Quite often I get asked by people that what does Islam stands for? Now the people who ask me this do not ask for in terms of what Islam is all about but more in terms of what does the word actually mean? For example, someone once mentioned that Christianity takes its name from Christ, Buddhism is named so after Buddha, Zoroastrians are know by this name after Zoroaster, Judaism is named after Judah so why Islam? Why not name the religion after the prophet Mohammed himself? What does the word stand for?
There are a couple of theories around this question. Without making a judgment about which one is right and which one is wrong, I am going to mention both here. A more commonly known theory these days is that the word Islam shares its roots with the word “Salaam” which means “peace” hence some people define Islam as a religion of peace. Other people however argue that the true meaning of the word Islam is “submission”, that to god and his will. Both these definitions and arguments are derived from the Arabic tri-consonantal root sīn-lām-mīm (SLM). Several Arabic words originate from this root by inserting different vowels between the three root consonants.
As I mentioned, I am not really making a judgment about whether Islam means peace or submission. I am fine believing in both these definitions. One way or another, they both mean the same. If you are humble enough to submit yourself to god’s will, violence is the first thing you will give up and love and peace is anyways the teaching of every religion in the world.
