In sha' Allah[a][b], usually called the Istit̲h̲nāʾ,[1] is an Arabic-language expression meaning 'if God wills' or 'God willing'.[2] It is mentioned in the Quran[3] which requires its use when mentioning future events.[4][5] It signifies that nothing, neither action nor thought, happens without God's permission.[6]
In an Islamic context, it expresses the belief that nothing happens unless God wills it, and that his will supersedes all human will;[7] however, more generally the phrase is commonly used by Muslims, Arab Christians and Arabic speakers of other religions to refer to events that one hopes will happen in the future, having the same meaning as the English word "hopefully".[7][8]
The phrase can take on an ironic context, implying that something will never happen and is left to God's hands, or can be used as a gentle way of declining invitations.[9]
Other languages
In Adyghe, the terms тхьэм ыIомэ (thəm yı'omə) and иншаллахь (inshallah) are widely used by Circassians, with the meaning "hopefully" or "if God wills".
The Spanish word ojalá[10] and the words oxalá in Asturleonese and Galician (more rarely in this language ogallá), all come from the Arabic لو شاء الله (law šā' l-lāh)[11] from the time of Al-Andalus. It means "we hope", "I hope", "we wish", "I wish". The expression tomara – which some argue comes from "atamma 'Llah" in Arabic with the original meaning similar to "The God will is that" – is also used in Andalusian Spanish. The expression oxalá also exists in Portuguese with a similar meaning. Similar equivalents include se Deus quiser and Deus queira; the aforementioned tomara is also commonly used.[12]
The Sardinian expressions Deus bollat or Deus chergiat, meaning "If God wills", used to be common and are still used by mainly elderly (religious) people.
Finnish interjection: Jos Luoja suo, meaning "God willing", is used by some artists in popular music to express leaving life to chance/faith/luck.
The term is used in the Indonesian and Malay languages with very similar meanings and spellings, i.e. insyaallah (Indonesian) and insya'Allah (Malay), and is used in the same manner, meaning "God willing". It is a very common expression in both languages.
A similar expression exists in Maltese: jekk Alla jrid ("if God wills it").[14] Maltese is descended from Siculo-Arabic, the Arabic dialect that developed in Sicily and later in Malta between the end of the 9th century and the end of the 12th century.
In Persian language the phrase is nearly the same, انشاءالله, being pronounced formally as en shâ Allah, or colloquially as ishâllâ.
In Polish, Daj Boże and Jak Bóg da are similar expressions to the South Slav versions. They mean "God, give" and "if God will give/allow".
In Romanian, Să dea Dumnezeu! or Să dea Domnul! means the same.
In Italian, the expression Se Dio vuole has the same meaning.
In Russian, Дай Бог! (Day Bog) is a similar expression with the meaning "God, give!".
In Tagalog, sana means "I hope" or "we hope". It is the synonym of the Tagalog word nawa.
In Turkish, the word inşallah or inşaallah is similarly used to mean "If God wishes and grants", or more generally "hopefully", but is also used in an ironic context when the speaker does not put too much faith in something.
In Urdu, the word is used with the meaning "God willing".
In Hebrew the same term is used, borrowed from Arabic (אינשאללה). The original Hebrew term is בעזרת השם (with God's help).
In Swahili, the term inshallah is used frequently by the Muslim population, while Christians might prefer the phrase Mungu akipenda, "if God wants".
^Uses of “Ojalá” in Spanish. "Ojalá in Spanish". Adros Verse Education. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
^Asociación de academias de la lengua española (2021). "ojalá". Real Academia Española. Retrieved 22 May 2021. Del ár. hisp. law šá lláh 'si Dios quiere'.
^Academia das Ciências de Lisboa. "tomar". Dicionário da Lingua Portuguesa. Retrieved 22 March 2024. para exprimir o desejo ou vontade do sujeito de que se realize a proposição contida na oração subordinada, completiva no modo conjuntivo ou infinitiva
^Γιαγκουλλής, Κωνσταντίνος (2002). Θησαυρός Κυπριακής Διαλέκτου Ερμηνευτικός και ετυμολογικός - Από το 13ο αι. μέχρι σήμερα-Κωνσταντίνος. Λευκωσία. p. 113. ISBN9963-555-41-1.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
