Islamic honorifics are Arabic phrases, abbreviations, and titles that mostly appear as prefixes before or suffixes after the names of people who have had a special mission from Allah in the Islamic world or have done important work towards these missions. In Islamic writings, these honorific prefixes and suffixes come before and after the names of all the prophets and messengers (the last of whom is Muhammad), the Imams (the Twelve Imams in Shia Islam), the infallibles in Shia Islam, and the prominent individuals () who followed them. In the Islamic world, giving these respectful prefixes and suffixes is a tradition.

Among the most important honorific prefixes used are Hadhrat (, ). and Imam (, ). Among the most important honorific suffixes used are () and (), which these two suffix phrases used specifically for the Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islamic world, its abbreviation is also given in parentheses as in Arabic and "PBUH" in English after the name of Muhammad. And the two suffix phrases () and () are used when the name of each of the fourteen infallibles saints is mentioned or written in Islamic world and the most especially in the Shia Islam world, its abbreviation is also given in parentheses as in Arabic and "AS" in English after the name of the fourteen infallibles. And also the two suffix phrases () and () are used when the name of each of the companions of Muhammad is mentioned or written in Islamic world and the most especially in the Sunni Islam world, its abbreviation is also given in parentheses as in Arabic and "RA" in English after the name of the companions of Muhammad.

These glorifying expressions are also used for God Himself and His angels. Generally, for His angels, the phrase () is commonly used, and for God, usually His perfection attributes are used, such as the suffix ()."Abbas Jaffer, Masuma Jaffer." T Quranic Science. ICAN Press, 2009

Islam uses a number of conventionally complimentary phrases wishing-well or praising religiously-esteemed figures including Allah, Muhammad (Messenger of God), Muhammad's companions (the sahaba), family (Ahl al-Bayt), other Islamic prophets and messengers, angels, and revered persons. In Twelver Shi'ism, honorifics are used with the Twelve Imams.

Also, Islamic honorifics are referred to as Salawāt (, ) in the shape of () and also in Shia Islam in the shape of (), in Arabic too, which their meaning is equal to the phrase () in Persian language which meaning requesting () from God for Muhammad and his household in Urdu language too.

Formatting Islamic honorifics are not abbreviated in Arabic-script languages (e.g., Arabic, Persian, Urdu) given the rarity of acronyms and abbreviations in those languages, however, these honorifics are often abbreviated in other languages such as English, Spanish, and French. Common examples of these abbreviations include PBUH ('Peace be Upon Him') and SWT (subhanahu wa-ta'ala, 'Glorified and Exalted'). Though these honorifics may be abbreviated in writing, they are never abbreviated in speech. Abbreviations often vary in letter case and use of periods.

Honorifics, in Arabic or non-Arabic languages, can be written in multiple formats:

Arabic text with Islamic honorifics Example: "" English text with Islamic honorifics in romanized Arabic Example: "The Messenger of God () shared the word of Allah () as revealed to him by the angel Jibril () with his loyal companion, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq ()." English text with unabbreviated Islamic honorifics Example: "The Messenger of God (peace be upon him) shared the word of Allah (glorified and exalted) as revealed to him by the angel Jibril (peace be upon him) with his loyal companion, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (Allah be pleased with him)." English text with abbreviated Islamic honorifics Example: "The Messenger of God (PBUH) shared the word of Allah (SWT) as revealed to him by the angel Jibril (AS) with his loyal companion, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (RA)."

List of honorifics

God (Allah) Following the mention of God (Allah), including by pronoun (e.g., 'him' or 'his'), or by one of the names bestowed upon him, one of the below honorifics are said or written: +Suffixal Honorifics for AllahArabicSingle character in UnicodeRomanizationAbbreviationTranslation(SWT)Glorified and exalted(TWT)Blessed and exalted(AZWJ)Prestigious and majestic / Mighty and sublime(JJ)Most exalted

Muhammad Muhammad's name, reference to him through a pronoun (e.g., 'his' or 'him'), or the use of one of his titles (e.g., 'the messenger of Allah') is followed by one of the below honorifics. The honorific "Blessings of Allah be upon him as well as peace" is the most widely used. The use of the word "blessings" (ṣallā, ) can be used for all Islamic prophets (and Shia Imams) equally, however it is almost exclusively used with Muhammad.

+Suffixal Honorifics for MuhammadArabicSingle character in UnicodeRomanizationAbbreviationTranslationﷺ U+FDFA(SAW), (SA), (PBUH)May blessings of Allah be upon him as well as peace. English short: Peace be upon himDefault universal character ﵌ U+FD4Cṣallā -llāhu ʿalayhī wa-ʾālihī wa-sallama(SAWW), (SAWS), (SA), (PBUHP)May blessings of Allah be upon him and his progeny and grant him peace. English short: Peace be upon him and his progeny ﵆ U+FD46ṣallā -llāhu ʿalayhī wa-ʾālihī(SAWA), (SA), (SAWW)May blessings of Allah be upon him and his progeny

Muhammad's companions

Honorifics used for Muhammad's companions () ask for Allah's pleasure with them. Muhammad's companions include men (Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali, etc.) and women (e.g., Fatima bint Muhammad, Aisha bint Abu Bakr, Asma bint Abu Bakr, etc.), and are accorded the properly gendered honorifics. +Suffixal honorifics for the SahabaArabicSingle character in UnicodeRomanizationAbbreviationTranslationؓ U+0613 (accent used prefix or suffix to name)raḍiya -llāhu ʿanh(RA)May Allah be pleased with himraḍiya -llāhu ʿanhāMay Allah be pleased with herraḍiya -llāhu ʿanhumāMay Allah be pleased with them (dual)raḍiya -llāhu ʿanhumMay Allah be pleased with themraḍiya -llāhu ʿanhunnMay Allah be pleased with them (Feminine plural)

Prophets, messengers, and Ahl al-Bayt

Some honorifics apply to the archangels (Jibril, Mikhail, etc.) as well as any other Islamic prophets preceding Muhammad (e.g., Isa, Musa, Ibrahim etc.). A group of modern scholars from Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, Yemen, and Mauritania has issued fatwa that the angels should be invoked with blessing of , which also applied to human prophets and messengers. This fatwa was based on the ruling from Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya.

Some major hadith collections such as Sahih al-Bukhari, Sunan Abi Dawud, and Sunan al-Tirmidhi include narrations where members of the Ahl al-Bayt (the family of Muhammad), including Ali, Fatima, Hasan, and Husayn, are mentioned with ʿalayhi/ʿalayhā/ʿalayhim al-salām.

+Suffixal Honorifics for Prophets, Messengers, Angels and Ahl al-baytArabicSingle character in UnicodeRomanizationAbbreviationTranslationʿalayhi -s-salāmu(AS)Peace be upon himʿalayhā -s-salāmuPeace be upon herʿalayhimā -s-salāmuPeace be upon them (dual)ʿalayhimu -s-salāmuPeace be upon them (plural)ʿalayhinna -s-salāmuPeace be upon them (feminine plural)ʿalayhi -ṣ-ṣalātu wa-s-salāmu(ASWS)Blessings and peace be upon himʿalayhā -ṣ-ṣalātu -s-salāmuBlessings and peace be upon herʿalayhimā -ṣ-ṣalātu -s-salāmuBlessings and peace be upon them (dual)ʿalayhimu -ṣ-ṣalātu -s-salāmuBlessings and peace be upon them (plural)ʿalayhinna -ṣ-ṣalātu -s-salāmuBlessings and peace be upon them (feminine plural)salāmu -llāhi ʿalayhī(SA)Allah's peace upon himsalāmu -llāhi ʿalayhāAllah's peace upon hersalāmu -llāhi ʿalayhimāAllah's peace upon them (dual)salāmu -llāhi ʿalayhimAllah's peace upon them (plural)salāmu -llāhi ʿalayhinnaAllah's peace upon them (feminine plural) In Shia Islam, Muhammad's progeny, referred to as (), are addressed with the same honorifics as messengers.

Revered men and women

Some honorifics apply to highly-revered Islamic scholars and people thought to be of high spiritual rank. When that person has died, honorifics ask for Allah's mercy upon or pleasure with him or her. When that person is still living, honorifics customarily ask for Allah's preservation or relief.

+Suffixal Honorifics for revered men and womenArabicSingle character in UnicodeRomanizationAbbreviationTranslationraḥmatu -llāhi ʿalayh(RH)Allah's mercy upon himraḥimahu -llāhMercy upon himAllah's mercy upon herMercy upon herAllah's mercy upon themraḥimahumu -llāhMercy upon them(RA)Allah be pleased with himriḍwānu -llāhi ta'ālā ʿalayhāAllah be pleased with her(HA)Allah preserve himhafiḏahā 'llāhAllah preserve her(FA)Allah grant him relieffarraja -llāhu ʿanhāAllah grant her reliefraḍiya -llāhu ʿanh(RA)May Allah be pleased with himraḍiya -llāhu ʿanhāMay Allah be pleased with herraḍiya -llāhu ʿanhumāMay Allah be pleased with them (dual)raḍiya -llāhu ʿanhumMay Allah be pleased with themraḍiya -llāhu ʿanhunnMay Allah be pleased with them (Feminine plural)

Scriptural and hadith basis

Qur'ān

The honorifics for Muhammad are enjoined by Surat al-Ahzab:

Hadiths from Sunni Islam

Al-Tirmidhi recorded that Abu Hurairah said, "The Messenger of Allah said, 'May he be humiliated, the man in whose presence I am mentioned and he does not send Salaam upon me; may he be humiliated, the man who sees the month of Ramadan come and go, and he is not forgiven; may he be humiliated, the man whose parents live to old age and they do not cause him to be granted admittance to Paradise. Al-Tirmidhi said that this hadith was , "good but only reported once".

In , , and , four of the six major hadith collections recorded that Abu Hurairah said, "The Messenger of Allah said: 'Whoever sends one Salaam upon me, Allah will send ten upon him.

Ahmad ibn Hanbal reported in his that the Companion of Muhammad, Abu Talha ibn Thabit, said:Graham, William A. (1977). Divine Word and Prophetic Word in Early Islam: A Reconsideration of the Sources, with Special Reference to the Divine Saying or Hadith Qudsi. Walter de Gruyter. .

Al-Bayhaqi reports that Abu Hurairah said that Muhammad said, "Send the Salaam on Allah's messengers and prophets for Allah sent them as He sent me."

This point is further founded in the saying by Muhammad, "The miser is the one in whose presence I am mentioned, then he does not send the Salam upon me." This was recorded in .

Criticism of abbreviations Scholars of the Salafi branch of Islam practiced in Saudi Arabia have instructed their followers not to abbreviate the upon Muhammad, but to instead write the full form. For example, Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz, the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, said:

Official religious bodies such as Egypt’s Dar al-Iftaa and have also discouraged the use of abbreviations. Egypt’s Dar al-Iftaa classifies the use of abbreviations as a 'prohibited matter' according to scholars, viewing it as a sign of laziness to obtain rewards and rudeness toward Muhammad. Similarly, Jordan’s Iftaa’ Department states that while abbreviations should be avoided in writing, if they are used in a case of necessity, the practitioner must still pronounce the full blessing verbally.

Unicode

UnicodeUTF-8 EncodingSymbolUnicode NameTranscriptionArabicEnglishؑArabic sign ALAYHE ASSALLAMPeace be upon himؒArabic sign RAHMATULLAH ALAYHEGod have mercy upon himؓArabic sign RADI ALLAHOU ANHUGod be pleased with him

See also Honorifics in Judaism Honorifics in Sikhism

Notes

References