Mashallah

For other uses, see Mashallah (disambiguation).

Mashallah (Arabic: ما شاء الله‎‎, mā shāʾa llāh^u), also masha'Allah, is an Arabic phrase that expresses appreciation, joy, praise, or thankfulness for an event or person that was just mentioned. While mashallah is used as an expression of respect, it also serves as a reminder that all accomplishments are considered by Muslims to be achieved through the will of Allah. It is generally said upon hearing good news.

In some Muslim cultures, people may utter mashallah in the belief that it may help protect them from jealousy, the evil eye, or a jinx. In Islamic aqeeda (matters that are believed with certainty), it is understood that protection comes only from Allah.

Etymology

The triliteral of shāʼ is sh-y-ʼ 'to will', a doubly weak root. The literal English translation is "God has willed it", the present perfect of God's Will accentuating the essential Islamic doctrine of belief in destiny, qadar.

Examples

Person A: I have just become a father!
Person B: Mashallah!

Person A: Your house is beautiful, mashallah!
Person B: Jazakallahu khayran!

Among non-Arabic peoples

The phrase has also found its way into the colloquial language of many non-Arabic peoples, such as Persians, Turks (who say "maşallah"), Kurds, Bosniaks, Azeris, Chechens, Avars, Circassians and other Muslim peoples of the Caucasus, Tatars, Albanians and Muslims and Urdu-speakers of South Asia, and some of the peoples of the Balkans who once lived under Turkish rule, including some who are not of the Islamic faith: Serbians, Bulgarians and Macedonians say "машала" ("mašala"), often in the sense of "a job well done". Greeks use the word similarly. In the vernacular form of Cypriot Greek speakers invoke mashallah in a similar fashion to Turks. The practice of saying this word is also present in in eastern Africa specifically the horn of Africa where it is used by the local Muslim people of Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti.

See also

• Inshallah
• Jazak Allah
• Subhan Allah
• Alhamdulillah
• Apotropaic
• As-salamu alaykum
• Deus Vult
• Fi amanillah
• Predestination in Islam