Halacha Date: 22 Shevat 5771 January 27 2011
Question: May one mention Hashem’s name in a foreign language?
What is meant by this question is that many people have the habit that every time they are surprised or shocked by something they exclaim, “Oh my G-d!” or “Ya Allah!” (Arabic) and the like, which are all names of Hashem in foreign languages (for our purposes, every language besides for Hebrew will be considered a foreign language). We must therefore determine if this habit is proper or not.
Mentioning Hashem’s name in vain, as everyone knows, is indeed a grave sin and one may only mention Hashem’s name while reciting verses from the Torah, blessings, and the like, as was explained in the previous Halacha. However, mentioning Hashem’s name in vain is a very serious sin indeed.
Regarding mentioning Hashem’s name for a purpose in a foreign language, for instance how the Sephardim in Middle Eastern countries would greet each other by saying, “Allah Yismalak” or “Allah Yirdah Alek” (Arabic) and the like, it would seem that there is no prohibition involved in this, for we find openly in verses how people would greet each other with the actual name of Hashem (in Hebrew), as the verse states, “Hashem is with you”, as well as others.
We can also consider the opinion of the Poskim who say that there is no prohibition to mention Hashem’s name in a foreign language, for this is not the actual name of Hashem. Thus, even though Halachically speaking one should try to abstain from mentioning Hashem’s name even in foreign languages, if there is any purpose involved, such as greeting another and the like, it is customary to be lenient in this matter. Maran Shlit”a has ruled similarly that for the purpose of greeting another person one may be lenient, provided one is using Hashem’s name in a foreign language.
There are, however, G-d fearing people who mention a slightly altered version of Hashem’s name, such as “Ammah” instead of “Allah” or “Gosh” instead of “G-d”. Nevertheless, this is still not a complete solution for the Turei Zahav (Chapter 621) writes that those who read Hashem’s name as they are learning as “Adoshem” are not correct in doing so for this is a disrespectful altering of Hashem’s name, and his words are Halachically correct. Thus, although we have already discussed in the previous Halacha that one may mention Hashem’s name while learning in any Sefer, one should not change Hashem’s actual name to “Adoshem” or “Amonai”, for this would constitute a lack of respect.
Although we do customarily sometimes alter Hashem’s name, such as saying “Elokim” instead of “Elohim”, this is because we say that it is only disrespectful to change Hashem’s special name (the name of “Adnut”), however, regarding the other names of Hashem such as “Elokim” and the like, there is no prohibition to alter the name. Nonetheless, “Allah” and “G-d” are important names of Hashem in foreign languages just as the name of “Adnut” is in Hebrew, therefore, it is improper to mention these names even by changing them slightly.
Thus, the Halacha is that one should be particularly careful not to mention these names unnecessarily, for besides for very possibly transgressing the prohibition of mentioning Hashem’s name in vain, it is also extremely disrespectful to mention Hashem’s name for no reason every time one sees something that is strange or frightening.
Regardless, every Jewish man and woman should accustom themselves to speak with caution and holiness so as not to be like the empty people who say Hashem’s name in vain and ruin their speech with improper words. This is especially true since the power of speech is exclusive to human beings in that no other living creatures possess it, one must thus take care to sanctify his speech, as is the way of the holy Jewish nation. Those who heed us will dwell securely.
