# The words "Muslim" and "Islam" **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 29, 2002, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-words-muslim-and-islam/126096 "2002-08-29T14:44:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2002, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-words-muslim-and-islam/126096/1 "2002-08-29T14:44:10Z")
Not a religious debate, but a question of wording. Jews believe in Judaism; Christians in Christianity; Buddhists in Buddhism—but Muslims believe in Islam. Does anyone know why the divergence in wording, what the two actually mean and what the derivation is? —Eve (who has gotten into no end of zany mixups by confusing “Muslim” with “muslin”) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2002, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-words-muslim-and-islam/126096/2 "2002-08-29T15:16:29Z")
Hmmm…interesting quesiton. I’ll shed what little light the OED helps me with. Apparently “muslim,” in Arabic, is the active participle of “aslama,” of which the noun of action is “islam.” I am then instructed by the OED to see Islam. So here we go. In Arabic, “islam” literally means “resignation, surrendering.” It apparently is the infinitive noun of “aslama.” So, if I’m understanding this correctly, it’s all a matter of Arabic grammar. But somebody with a better understanding of Arabic grammar please chime in here. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2002, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-words-muslim-and-islam/126096/3 "2002-08-29T15:21:46Z")
Right…the Arabic root is SLM, which means to be peaceful or surrender or submit. So, Islam means “submission” and a Muslim is “A person who submits”, the idea being that a Muslim submits to G-d. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Punkyova](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@The\_Punkyova](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Punkyova)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2002, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-words-muslim-and-islam/126096/4 "2002-08-29T15:22:44Z")
I don’t speak or read Arabic, but I can read Hebrew, a related language. The key is the consonants. You will notice that “Islam” and “Muslim” both have the consonant pattern “slm.” This is the actual root of the word, which carries the meaning. By adding different vowels in different places, you create nouns, verbs and participles. My Hebrew textbook (and I would guess Arabic textbooks as well) showed the various paradigms using X for consonants. iXXaX is a noun, muXXiX is an active participle, etc. Where it becomes truly interesting is weak consonants, which drop out, leaving you with only two consonants to determine the root. Great fun is had by all! ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2002, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-words-muslim-and-islam/126096/5 "2002-08-29T15:38:34Z")
Interesting! Thanks for the info. It’s odd that it was never “simplified” for Western consumption. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2002, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-words-muslim-and-islam/126096/6 "2002-08-29T16:01:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Eve \* > \*\*Interesting! Thanks for the info. It’s odd that it was never “simplified” for Western consumption. \*\* Well, it was, sort of, in the past. “Muhammedan/Mohammedan,” corresponding to Christian, Bhuddist, etc. was frequently used formerly but now is disfavored. “Jew” and “Judaism” also don’t fit the pattern of being named from a founder, being I believe derived from the Kingdom of Judah. ---
**Author:** ![AmbushBug](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ambushbug/32/4600_2.png) [@AmbushBug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AmbushBug)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2002, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-words-muslim-and-islam/126096/7 "2002-08-29T16:45:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Eve \* > \*\*Interesting! Thanks for the info. It’s odd that it was never “simplified” for Western consumption. \*\* …and don’t forget “Mussulman”. Not that a Farsi (Iranian/Persian) derivative is necessarily “Western”. [link](http://www.takeourword.com/TOW136/page1.html) AmbushBug ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2002, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-words-muslim-and-islam/126096/8 "2002-08-30T14:27:10Z")
> [@](#): > > “Jew” and “Judaism” also don’t fit the pattern of being named from a founder, being I believe derived from the Kingdom of Judah. Correct. While Judaism was the religion of the entire Israelite nation, from both the Northern (Israelite) Kingdom and the Southern (Judean) Kingdom, the Northern Kingdom went into exile first and disappeared from the pages of history - the well-known “Ten Lost Tribes.” One hundred fifty years later (roughly), the Kingdom of Judah was conquered by the Babylonians, but they didn’t lose their distinct identity. To the Babylonians (and therefore by later civilizations), the people and religion became known as the people and religion of (the conquered kingdom of) Judah - hence, Jew and Judaism. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2002, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-words-muslim-and-islam/126096/9 "2002-08-30T15:12:25Z")
This is why I love the SDMB—this stuff is _so_ cool, and where else could I ask?