[Q 689] Why Allah Is Called ‘He’

Question

Why do we refer to الله عزوجل as he?

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
الجواب بعون الملك الوهاب اللهم هداية الحق والصواب

Answer

First, know that being male and female are genders of creation. Allah, the Exalted, is pure from all such genders. He is neither a child of anyone, nor is anyone His child. And لَیۡسَ کَمِثۡلِہٖ شَیۡءٌ (There is nothing like Him) – these are the Islamic teachings.

However, there are multiple reasons for using ‘he’, i.e., the masculine singular pronoun, for Allah, the Exalted. One reason is that Allah, the Exalted, has used this very pronoun for Himself in the Holy Qur’an, so we are also bound to use it. Similarly, since the masculine is superior to the feminine, this pronoun is used for Allah. Furthermore, in the Holy Qur’an or any written text, the use of pronouns is based on the word itself (grammatical gender). According to grammatical rules, a masculine pronoun is used for a masculine word, and a feminine pronoun for a feminine word. The word “Allah” or other names of Allah, the Exalted, are grammatically masculine. Therefore, ‘he’ is used for them, and this is also adopted in speech.

Answered by: Mubashir Attari (AskMufti Scholar)
Verified by: Mufti Sajid Attari
Translated answer
Date: 30th July 2026