The Definite Article

The Arabic word  اَل  is one of the most recited words in the Quran. It in fact forms part of one of the very first words in the Quran اَلْحَمْد

Meaning:

اَل literally means ‘the’. For example:

   A school = مَدْرَسَة           The school = اَلْمَدْرَسَة
   A teacher = مُدَرّس           The teacher = اَلْمُدَرّس

Functions:

As well as having the meaning of ‘the’, the Arabic word اَل also makes the noun that it is attached to definite.

When referring to a specific item, اَل must be added to the relevant adjective and / or noun.

Take the sentence ‘this is a boy’, which is written as هَذَا وَلَد.

To make the sentence refer to a specific item, i.e. ‘this boy’, we add  اَل to the subject of the sentence, giving us هَذَا الْوَلَد.

Sentence position:

It is important to take note of the point at which  اَل  appears in a sentence as it impacts the meaning.

A beautiful river = نَهْر جَمِيل
The river is beautiful = اَلنَّهْرُ جَمِيل    
The beautiful river = اَلنَّهْرُ الْجَمِيل

The impact that the positioning of the word  اَل  has on the meaning of sentences can also be seen in sentence structures containing the words ‘this’ or ‘that’.

This is a book = هَذَا كِتَاب
This book = هَذَا الْكِتَاب
This is the book = هَذَا هُوَ الْكِتَاب

That is a boy = ذَلِكَ وَلَد
That boy = ذَلِكَ الْوَلَد
That is the boy = ذَلِكَ هُوَ الْوَلَد

Usage in The Quran:

Whilst the word  اَل  appears many times throughout the Quran, a particularly interesting usage  is with respect to the names and attributes of Allah (SWT), including the name Allah itself.

A God = إِلَه                    The (only) God = اَللَّه
Forgiving = غَفُور            The (most) Forgiving = اَلْغَفُور
Generous = كَرِيم            The (most) Generous = اَلْكَرِيم

So whilst any human being can be generous or forgiving, Allah (SWT) is the absolute of these characteristics and it is from him that these characteristics originate.