temple service, then to the High Priest intoning it on the Day of Atonement
Yom Kippur ( ; , ) is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, corresponding to a date in late September or early October.
For traditional Jewish people, it is primarily centered on atonement and ...
, after, and after the destruction of the Temple it received a substitute pronunciation both for the reading of Scripture
Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They often feature a compilation or discussion of beliefs, ritual practices, moral commandments and ...
and for its use at 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 ...
."
Later commentaries additionally suggested that the true pronunciation of this name is composed entirely of
vowel
A vowel is a speech sound pronounced without any stricture in the vocal tract, forming the nucleus of a syllable. Vowels are one of the two principal classes of speech sounds, the other being the consonant. Vowels vary in quality, in loudness a ...
s, such as the Greek .
However, this is put into question by the fact that vowels were only distinguished in the time-period by their very absence due to the lack of explicit vowels in the Hebrew script. The resulting substitute made from
semivowels and glottals, known as the tetragrammaton, is not ordinarily permitted to be pronounced aloud, even in prayer. The prohibition on misuse (not use) of this name is the primary subject of the command not to
take the name of the Lord in vain.
Instead of pronouncing YHWH during prayer, Jews say "
Adonai
Judaism has different names given to God in Judaism, God, which are considered sacred: (), (''Adonai'' ), (''El (deity), El'' ), ( ), (''El Shaddai, Shaddai'' ), and ( ); some also include I Am that I Am.This is the formulation of Josep ...
" ('Lord'). ''
Halakha
''Halakha'' ( ; , ), also Romanization of Hebrew, transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Judaism, Jewish religious laws that are derived from the Torah, Written and Oral Torah. ''Halakha'' is ...
'' requires that secondary rules be placed around the primary law, to reduce the chance that the main law will be broken. As such, it is common religious practice to restrict the use of the word "Adonai" to prayer only. In conversation, many Jewish people, even when not speaking Hebrew, will call God ''
HaShem'' (), which is Hebrew for 'the Name'; this appears in .
Almost all
Orthodox Jews
Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as literally revealed by God on Mount Sinai and faithfully tr ...
avoid using either Yahweh or Jehovah altogether on the basis that the actual pronunciation of the tetragrammaton has been lost in antiquity. Many use the term ''HaShem'' as an indirect reference, or they use "God" or "The Lord" instead. Mark Sameth argues that Yahweh was a pseudo name for a dual-gendered deity, the four letters of that name being cryptogram which the priests of ancient Israel read in reverse as , 'he–she', as earlier theorized by
Guillaume Postel (16th century) and (19th century).
Christianity

In Christianity, the Old Testament reveals
YHWH
The TetragrammatonPronounced ; ; also known as the Tetragram. is the four-letter Hebrew-language theonym (transliterated as YHWH or YHVH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four Hebrew letters, written and read from right to left, a ...
(; often vocalized with vowels as "Yahweh" or "Jehovah") as the personal name of God.
References, such as ''The New
Encyclopædia Britannica
The is a general knowledge, general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It has been published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. since 1768, although the company has changed ownership seven times. The 2010 version of the 15th edition, ...
'', affirm the vocalization "Yahweh" by offering additional specifics to its (Christian) reconstruction out of Greek sources:
Early Christian writers, such as Clement of Alexandria in the 2nd century, had used a form like Yahweh, and claim that this pronunciation of the tetragrammaton was never really lost. Other Greek transcriptions also indicated that YHWH should be pronounced Yahweh.[''The New Encyclopædia Britannica'', Vol. 12, 1998, Chicago, IL, article "Yahweh", p. 804.]
Jah or Yah (rendered as in Hebrew) is an abbreviation of Jahweh/Yahweh/Jehovah.
It appears in certain translations of the Bible, such as the
Revised Standard Version
The Revised Standard Version (RSV) is an English translation of the Bible published in 1952 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. This translation is a revision of the American St ...
, and is used by Christians in the interjection
Hallelujah, meaning "Praise Jah", which is used to give Jahweh glory.
In Christianity, certain hymns dedicated to God invoke the divine name using the vocalization
Jehovah
Jehovah () is a Romanization, Latinization of the Hebrew language, Hebrew , one Tiberian vocalization, vocalization of the Tetragrammaton (YHWH), the proper name of the God in Judaism, God of Israel in the Hebrew BibleOld Testament. The Tetr ...
(, ), such as ''
Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah''.
The Hebrew personal name of God YHWH is rendered as "the " in many translations of the Bible, with Elohim being rendered as "God"; certain translations of Scripture render the Tetragrammaton with Yahweh or Jehovah in particular places, with the latter vocalization being used in the
King James Version
The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version (AV), is an Early Modern English Bible translations, Early Modern English translation of the Christianity, Christian Bible for the Church of England, wh ...
,
Tyndale Bible
The Tyndale Bible (TYN) generally refers to the body of biblical translations by William Tyndale into Early Modern English, made . Tyndale's biblical text is credited with being the first English-language Biblical translation to work directly ...
, and other translations of the Bible from that time period and later.
["The ]Masoretes
The Masoretes (, lit. 'Masters of the Tradition') were groups of Jewish scribe- scholars who worked from around the end of the 5th through 10th centuries CE, based primarily in the Jewish centers of the Levant (e.g., Tiberias and Jerusalem) an ...
who vocalized the Hebrew text
Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and remained in regular use as a first language until ...
took the vowels
A vowel is a speech sound pronounced without any stricture in the vocal tract, forming the nucleus of a syllable. Vowels are one of the two principal classes of speech sounds, the other being the consonant. Vowels vary in quality, in loudness a ...
from the word Adonai () and put them with (together: ) to remind the reader not to pronounce the name but to substitute Adonai. A Christian writer of the sixteenth century who was unaware of this substitution transcribed the word as he saw it, namely as Jehovah
Jehovah () is a Romanization, Latinization of the Hebrew language, Hebrew , one Tiberian vocalization, vocalization of the Tetragrammaton (YHWH), the proper name of the God in Judaism, God of Israel in the Hebrew BibleOld Testament. The Tetr ...
, and this error has since entered many Christian Bibles 5. Only rarely has the pronunciation Jehovah been given scholarly endorsement; one exception is J. Neubauer, ''Bibelwissenschaftliche Irrungen'' (Berlin: Louis Lamm, 1917), who bases his opinion on Jerusalem Talmud
The Jerusalem Talmud (, often for short) or Palestinian Talmud, also known as the Talmud of the Land of Israel, is a collection of rabbinic notes on the second-century Jewish oral tradition known as the Mishnah. Naming this version of the Talm ...
San.. 10:1, describing the controversy between the Rabbanites and the Samaritans over the proniunciation. M. S. Enslin, ''The Prophet from Nazareth'' (New York: Schocken, 1968), p. 19, n. 7, calls the vocalization Jehovah an "orthoepic monstrosity". Many English translations of the Bible (such as ESV, NIV, KJV, etc.) translate the tetragrammaton as
, thus removing any form of YHWH from the written text and going well beyond the Jewish oral practice of substituting Adonai for YHWH when reading aloud.
English Bible translations of the Greek
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 ...
render (Greek: ) as
God
In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
and (Greek: ) as "the Lord", with the latter being the "Greek translation of the Hebrew OT name for God, Yahweh."
Jesus
Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...
(Iesus,
Yeshua
Yeshua () was a common alternative form of the name Yehoshua () in later books of the Hebrew Bible and among Jewish people of the Second Temple period. The name corresponds to the Greek spelling (), from which, through the Latin /, comes the En ...
) was a common alternative form of the name ( 'Joshua') in later books of the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
. '' Second Temple period
The Second Temple period or post-exilic period in Jewish history denotes the approximately 600 years (516 BCE – 70 CE) during which the Second Temple stood in the city of Jerusalem. It began with the return to Zion and subsequent reconstructio ...
. The name corresponds to the Greek spelling , from which comes the English spelling ''Jesus''. ''
Christ
Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...
'' means 'the
anoint
Anointing is the ritual, ritual act of pouring aromatic oil over a person's head or entire body. By extension, the term is also applied to related acts of sprinkling, dousing, or smearing a person or object with any perfumed oil, milk, butter, ...
ed' in
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
(). is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word ''
Messiah
In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; ,
; ,
; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of '' mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach ...
''; while in English the old Anglo-Saxon Messiah-rendering ('healer') was practically annihilated by the Latin , some cognates such as in Dutch and Afrikaans survive—also, in German, the word is sometimes used as reference to Jesus, e.g., in church chorals).
In the
Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation, also known as the Book of the Apocalypse or the Apocalypse of John, is the final book of the New Testament, and therefore the final book of the Bible#Christian Bible, Christian Bible. Written in Greek language, Greek, ...
in the Christian
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 ...
, God, that is, Jesus is quoted as saying "I am the
Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End". (cf. , , and )
Some
Quakers
Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestantism, Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally ...
refer to God with the title of
the Light. Another term used is
King of Kings
King of Kings, ''Mepet mepe''; , group="n" was a ruling title employed primarily by monarchs based in the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent. Commonly associated with History of Iran, Iran (historically known as name of Iran, Persia ...
or Lord of Lords and
Lord of Hosts. In addition to the personal name of God YHWH (pronounced with the vocalizations Yahweh or Jehovah), titles of God used by Christians include the
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 ...
titles Elohim, El-Shaddai, and Adonai, as well as
Ancient of Days
Ancient of Days is a name for God in the Book of Daniel. The title "Ancient of Days" has been used as a source of inspiration in art and music, denoting the creator's aspects of eternity combined with perfection. William Blake's watercolour and ...
,
Father
A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. A biological fat ...
/
Abba
ABBA ( ) were a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the List ...
which is Hebrew, "Most High".
''
Abba
ABBA ( ) were a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the List ...
'' ('father' in Hebrew) is a common term used for the creator within Christianity because it was a title Jesus used to refer to
God the Father
God the Father is a title given to God in Christianity. In mainstream trinitarian Christianity, God the Father is regarded as the first Person of the Trinity, followed by the second person, Jesus Christ the Son, and the third person, God th ...
.
Mormonism
In
Mormonism
Mormonism is the theology and religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationism, Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to va ...
the name of God the Father is Elohim
[First Presidency and Council of the Twelve, 1916, "God the Father", compiled by Gordon Allred, p. 150] and the name of Jesus in his
pre-incarnate state was Jehovah.
[Moroni 10:34][Old Testament Institute Manual:Genesis to 2 Samuel—"Who is the God of the Old Testament?"] Together, with the Holy Ghost they form the
Godhead; God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit.
Mormons typically refer to God as "Heavenly Father" or "Father in Heaven".
Although Mormonism views the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit as three distinct beings, they are one in purpose and God the Father (Elohim) is worshipped and given all glory through his Son, Jesus Christ (Jehovah). Despite the Godhead doctrine, which teaches that God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are three separate, divine beings, many Mormons (mainstream
Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...
and otherwise, such as the
Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) view their beliefs as monotheist since Christ is the conduit through which humanity comes to the God the Father.
The Book of Mormon
The Book of Mormon is a religious text of the Latter Day Saint movement, first published in 1830 by Joseph Smith as ''The Book of Mormon: An Account Written by the Hand of Mormon upon Plates Taken from the Plates of Nephi''.
The book is one of ...
ends with "to meet you before the pleasing bar of the great Jehovah, the eternal Judge of both the quick and dead. Amen."
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses is a Christian denomination that is an outgrowth of the Bible Student movement founded by Charles Taze Russell in the nineteenth century. The denomination is nontrinitarian, millenarian, and restorationist. Russell co-fou ...
believe that God has a distinctive name, represented in the Old Testament by the Tetragrammaton. In English, they prefer to use the form ''Jehovah''. According to their ''
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures
The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (NWT, also simply NW) is a Bible translations, translation of the Bible published by the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society; it is used and di ...
'', the name ''Jehovah'' means "He causes to become".
Though scholars prefer the form ''Yahweh'', Jehovah's Witnesses maintain that the name ''Jehovah'' is the most well known form in English. Their literature compares the use of the form ''Jehovah'' in English to the widespread use of ''Jesus'' in English as a translation of or .
Islam
Allah
Allah ( ; , ) is an Arabic term for God, specifically the God in Abrahamic religions, God of Abraham. Outside of the Middle East, it is principally associated with God in Islam, Islam (in which it is also considered the proper name), althoug ...
—meaning 'the God' in Arabic—is the word for God in
Islam
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 ...
.
["Allah." ]Encyclopædia Britannica
The is a general knowledge, general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It has been published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. since 1768, although the company has changed ownership seven times. The 2010 version of the 15th edition, ...
. 2007. Encyclopædia Britannica The word ''Allah'' has been used by Arabic people of different religions since pre-Islamic times. More specifically, it has been used as a term for God by
Muslims
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
(both Arab and non-Arab) and
Arab Christians
Arab Christians () are the Arabs who adhere to Christianity. The number of Arab Christians who live in the Middle East was estimated in 2012 to be between 10 and 15 million. Arab Christian communities can be found throughout the Arab world, bu ...
. God has many names in Islam. The Qur'an says (in translation) "to Him Belong the Best Names ()"; examples include ''
Ar-Rahman
Ar-Rahman (; the Merciful; Most Gracious; Most Merciful) is the 55th Chapter (''Surah'') of the Qur'an, with 78 verses; ('' āyāt''). The Surah was revealed in Mecca and emphasizes themes of mercy, creation, and the relationship between Alla ...
'' ('the Entirely Merciful') and ('the Especially Merciful'). Beside these Arabic names, Muslims of non-Arab origins may also sometimes use other names in their own languages to refer to God, such as
''Khuda'' in
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
,
Bengali and
Urdu
Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...
. or ''
Tengri
Tengri (; Old Uyghur: ; Middle Turkic: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; Proto-Turkic: / ; Mongolian script: , ; , ; , ) is the all-encompassing God of Heaven in the traditional Turkic, Yeniseian, Mongolic, and various other nomadic religious beliefs. So ...
'' was used in the
Ottoman Turkish language
Ottoman Turkish (, ; ) was the standardized register (sociolinguistics), register of the Turkish language in the Ottoman Empire (14th to 20th centuries CE). It borrowed extensively, in all aspects, from Arabic and Persian language, Persian. It ...
as the equivalent of Allah.
Sufism
In
Tasawwuf
Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism.
Practitioners of Sufism are r ...
, often characterised as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam,
Hu, (depends on placement in the sentence), or ''
Parvardigar'' in Persian are used as names of God. The sound derives from the last letter of the word
Allah
Allah ( ; , ) is an Arabic term for God, specifically the God in Abrahamic religions, God of Abraham. Outside of the Middle East, it is principally associated with God in Islam, Islam (in which it is also considered the proper name), althoug ...
, which is read as when in the middle of a sentence. means 'Just He' or 'Revealed'. The word explicitly appears in many
verses of the
Quran
The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...
:
Baháʼí Faith
The
scriptures
Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They often feature a compilation or discussion of beliefs, ritual practices, moral commandments and ...
of the
Baháʼí Faith
The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...
often refer to God by various titles and attributes, such as Almighty, All-Possessing, All-Powerful, All-Wise, Incomparable, Gracious, Helper, All-Glorious, and Omniscient. Baháʼís believe the
Greatest Name of God is "All-Glorious" or in Arabic. is the root word of the following names and phrases: the greeting ' ('God is the All-Glorious'), the invocation ('O Thou Glory of the Most Glorious'), ('the Glory of God'), and ('Follower of the All-Glorious'). These are expressed in Arabic regardless of the language in use (see
Baháʼí symbols
There are several symbols used to express identification with the Baháʼí Faith: the Enneagram (geometry), nine-pointed star, a calligraphy known as the "Greatest Name", the Ringstone Symbol, or a five-pointed star.
Nine-pointed star
Accordin ...
).
Apart from these names, God is addressed in the local language, for example in Hindi, in French and in Spanish. Baháʼís believe
Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith, is the "complete incarnation of the names and attributes of God".
Mandaeism
Mandaeans
Mandaeans (Mandaic language, Mandaic: ࡌࡀࡍࡃࡀࡉࡉࡀ) ( ), also known as Mandaean Sabians ( ) or simply as Sabians ( ), are an ethnoreligious group who are followers of Mandaeism. They believe that John the Baptist was the final and ...
believe in one God called ('The Great Life' or 'The Great Living God').
Other names for God used include ('Lord of Greatness'), ('The Great Mind'), ('King of Light') and ('The First Life').
Gnosticism
Egypt
A divine name is an official title for any divine being. In Egypt, divine names were indicated with a god's inscription (''nṯr'', which can be Anglicised as ''netjer''.)
In Sumerian cuneiform, the ''
Dingir
''Dingir'' ⟨⟩, usually transliterated DIĜIR, () is a Sumerian word for 'god' or 'goddess'. Its cuneiform sign is most commonly employed as the determinative for religious names and related concepts, in which case it is not pronounced and ...
'' sign (𒀭) was used.

A divine being's name is distinct from an epithet. A divine epithet expresses specific traits, aspects, or domains of a god, or applies a common noun to them.
Rahmouni says a locative name is ''ʔil yṯb bʕṯtrt ''in KTU 1.108, 2 meaning "The god who sits (enthroned) in ʕAṯtartu.
A name is sometimes double-barreled, like in
Shagar-we-Ishtar or
Kothar-wa-Hasis.
ʔṯrt w rḥmy
Asherah
Asherah (; ; ; ; Qatabanian language, Qatabanian: ') was a goddess in ancient Semitic religions. She also appears in Hittites, Hittite writings as ''Ašerdu(š)'' or ''Ašertu(š)'' (), and as Athirat in Ugarit. Some scholars hold that Ashera ...
-wa-Rachmai takes this ("binomial") form but is of slightly unclear categorization. In this case and that of the
Lady of Byblos, it is not clear if the appellation is a personal name.
Binomial names can be found in "bound forms" like
Bethel's Anat-Bethel, Ashim-Bethel, "and Herem-Bethel from the archives of Elephantine."
In one Egyptian story, the sun god Ra's
true name
A true name is a name of a thing or being that expresses, or is somehow identical to, its true nature. The notion that language, or some specific sacred language, refers to things by their true names has been central to philosophical study as we ...
was cunningly uncovered by Isis. Using a secret scheme, Isis gained complete dominion over Ra. This enabled her to elevate her son Horus to the throne, showing the power that a name had over the gods.
Appendages
The maiden goddesses of Canaan and Phoenicia were sometimes called the "name of the lord" (Ba'al) or the "face of the lord." In their less-virginal incarnations as the consort Anat-Bethel or as a mother goddess ʕtr
�-t-r-m = ʕtr-(ʕ)m(y) "ʕtr my mother"these and "hand of" the deity are added. This might mean hypostasis or intercession.
Indian religions
Hinduism
There are multiple names for God's various manifestations worshiped in
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...
. Some of the common names for these deities in Hinduism are:
* ''
Bhagavan
The word Bhagavan (; ), also spelt as Bhagwan (sometimes translated in English as "Lord", "God"), is an epithet within Indian religions used to denote figures of religious worship. In Hinduism it is used to signify a deity or an ''avatar'', pa ...
'' () the most frequently used name for Lord in
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...
. The equivalent term used for female deities is ().
* ''
Brahman
In Hinduism, ''Brahman'' (; IAST: ''Brahman'') connotes the highest universal principle, the ultimate reality of the universe.P. T. Raju (2006), ''Idealistic Thought of India'', Routledge, , page 426 and Conclusion chapter part XII In the ...
'' () is a theological concept espoused in
Vedanta
''Vedanta'' (; , ), also known as ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six orthodox (Āstika and nāstika, ''āstika'') traditions of Hindu philosophy and textual exegesis. The word ''Vedanta'' means 'conclusion of the Vedas', and encompa ...
philosophy of Hinduism, which is of neuter gender. The word () popularly pronounced as () is also used synonymously with it. The word is used to denote the Supreme Divinity/Supreme Soul.
* ''
Isvara
''Ishvara'' () is a concept in Hinduism, with a wide range of meanings that depend on the era and the school of Hinduism.Monier Monier Williams, Sanskrit-English dictionarySearch for Izvara, University of Cologne, Germany In ancient texts of ...
'' () shortened as () is applied to mean 'God' in both religious and secular context (for example in the
Gita
The Bhagavad Gita (; ), often referred to as the Gita (), is a Hindu scripture, dated to the second or first century BCE, which forms part of the epic poem Mahabharata. The Gita is a synthesis of various strands of Indian religious thought, ...
,
Arjuna
Arjuna (, , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, �ɾd͡ʒun̪ə is one of the central characters of the ancient Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. He is the third of the five Pandava brothers, and is widely regarded as the most important and renowned among them. ...
is referred to as which is a compound of the two words , 'human' and , thus the word means 'God of humans', i.e. 'king'). The term ('Supreme God') is used to refer to one's (chosen deity for personal veneration) in general terms. The feminine equivalents are () and () used in case of female deities.
* () is the most commonly used suffix used for male deities in Hinduism. The feminine equivalent is ().
Additionally, most Hindu deities have a collection of 8/12/16/32/100/108/1000/1008 names exclusively dedicated to them known as .
Tamil Tradition
* அருமன் (Arumaṉ) - The most giving.
* உய்யன் (Uyyaṉ) - The most high.
* இறைவன் (Iṟaivaṉ) - The one above all.
* இயவுள் (Iyavul) -
who sets things in motion.
* கடவுள் (Kadavul) - The one who transcend the world and is hidden within)
Arya Samaj
Maharishi Dayanand in his book ''Satyarth Prakash'' has listed 100 names of God each representing some property or attribute thereof mentioning "Om" or "
Aum
''Om'' (or ''Aum''; ; , ISO 15919: ''Ōṁ'') is a polysemous symbol representing a sacred sound, seed syllable, mantra, and invocation in Hinduism. Its written form is the most important symbol in the Hindu religion. It is the ess ...
" as God's personal and natural name.
Jainism
Jainism
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion whose three main pillars are nonviolence (), asceticism (), and a rejection of all simplistic and one-sided views of truth and reality (). Jainism traces its s ...
rejects the idea of a
creator deity
A creator deity or creator god is a deity responsible for the creation of the Earth, world, and universe in human religion and mythology. In monotheism, the single God is often also the creator. A number of monolatristic traditions separate a ...
responsible for the manifestation, creation, or maintenance of this universe. According to Jain doctrine, the universe and its constituents (soul, matter, space, time, and principles of motion) have
always existed. All the constituents and actions are governed by universal natural laws and an immaterial entity like God cannot create a material entity like the universe. Jainism offers an elaborate
cosmology
Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe, the cosmos. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', with the meaning of "a speaking of the wo ...
, including heavenly beings (''s''), but these beings are not viewed as creators; they are subject to suffering and change like all other living beings, and must eventually die.
Jains define godliness as the inherent quality of any soul characterizing infinite bliss, infinite power,
perfect knowledge and perfect peace. However, these qualities of a soul are subdued due to
karmas
Karma (, from , ; ) is an ancient Indian concept that refers to an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively called ...
of the soul. One who achieves this state of soul through
right belief, right knowledge and right conduct can be termed as god. This perfection of soul is called ''
kaivalya
Kaivalya () is the ultimate goal of aṣṭāṅga yoga and means "solitude", "detachment" or "isolation", a -derivation from "alone, isolated". It is the isolation of purusha from prakṛti, and liberation from rebirth, i.e., moksha. is describ ...
'' (omniscience). A liberated soul thus becomes a god – liberated of miseries, cycles of rebirth, world, ''karmas'' and finally liberated of body as well. This is called ''
nirvana
Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...
'' or ''
moksha
''Moksha'' (; , '), also called ''vimoksha'', ''vimukti'', and ''mukti'', is a term in Jainism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Sikhism for various forms of emancipation, liberation, '' nirvana'', or release. In its soteriological and eschatologic ...
''.
If godliness is defined as the state of having freed one's soul from karmas and the attainment of
Kevala Jnana and a god as one who exists in such a state, then those who have achieved such a state can be termed gods/''
Tirthankara
In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (; ) is a saviour and supreme preacher of the ''Dharma (Jainism), dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a ''Tirtha (Jainism), tirtha'', a fordable passage across ''Saṃsā ...
''. Thus,
Rishabhanatha
Rishabhanatha (Devanagari: ऋषभनाथ), also Rishabhadeva (Devanagari: ऋषभदेव, ), Rishabha (Devanagari: ऋषभ, ) or Ikshvaku (Devanagari: इक्ष्वाकु, ''Ikṣvāku''), is the first (Supreme preacher) ...
was god/ but he was not the only ; there were many other . However, the quality of godliness is one and the same in all of them.
Jainism does not teach the dependency on any supreme being for enlightenment. The is a guide and teacher who points the way to enlightenment, but the struggle for enlightenment is one's own. Moral rewards and sufferings are not the work of a divine being, but a result of an innate moral order in the
cosmos
The cosmos (, ; ) is an alternative name for the universe or its nature or order. Usage of the word ''cosmos'' implies viewing the universe as a complex and orderly system or entity.
The cosmos is studied in cosmologya broad discipline covering ...
; a self-regulating mechanism whereby the individual reaps the fruits of his own actions through the workings of the karmas.
Jains believe that to attain enlightenment and ultimately liberation from all karmic bonding, one must practice the ethical principles not only in thought, but also in words (speech) and action. Such a practice through lifelong work towards oneself is called as observing the ''
Mahavrata
The Five Vows of Jainism include the ''mahāvratas'' (major vows) and ''aṇuvratas'' (minor vows).
Overview
Jain ethical code prescribes two '' dharmas'' or rules of conduct. One for those who wish to become ascetic and another for the ''ś ...
'' ('Great Vows').
Gods can be thus categorized into embodied gods also known as ''
Tīrthankaras and
Arihantas'' or ordinary ''
Kevalis'', and non-embodied formless gods who are called ''
Siddha
''Siddha'' (Sanskrit: '; "perfected one") is a term that is used widely in Indian religions and culture. It means "one who is accomplished." It refers to perfected masters who have achieved a high degree of perfection of the intellect as we ...
s''. Jainism considers the ''s'' and ''s'' to be souls who dwell in heavens owing to meritorious deeds in their past lives. These souls are in heavens for a fixed lifespan and even they have to undergo reincarnation as humans to achieve .
Sikhism
There are multiple names for God in Sikhism. Some of the popular names for God in Sikhism are:
* ''
Akal Purakh'', meaning 'timeless being'.
* ''
Ik Onkar
Ik Onkar, also spelled Ek Onkar or Ik Oankaar ( Gurmukhi: or ; ); literally, "one ''God''", hence interpreted as "There is only one God or one Creator") is a phrase in Sikhism that denotes the one supreme reality. It is a central tenet of Sikh r ...
'', 'One Creator', found at the beginning of the Sikh
Mul Mantar
The Mūl Mantar (, ) is the opening verse of the Sikh scripture, the ''Guru Granth Sahib''. It consists of twelve words in the Punjabi language, written in Gurmukhi script, and are the most widely known among the Sikhs. They summarize the essen ...
.
* ''
Nirankar
Nirankar () is one of the many attributes associated to God in Sikhism and means ''The Formless One''.
Etymology
The word has its roots in the Sanskrit word ''nirākārā'' () and is a compound of two words: ''Nir'' meaning "without" and '' ...
'', meaning 'formless'.
* ''
Satnam'', meaning 'True Name'; some are of the opinion that this is a name for God in itself, others believe that this is an adjective used to describe the , .
* ''
Waheguru'', meaning 'Wonderful Teacher bringing light to remove darkness'; this name is considered the greatest among Sikhs, and it is known as , 'the Guru's Word'. is the only way to meet God.
* or , meaning 'the Giver'.
* or , meaning 'the Doer.''
* , meaning 'compassionate.''
* , meaning 'benevolent.''
In the Sikh scripture, both Hindu and Muslim names of the Supreme Being are also commonly employed, expressing different aspects of the divine Name. For instance, names like
Ram
Ram, ram, or RAM most commonly refers to:
* A male sheep
* Random-access memory, computer memory
* Ram Trucks, US, since 2009
** List of vehicles named Dodge Ram, trucks and vans
** Ram Pickup, produced by Ram Trucks
Ram, ram, or RAM may also ref ...
('pervading'),
Hari
Hari () is among the primary epithets of the Hindu preserver deity Vishnu, meaning 'the one who takes away' (sins). It refers to the one who removes darkness and illusion, the one who removes all obstacles to spiritual progress.
The name Ha ...
('shining'),
Parmeshwar ('supreme lord'), and ('world lord') refer to Hindu terms, while names like
Allah
Allah ( ; , ) is an Arabic term for God, specifically the God in Abrahamic religions, God of Abraham. Outside of the Middle East, it is principally associated with God in Islam, Islam (in which it is also considered the proper name), althoug ...
(Arabic for ''God''),
Khuda (Persian for ''God''),
Rahim
Rahim (''Raḥīm'' , also anglicized as Raheem) is an Arabic word meaning "Merciful", from the root '' R-Ḥ-M.'' Al-Rahim (the Merciful) is one of the attributes of God according to Islam. It is a male given name, sometimes a hypocorism for Abdu ...
('merciful'),
Karim
Kareem (alternatively spelled Karim, Kerim or Karem) () is a given name and surname of Arabic origin that means "generous", "noble", "honourable". It is also one of the Names of God.
Given name Karim
* Karim Abdel Aziz (born 1975), Egyptian ac ...
('generous'), and
Sahib ('lord') are of Muslim origin.
God, according to
Guru Nanak
Gurū Nānak (15 April 1469 – 22 September 1539; Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ; pronunciation: , ), also known as ('Father Nanak'), was an Indian spiritual teacher, mystic and poet, who is regarded as the founder of Sikhism and is t ...
, is beyond full comprehension by
human
Humans (''Homo sapiens'') or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus ''Homo''. They are Hominidae, great apes characterized by their Prehistory of nakedness and clothing ...
s; has an endless number of virtues; takes on innumerable forms, but is formless; and can be called by an infinite number of names thus "Your Names are so many, and Your Forms are endless. No one can tell how many Glorious Virtues You have."
The word ''
Allah
Allah ( ; , ) is an Arabic term for God, specifically the God in Abrahamic religions, God of Abraham. Outside of the Middle East, it is principally associated with God in Islam, Islam (in which it is also considered the proper name), althoug ...
'' () is used 12 times in the ''
Guru Granth Sahib
The Guru Granth Sahib (, ) is the central holy religious scripture of Sikhism, regarded by Sikhs as the final, sovereign and eternal Guru following the lineage of the ten human gurus of the religion. The Adi Granth (), its first rendition, w ...
'' (primary religious scripture) by Sheikh Farid. Guru Nanak Dev, Guru Arjan Dev and Bhagat Kabeer used the word 18 times.
Iranian religions
Yazidism
Yazidism knows only one eternal God, often named .
According to some Yazidi hymns (known as ''s''), God has 1001 names.
Zoroastrianism
In
Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism ( ), also called Mazdayasnā () or Beh-dīn (), is an Iranian religions, Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zoroaster, Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, ...
, 101 names of God (
Pazand ) is a list of names of God (
Ahura Mazda
Ahura Mazda (; ; or , ),The former is the New Persian rendering of the Avestan form, while the latter derives from Middle Persian. also known as Horomazes (),, is the only creator deity and Sky deity, god of the sky in the ancient Iranian ...
). The list is preserved in
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
,
Pazand and
Gujarati.
Parsi
The Parsis or Parsees () are a Zoroastrian ethnic group in the Indian subcontinent. They are descended from Persian refugees who migrated to the Indian subcontinent during and after the Arab-Islamic conquest of Iran in the 7th century, w ...
tradition expanded this to a list of 101 names of God.
African religions
!Kung
The supreme being in
!Kung mythology is known as Khu, Xu, Xuba, or Huwa.
Odinani
Chukwu
Chukwu () is the Creator deity, supreme being of Odinani, Igbo spirituality. In the Alusi, Igbo pantheon, Chukwu is the source of all other Alusi, Igbo deities and is responsible for assigning them their different tasks. The Igbo people believe tha ...
is the supreme being of the
Odinani
Odinani, also known as Odinala, Omenala, Odinana, and Omenana (), is the traditional cultural belief and practice of the Igbo people of South East (Nigeria), south east and Igbo people of South South (Nigeria), south south Nigeria.Afulezy, Juj ...
religion of the
Igbo people
The Igbo people ( , ; also spelled Ibo" and historically also ''Iboe'', ''Ebo'', ''Eboe'',
/
/
''Eboans'', ''Heebo'';
natively ) are an ethnic group found in Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, and Equatorial Guinea. Their primary origin is fo ...
. In the
Igbo pantheon, Chukwu is the source of all other
Igbo deities and is responsible for assigning them their different tasks. The
Igbo people
The Igbo people ( , ; also spelled Ibo" and historically also ''Iboe'', ''Ebo'', ''Eboe'',
/
/
''Eboans'', ''Heebo'';
natively ) are an ethnic group found in Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, and Equatorial Guinea. Their primary origin is fo ...
believe that all things come from Chukwu, who brings the
rain
Rain is a form of precipitation where water drop (liquid), droplets that have condensation, condensed from Water vapor#In Earth's atmosphere, atmospheric water vapor fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is res ...
necessary for
plants
Plants are the eukaryotes that form the kingdom Plantae; they are predominantly photosynthetic. This means that they obtain their energy from sunlight, using chloroplasts derived from endosymbiosis with cyanobacteria to produce sugars f ...
to grow and controls everything on
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...
and the
spiritual world. They believe Chukwu to be an undefinable
omnipotent
Omnipotence is the property of possessing maximal power. Monotheistic religions generally attribute omnipotence only to the deity of their faith. In the monotheistic religious philosophy of Abrahamic religions, omnipotence is often listed as ...
and
omnipresent
Omnipresence or ubiquity is the property of being present anywhere and everywhere. The term omnipresence is most often used in a religious context as an attribute of a deity or supreme being, while the term ubiquity is generally used to describ ...
supreme deity that encompasses everything in
space
Space is a three-dimensional continuum containing positions and directions. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions. Modern physicists usually consider it, with time, to be part of a boundless ...
and time itself. Igbo Christians also refer to the Abrahamic God as Chukwu.
West African Vodun
Nana Buluku is the female supreme being in
West African Vodun
West is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some Romance langu ...
. In
Dahomey mythology, Nana Buluku is the mother supreme creator who gave birth to the moon spirit
Mawu, the sun spirit
Lisa
Lisa or LISA may refer to:
People
People with the mononym
* Lisa (Japanese musician, born 1974), stylized "LISA"
* Lisa, stagename of Japanese singer Lisa Komine (born 1978)
* Lisa (South Korean singer) (born 1980)
* Lisa (Japanese musician, b ...
, and all of the universe. After giving birth to these, she retired and left the matters of the world to Mawu-Lisa. She is the primary creator, Mawu-Lisa the secondary creator, and the theology based on these is called Vodun, Voodoo or Vodoun.
Yoruba religion
The supreme creator in the
traditional religion of the
Yoruba people
The Yoruba people ( ; , , ) are a West African ethnic group who inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo, which are collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute more than 50 million people in Africa, are over a million outsid ...
is known as
Olorun or
Olodumare. The Yoruba believe that Olodumare is omnipotent and is the source of all.
Olodumare is aloof; he is not directly involved in earthly matters and lets other Yoruba deities (
orisha
Orishas (singular: orisha) are divine spirits that play a key role in the Yoruba religion of West Africa and several religions of the African diaspora that derive from it, such as Haitian Vaudou, Cuban Santería and Brazilian Candomblé. The p ...
), who are his sons and daughters, answer human concerns through divination, possession, sacrifice and more.
[Bewaji, John (1998). "Olodumare: God in Yoruba Belief and the Theistic Problem of Evil" (PDF). ''African Studies Quarterly''.] However, everything is in the hands of Olodumare when they are going to bed at night.
Yoruba Muslims and Christians also refer to the Abrahamic God as Olorun.
Zulu traditional religion
Unkulunkulu is the supreme creator in
Zulu traditional religion. Unkulunkulu brought human beings and cattle from an area of reeds. He created everything, from land and water, to man and the animals. He is considered the first man as well as the parent of all Zulu. He taught the Zulu how to hunt, how to make fire, and how to grow food. Zulu Christians also refer to the Abrahamic God as Unkulunkulu.
Native American religions
Anishinaabe
Gitche Manitou, also known as Gitchi Manitou, Kitchi Manitou, means "
Great Spirit
The Great Spirit is an omnipresent supreme life force, generally conceptualized as a supreme being or god, in the traditional religious beliefs of many, but not all, indigenous cultures in Canada and the United States. Interpretations of it v ...
" in several
Algonquian languages
The Algonquian languages ( ; also Algonkian) are a family of Indigenous languages of the Americas and most of the languages in the Algic language family are included in the group. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from ...
.
Christian missionaries
A Christian mission is an organized effort to carry on evangelism, in the name of the Christian faith. Missions involve sending individuals and groups across boundaries, most commonly geographical boundaries. Sometimes individuals are sent and ...
have translated ''
God
In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
'' as ''Gitche Manitou'' in scriptures and prayers in the Algonquian languages.
East Asian religions
In China
In China, belief systems can be considered to consist of four major traditions: the official belief system, the folk belief system, the Taoist belief system, and the Buddhist belief system. Among the first three—though none are monotheistic—there exists the concept of a supreme being.
Official Belief System
At the official level in classical China, from the Shang dynasty to the Qing dynasty, the supreme deity worshipped was known as
Shangdi
Shangdi (), also called simply Di (), is the name of the Chinese Highest Deity or "Lord Above" in the Chinese theology, theology of the classical texts, especially deriving from Shang dynasty, Shang theology and finding an equivalent in the lat ...
(上帝, literally "The Deity Above"), also referred to as Haotian Shangdi (昊天上帝, "Shangdi of the Vast Heaven"). The belief in Shangdi originated from ancient Chinese worship of the sky and the North Star. After Confucianism became the state orthodoxy, Shangdi continued to be revered as the highest deity.
Folk Belief System
Due to the solemnity of sacrificial rites, only the emperor was traditionally permitted to offer sacrifices to Shangdi in ancient China. As a result, common people rarely worshipped Shangdi directly. Instead, they venerated the
Yudi (玉帝, literally "Jade Emperor"), also known as Yuhuang (玉皇) or Yuhuang Dadi (玉皇大帝). In fact, belief in the Jade Emperor is considered to have developed from the earlier belief in Shangdi.
Taoist Belief System
Taoism acknowledges the authority and status of the folk Jade Emperor, but it does not regard him as the supreme deity of the religion. Instead, the highest deities in Taoism are the
Three Pure Ones
The Three Pure Ones, also translated as the Three Pure Pellucid Ones, the Three Pristine Ones, the Three Divine Teachers, the Three Clarities, or the Three Purities, are the three highest gods in the Taoist pantheon. They are regarded as pure m ...
.
In Japan
In Japan, many
Japanese new religions
Japanese new religions are new religious movements established in Japan. In Japanese, they are called or . Japanese scholars classify all religious organizations founded since the middle of the 19th century as "new religions"; thus, the term refe ...
can be considered to be monotheistic
or
henotheistic
Henotheism is the worship of a single, supreme god that does not deny the existence or possible existence of other deities that may be worshipped. Friedrich Schelling (1775–1854) coined the word, and Friedrich Welcker (1784–1868) ...
.
Some names for God as a supreme deity (rather than as a local
kami
are the Deity, deities, Divinity, divinities, Spirit (supernatural entity), spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forc ...
) in various Japanese religions are:
*
Kurozumikyo:
Amaterasu
, often called Amaterasu () for short, also known as and , is the goddess of the sun in Japanese mythology. Often considered the chief deity (''kami'') of the Shinto pantheon, she is also portrayed in Japan's earliest literary texts, the () ...
*
Konkokyo: , or the "Golden Kami of Heaven and Earth" (in Japanese, "Heaven and Earth" also means the Universe)
*
Tenrikyo
is a Japanese new religion which is neither strictly monotheistic nor pantheistic, originating from the teachings of a 19th-century woman named Nakayama Miki, known to her followers as "Oyasama". Followers of Tenrikyo believe that God of Orig ...
: God the Parent (Japanese: ''Oyagami'' 親神), Tenri-Ō-no-Mikoto (天理王命) (), Tsukihi (月日) (), God of Origin (元の神), God in Truth (実の神)
*
Oomoto
file:Chouseiden.jpg, 200px, ''Chōseiden'' (長生殿) in Ayabe, Kyoto, Ayabe
, also known as , is a religion founded in the 1890s by Nao Deguchi, Deguchi Nao (1836–1918) and Onisaburo Deguchi, Deguchi Onisaburō (1871–1948). Oomoto is typ ...
: Oomoto-sume-oomikami (大天主太神)
*
Ananaikyo: the , or
*
PL Kyodan
, is a Japanese (new religious movement) founded in 1924 by Tokuharu Miki (:ja:御木徳一, 御木徳一; 1871–1938), who was a priest in the Ōbaku sect of Zen Buddhism. The stated aim of the Church of Perfect Liberty is to bring about world ...
: () or (), both of which are different readings of the same characters
*
Ennokyo:
*
Seicho-no-Ie: Refers to "God" or ''Kami'' using the character
*
Mahikari:
See also
*
Bhadrakalpika Sūtra c. 200-250 CE, which gives names of 1002 Buddhas
*
Creator deity
A creator deity or creator god is a deity responsible for the creation of the Earth, world, and universe in human religion and mythology. In monotheism, the single God is often also the creator. A number of monolatristic traditions separate a ...
* ''
Dingir
''Dingir'' ⟨⟩, usually transliterated DIĜIR, () is a Sumerian word for 'god' or 'goddess'. Its cuneiform sign is most commonly employed as the determinative for religious names and related concepts, in which case it is not pronounced and ...
''
*
Existence of God
The existence of God is a subject of debate in the philosophy of religion and theology. A wide variety of arguments for and against the existence of God (with the same or similar arguments also generally being used when talking about the exis ...
*
Lists of deities
This is an index of lists of deity, deities of the different religions, cultures and mythologies of the world.
* List of deities by classification
* Lists of deities by cultural sphere
* List of fictional deities
* List of goddesses
* List of pe ...
*
List of goddesses
This is a list of goddesses, deities regarded as female or mostly feminine in gender.
African mythology (sub-Saharan) Afro-Asiatic
Ethiopian
* Dhat-Badan
Kafa
* Atete
Niger-Congo
Akan (inc. Ashanti)
Asase Yaa (Asaase Afua, Asaase Yaa, As ...
*
Sahasranama
' is a Sanskrit term which means "a thousand names".Sir Monier Monier-Williams, ''sahasranAman'', A Sanskrit-English Dictionary: Etymologically and Philologically Arranged with Special Reference to Cognate Indo-European Languages, Oxford Univer ...
*
Tetragrammaton
The TetragrammatonPronounced ; ; also known as the Tetragram. is the four-letter Hebrew-language theonym (transliteration, transliterated as YHWH or YHVH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four Hebrew letters, written and read from ...
*
Vishnu Sahasranāma
*
The Nine Billion Names of God, a short story by
Arthur C. Clarke
References
Sources
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Bibliography on Divine Names in the Dead Sea ScrollsEducation��Hearing and chanting in
ISKCON
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement, is a religious organization that follows the Gaudiya Vaishnavism, Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism. It was founded on 13 July 1966 ...
Do You Know the Origin of Name "Jehovah"?Ehyeh and YHWH—The Relationship Between the Divine Names in Exodus 3:14-15
given by
Meher Baba
Meher Baba (born Merwan Sheriar Irani; 25 February 1894 – 31 January 1969) was an Indian spirituality, spiritual master who said he was the Avatar, or God in human form, of the age. A spiritual figure of the 20th century, he had a following o ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Names Of God
Ceremonial magic
Divinity
Language and mysticism
God
In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...