Talk:As-salamu alaykum/Archive 1

Pronunciation
Any chance of getting a pronunciation guide?


 * I'm not familiar enough with pronounciation keys and I can't seem to find it right now, but phonetically, its: AH-SAL'AM-OO AL-'AYE-CUM. Sorry I can't be of more help. I'll keep looking. --jenlight 17:29, 24 December 2005 (UTC)

Salamun'Alaikum
I suspect that this form is simply (سلام عليكم) with a nominative tanwin after the mīm - can anyone confirm or deny this? And should this not still be two words (salāmun `alaykum)? Also, as regards the "...way the Qur'an commands a Muslim to greet others..." note, can anyone furnish a reference to what surah and ayah this comes from? That would be very helpful. Keldan 08:58, 13 February 2006 (UTC)

More information on pronunciation
As-salamu 'Alaikum

I am not following Islam right now, and my family are not Muslims, but I know it is a beautiful practice, and I want to learn to say this blessing properly when I greet Muslims.

[ʔæsːælæːmʊ ʕælæɪkʊm] is in the International Phonetic Alphabet. I used IPA in university but it is hard for me to imagine the vowels from the description (for example [ʊ] is a high back unrounded vowel) as they are no included in my native dialect of English.

It would be helpful to have audio recordings included in this article with examples of the pronunciation used in different countries. I find it rather easy to imitate sounds from other languages after hearing them. I have not been able to find such recordings on the internet. I would appreciate a link in this article. If you know where such a recording is please contact me.

As-salamu 'Alaikum Sometimes somethings

23:30, 20 October 2006 (UTC)

Placing the right palm on forehead?
"In the Indian subcontinent and Malaysia the saying of Salaam is often accompanied with an obeisance, performed by bowing low and placing the right palm on the forehead."

I'm from Malaysia and a Muslim and I've NEVER seen anyone do the palm on forehead thing in my whole life.

218.111.207.242 00:49, 27 March 2007 (UTC)

In Bangladesh, they do the bow and forehead touch. I have expatriate in-laws who have worked there for 30-odd years, and this was one of the first things I was taught--as well as personally saw--when I visited them. I'll have to do some digging for a valid encyclopedic source. -KH

Pbuh?
In the "Islamic rulings related to the use of the greeting" section, I noticed that Muhammad's name was followed by (pbuh). This isn't done in other Wikipedia articles, including those dealing with Islam, that I've read (except in quotations) so is there a particular reason for it to be put in here? It seems (very mildly) POV given that non-Muslims don't use pbuh, and so the article appears to be written from an Islamic point of view, rather than being strictly NPOV as is policy. I'm not a Muslim, just an interested person wandering through the Islamic Jurisprudence articles, so if I have missed something extremely obvious, I apologise and assure you that I meant no offence. 86.132.136.49 03:43, 19 April 2007 (UTC)

PBUH means Peace be upon him. In Islam, this is to show respect for the Prophets. So if you a Muslim were to say Jesus, or Moses, they would say Jesus PBUH or Moses PBUH freethymind 09:45, 2 October 2007 (UTC)

Pronunciation
Whizkidravi edited it and he/she gave the pronunciation used in India (where the user is from) which IS NOT correct.

As a student of Arabic Tajweed and phonetics I can assure you that everything is 100% correct, and if you disagree please post your thoughts here first.--Mecca Cola 08:09, 27 July 2006 (UTC)

Who says i am an indian? i am a die hard Pakistani student of quran and islam (and french)- ᵺe Æﬃﬆ 15:16, 27 July 2006 (UTC)

I guess the Indian flag you had made me assume that you are Indian. ---Still, the pronunciation you are giving is 100% wrong. If you do study the Qur'an with proper tajweed you will know that the Fatha is pronounced in Arabic as the 'a' in 'cat' [IPA: æ] and not as you have put. I know that this pronunciation you have put is common in the sub-continent, however it is wrong.


 * Well mister mecca i would just like to tell you that a whopping 160+140+120= 520 million muslims live in south asia who say a as in car, plus another 300 in Iran and Indonesia, making almost 820 million (plus not-counted not-muslim south asians who say salaam), about 12% of the world, and more than half of all msulims. however since "Salaam" is of arabic origin it is levereged out. Perhaps we can make an agreement concerning the different pronunciations und styles atound the world. PS concerning the bit about it being funny over wrong pronunciations, do not always listen to your imported islamic imam than a native living in one of the highest population muslim cummonities, such as lahore, ratha dan melbourne   - ᵺe Æﬃﬆ  04:37, 29 July 2006 (UTC)


 * As-Salaamu `Alaykum, brother/sister, I suggest that we all fear Allaah in our interactions here. To begin with, my Imam is one of the most knowledgeable in the whole world in Qur'an Tajweed. He has in Ijaaza in every of the 7 recitations of the Qur'an and in the 7 ahruf. Basically he knows the whole Qur'an almost 50 times over. He has studied all his life and has set up many institutes for studying Qur'an. I myself am a linguist, so when I say something it is not out of guesswork or estimation, I have studied phonetics and Arabic enough to know how a fatha is pronounced. I agree that maybe we can add a section to how the greeting is pronounced in various countries, however we should make it clear that in Classical (Fusha) Arabic, the greeting is pronounced as I have written it. This is more correct as the greeting is from the Arabic language, and despite the fact that people have their own ways of pronouncing it, we all agree that it was a greeting of the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallaahu `Alayhi wa Sallam) and Allaah ordered it and this was given in the Arabic language according to the pronounciation of Quraysh, which is what I gave.I will add the variations from now, but please do not change what I have given as it is correct.--Mecca Cola 11:47, 30 July 2006 (UTC)

Regarding the recording, I'm wondering if the person who recorded it could put up a second version that is spoken at conversational speed. I've never heard anyone say either salutation so slowly, and it would be helpful to get the rhythm of all those phrases. Thanks! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.5.197.18 (talk) 18:46, 8 November 2007 (UTC)

Cite for not giving salutation to Non-Muslims
I saw the tag on the line about not giving the salutation to Infidels. I see that this link discusses the issue. I have no idea of its authortiy.

http://islamqa.com/index.php?ref=4975&ln=eng&txt=Salaam

“Do not initiate the greeting with the Jews and Christians” and his command to reply by saying, “Wa ‘alaykum.” What we have mentioned as our madhhab or point of view is also the opinion of most of the scholars and the majority of the salaf… It is permissible to initiate the greeting when addressed to a group composed of both Muslims and kaafirs, or one Muslim and a number of kaafirs, but he should intend the greeting to be directed towards the Muslim(s) among them, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) greeted an assembly that included a mixture of Muslims and mushrikeen. VinceP1974 VP1974 09:45, 1 January 2007 (UTC)
 * I have been trying to look for nas or dalil or authority from the web on the allowance to give salam to non-muslims. In Malaysia, a multi racial and multi-religous society it is quite ridicolous to keep saying salam and good morning at the same time to a mixed crowd. There are also instances where we say the salam in arabic and salam in local malay for general audience, as if the arabic version is religously correct when its meaning is similar in any other language i.e. Peace Be Upon You. So if we can say 'Peace' in general why not just say Salam and mean the same thing without religious restriction? - Red1 D Oon (talk) 09:08, 8 May 2008 (UTC)

Why a citation for shalom aleichem?
The call for a citation for saying that shalom aleichem is similar to As-Salamu Alaykum is just silly. The similarity is self-evident. --Dialecticas (talk) 20:39, 20 February 2008 (UTC)
 * It is helpful to draw the attention of those who don't know about the Jewish honorific. 'twas helpful for me. ;) Hakeem.gadi (talk) 16:39, 15 July 2008 (UTC)

Variations
Hi, I am a native speaker of Arabic and a Muslim who have lived in various Muslim communities throughout my life, and I know that Assalamu Alaikum is always said in the second person masculine plural form, always. One reason for this which I heard frequently is that because -accrding to Muslim belief- there are two angels accompanying every person on each shoulder, and since angels are normally talked about in the masculine in Arabic, voila! you got the right comination to use the sec. pers. masc. plural (two guys plus the person). I believe the section should be removed. Hakeem.gadi (talk) 16:39, 15 July 2008 (UTC)

Removed seemingly irrelevant external link
I have removed the following external link. The article is simply about how a substitute teacher got enraged that a student used the phrase assalamu alaikum.
 * Teacher Charged After Uproar Over Arabic

I don't think this link alone belongs here. Perhaps a proper "Cultural perception" section could be created. --85.5.99.36 (talk) 05:11, 23 July 2008 (UTC)

The Extension of Salaam
This article seem to have a question and more solid extend on the phrase "Assalamu alaikum" although it continues to "Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh". Could someone please fix that? Nuklear Kranium (talk) 06:16, 2 August 2008 (UTC)

Meaning of As-Salam Alaikum
The true meaning of "As-Salam Alaikum" is not a mere "Hi", "Hello", "How are you" as we are accustomed to using today - it has a much deeper meaning than just a standard greeting. In actuality, there are three meanings for this greeting:

1. As-Salam, as we know, is one of the names of Allah. Thus, when we say "As-Salam Alaikum" we are actually saying that may the trait of Allah (as-Salam or peace and tranquility_ be upon you and may He protect you;

2. As-Salam is also in the meaning of submission or surrender. Thus, when we say "As-Salam Alaikum" we are actually saying that we submit to what you would like for us to do (obviously within the limits of the Shariah);

3. As-Salam is also in the meaning of protection or safety. Thus in this meaning, when we greet another believer with "As-Salam Alaikum" we are actually guaanteeing our believing brother or sister protection from any evil from ourselves and that we will not do a single thing to harm them - either physically or even spiritually. Not only would we not harm them with our hands, but we will also not cause them grief with our tongue... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.107.103.200 (talk) 05:14, 2 March 2009 (UTC)

meaning?
should a translation for the phrase be added to the first section, as is common for many foreign language phrases in english wikipedia? 60.240.41.159 (talk) 05:11, 8 March 2010 (UTC)

As-Salamu Alaykum Peace be unto you sha-LOM a-lay-KHEM
it was 1st used by Jesus Christ in his 1st appearance after crucifixion, Shortly after nine o'clock that evening, after the departure of Cleopas and Jacob, while the Alpheus twins comforted Peter, and while Nathaniel remonstrated with Andrew, and as the ten apostles were there assembled in the upper chamber with all the doors bolted for fear of arrest, the Master, in morontia form, suddenly appeared in the midst of them, saying: sha-LOM a-lay-KHEM (Peace be upon you) As-Salamu Alaykum. Why are you so frightened when I appear, as though you had seen a spirit? Did I not tell you about these things when I was present with you in the flesh? Did I not say to you that the chief priests and the rulers would deliver me up to be killed, that one of your own number would betray me, and that on the third day I would rise? Wherefore all your doubtings and all this discussion about the reports of the women, Cleopas and Jacob, and even Peter? How long will you doubt my words and refuse to believe my promises? And now that you actually see me, will you believe? Even now one of you is absent. When you are gathered together once more, and after all of you know of a certainty that the Son of Man has risen from the grave, go hence into Galilee. Have faith in God; have faith in one another; and so shall you enter into the new service of the kingdom of heaven. I will tarry in Jerusalem with you until you are ready to go into Galilee. My peace I leave with you."

191:2.2 When the morontia Jesus had spoken to them, he vanished in an instant from their sight. And they all fell on their faces, praising God and venerating their vanished Master. This was the Master's ninth morontia appearance. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 10452-land (talk • contribs) 11:42, 8 September 2010 (UTC)

The reference to Jesus should be removed. It's only relevant to the article if Jesus was - as per the Muslim religion - a Muslim who preached Islam. However,

- Jesus was a Jew, not a Muslim

- He spoke Aramaic, not Arabic

- The Muslim doctrine about him is a religious view, not a scholarly one

Hence, that he uttered a similar phrase in Aramaic is simply not relevant to this article, and gives undue weight to Islamic opinion. Logos384 (talk) 08:44, 4 July 2011 (UTC)

Broken Reference
The one reference used in this article appears to be broken. When accessed, it returns a 404 error. Should the reference and the material it refers to be removed? Zargon2010 (talk) 23:40, 26 August 2011 (UTC)

Derivation
Many articles about words include a section on the word's derivation (same with phrases).

I know relatively little about Arabic; but it is striking that the second word in this two-word phrase seems close to the word "Allah". This seems similar to many English words where God or Good is included, derived from the word God - "goodbye", being, I believe, for example, a shortening of "God be with you". It would be nice if a scholar of Arabic could add some information about the derivation of the word phrase As-salamu alaykum. It would also be helpful if there could be some more explanation of why many people who are not speakers of Arabic believe the expression to be "Salaam Aleikhum" - are they wrong, or is this a different transliteration or dialect?

peter_english (talk) 17:08, 31 January 2013 (UTC)

Non-Muslim use of phrase
I removed "... nonetheless it is a blessing and should not be used as simply as hello by non-Muslims. Salaam is an acceptable way to say hello for non Muslims." from the introductory section (per WP:BOLD) because the statements there were contradictory. Perhaps some folks with relevant linguistic experience (with sources, of course) could offer some insight on the matter?  — DemonicPartyHat talk 01:31, 17 April 2013 (UTC)

history of the greet
As someone mentioned before, the greet salaam aleikum derives from the arameeic/jewish greet shalom aleichum. So this might be relevant to put some information of the history of the greet into this article. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.91.41.128 (talk) 13:09, 5 May 2013 (UTC)

Proposal to merge Wa alaykumu s-salam into this article
There is no reason for Wa alaykumu s-salam to exist as a separate article. Therefore I propose that it be merged into this one. --- Wikitiki89 (talk) - 19:10, 12 November 2013 (UTC)
 * Here is my reasoning: They are not actually two separate greetings, but rather two parts of the same greeting. Wa alaykumu s-salam does not exist on it's own but only as the second part of As-salamu alaykum and is not notable or different enough to have a separate article. They are composed of the same two words that are just interchanged, and so there is no need to repeat their etymologies twice. --- Wikitiki89 (talk) - 16:30, 13 November 2013 (UTC)


 * Probably not a good idea to merge, as both are opposites of each other. As-salamu alaykum is used as hello, while Wa alaykumu s-salam is a return phrase and in many contexts, even used as a parting phrase. Both phrases are used in a different context by over a billion people on earth, so they are notable enough in my opinion to have stand-alone articles.  Mar4d  ( talk ) 09:40, 5 February 2014 (UTC)
 * Being opposites does not mean they need separate articles. Compare the article yes and no. --- Wikitiki89 (talk) - 07:32, 6 February 2014 (UTC)
 * I think both should be merged. Jack Pepa (talk) 21:08, 21 October 2014 (UTC)
 * I have changed my mind, and I think that Wa alaykumu s-salam should now be merged into this article. Fai  zan  15:57, 22 December 2014 (UTC)

Survey
*Oppose: Why no reason? You have got any reason? Both articles are on the basis Islamic Greetings, and both of them are notable enough to be kept separate. I staunchly oppose this merge proposal. Fai zan  15:15, 13 November 2013 (UTC)

Standardizing transliteration of ی‎
The article uses both i and y to transliterate ی‎. I suggest standardizing on i for vowel usage and only using y for elided usage before other vowels. So instead of "alaykum", "alaikum". --66.87.126.168 (talk) 13:11, 19 May 2015 (UTC)

The origin
The origin of this greeting does not lie in Islam, it is not a Muslim greeting. "As-salamu alaykum" by itself has a use, regardless of the widely used Islamic counterpart. It is only Arabic. The beginning paragraph should be corrected accordingly. 88.234.22.33 (talk) 00:20, 18 November 2015 (UTC)

Salafist references
References no. 2 and 5 are from a Salafist website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IslamQA.info. I think, this should be mentioned in the article. It could be also a good idea to replace them (or, if there is no non-salafist proof, remove the whole paragraph). --2001:4CA0:440A:1:69D6:C86F:6B60:8C69 (talk) 16:36, 1 December 2015 (UTC)

Audio Pronunciation
What a great place to utilize a slow audio pronunciation. - --KitchM (talk) 17:18, 25 July 2019 (UTC)

Inverted response
None of the historical examples cited on this page include the inverted response wa ʿalaykumu s-salām. I'm curious about its origin, which is now almost universal across Semitic languages. As I've written on Shalom Aleichem, it seems to be first attested in Hebrew in the ninth century. In Aramaic literature it isn't ever inverted. Anyone know when it appears in Arabic? GordonGlottal (talk) 03:36, 16 February 2022 (UTC)

salamu alaykum
asalamu alaykum 2001:16A2:C1C5:1280:7D35:1760:8349:89B (talk) 21:52, 26 June 2022 (UTC)

Islamic honorifics
The article fails to explain why it is included in the category Islamic honorifics. --TadejM my talk 23:23, 2 April 2023 (UTC)