Mzizi wa neno hili una herufi tatu, alif, laam na haa, na maana mbalimbali za maneno yake yanayotokana nayo, kama zinavyopatikana katika kamusi, ni kama ifuatavyo:

The root of this word consists of the three letters, alif, laam, and haa and the connotations of various derivations, as one finds in lexicons are as follows:

• Kuchanganyikiwa au kupatwa na mshangao.

• Became confused or perplexed.

• Alipata amani na utulivu wa kiakili kwa kumtafuta kimbilio kwa mtu fulani au kwa kuanzisha uhusiano naye.

• Achieved peace and mental calm by seeking refuge with someone or establishing relations with him.

• Aliogopa kuhusu msiba au janga lililokuwa karibu kutokea, na mtu akampa hifadhi inayohitajika.

• Became frightened of some impending mishap or disaster, and someone gave him the necessary shelter.

• Alimgeukia mwingine kwa hamu, kutokana na ukubwa wa hisia zake kwake.

• Turned to another eagerly, due to the intensity of his feelings for him.

Mtoto wa ngamia jike aliyepotea alikimbilia kumkumbatia mama yake alipomwona.

• The lost offspring of the she-camel rushed to snuggle up to its mother on finding it.

• Ikawa imefichika, au imesitirika.

• Became hidden, or concealed.

• Alipandishwa cheo.

• Got elevated.

• Adored.

• Adored.

• Kutolewa ibada kwa.

• Offered worship to.

Tukitafakari juu ya maana hizi za asili, tunaweza kupata wazo linalohitajika la jinsi kitenzi kilivyopata maana ya kitendo cha ibada, na nomino ikapata maana ya kitu cha ibada. Kuna mambo manne ya kuzingatia katika muktadha huu:

If we reflect upon these original meanings, we can gain the necessary idea of how the verb came to mean the act of worship and the noun to denote the object of worship. There are four considerations to bear in mind in this connection:

Jambo kuu miongoni mwa mambo yanayozaa hisia ya kiwango fulani cha kuabudu kwa mtu ni hali ya mtu mwenyewe ya kuwa katika dhiki au haja. Hawezi hata kufikiria kumwabudu mtu asipokuwa na sababu ya kuamini kwamba mtu huyo yuko katika nafasi ya kuondoa dhiki yake, kutimiza mahitaji yake, kumpa hifadhi na kumlinda wakati wa hatari, na kutuliza moyo wake uliochafuka. Haina haja kusema kwamba imani hiyo inaambatana pia na imani ya ubora wa mwingine katika hadhi, nguvu na uwezo. Pia ni ukweli kwamba pale ambapo mahitaji yoyote ya binadamu yanapotimizwa kwa mchakato wa kawaida wa kutoa na kupokea, unaofanyika waziwazi mbele ya macho yake mwenyewe, haileti hisia yoyote ya heshima, achilia mbali ya kuabudu, kwa mwingine. Kwa mfano, ikiwa ningekuwa na haja ya fedha, na baada ya kuomba na kupewa kazi, nikalipwa kwa ajili yake, kwa kuwa mchakato mzima ungefanyika ndani ya ufahamu kamili wa hisia zangu, na ningekuwa nikijua vizuri hali au sababu ya kunipa fedha, singekuwa na hamu hata kidogo ya kumpa mwajiri wangu ibada yoyote. Hisia hiyo huibuka tu pale kunapokuwa na kipengele fulani cha fumbo kinachozunguka haiba, nguvu, au uwezo wa mwingine wa kutimiza mahitaji ya watu au kuathiri matukio. Ndiyo maana neno lililochaguliwa kuashiria kitu cha kuabudiwa linajumuisha katika maana zake hisia za fumbo, mshangao, na ubora wa hadhi, n.k. Mwisho, ni jambo la kawaida kabisa kwamba mtu akiamini kwamba mwingine yuko katika nafasi ya kutimiza mahitaji yake, kumpa hifadhi na ulinzi, kutuliza moyo uliosumbuka na kuujaza amani na utulivu, humgeukia mtu huyo kwa shauku kama jambo la kawaida.

Foremost among the factors which engender a sentiment of some degree of adoration for some one is a person’s own state of being in distress or need. He cannot even conceive of worshipping someone unless he has reason to believe that someone to be in a position to remove his distress, to fulfil his needs, to give him shelter and protect him in time of danger, and soothe his troubled heart. It goes without saying that the above belief is accompanied by a belief also in the superiority of the other in status, power, and strength. It is also a matter of fact that where any of the needs of a human being are met under the ordinary process of give and take, which takes place perceptibly before one’s own eyes, it leads to no sense of reverence, much less of adoration, for the other. For example, if I should be in need of money and, having applied for, and been given a job, am paid for it, since the whole transaction would take place within the full ken of my senses, and I would be fully aware of the circumstances or the reason for giving me the money, I would experience not the slightest desire to offer my employer any adoration. That sentiment arises only when there is some element of mystery surrounding the personality, the power, or the ability of the other to fulfil peoples’ needs or to influence events. That is why the word chosen to denote an object of worship includes in its meanings the senses of mystery, perplexity, and superiority in status, etc. Lastly, it is only natural that if one believes another to be in a position to fulfil one’s needs, to provide shelter and protection, to soothe a disturbed heart and fill it with peace and calm, one turns eagerly to that person as a matter of course.

Tunaweza, kwa hiyo, kuhitimisha kwa usalama kutokana na yaliyotangulia kwamba maana ya neno *ilaah* inajumuisha uwezo wa kutimiza mahitaji ya wengine, kuwapa makazi na ulinzi, kuondoa wasiwasi na taharuki katika akili zao, ukuu, pamoja na mamlaka na nguvu zinazohitajika kufanya yote haya, kuwa fumbo kwa namna fulani au kufichika mbali na macho ya wanadamu, na watu kumgeukia kwa shauku.

We may therefore safely conclude from the above that the connotation of the word ilaah includes the capacities to fulfil the needs of others, to give them shelter and protection, to relieve their minds of distress and agitation, superiority, and the requisite authority and power to do all these, to be mysterious in some way or hidden from men’s eyes, and the turning of men eagerly to him.