{{Short description|Religious declaration of affirmation}} {{about|the interjection}} {{italic title}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2022}} {{Missing information|article|occurrence in Islamic texts|date=October 2020}} [[File:Man says amen Machzor Luzzatto.png|thumb|upright=0.9|A man in Jewish hat says "Amen" to ''{{Ill|Hayyom te'ametzenu|he|היום תאמצנו}}'' in the margin of ''{{Ill|Mahzor Luzzatto|he|מחזור לוצאטו|fr|Mahzor Luzzatto}}'' f. 86v''.'' Abraham, c. 1300.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Luzzatto High Holiday Mahzor, Southern Germany: Late 13th-Early 14th Century |url=https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2021/the-luzzatto-high-holiday-mahzor-a-magnificent-illuminated-ashkenazic-prayer-book/the-luzzatto-high-holiday-mahzor-southern-germany |access-date=2025-03-09 |website=Sotheby's}}</ref>]] '''''Amen'''''{{efn|{{langx|he|אָמֵן|ʾāmēn}}{{pb}}{{langx|grc|ἀμήν|amḗn}}{{pb}}{{langx|syc|ܐܡܝܢ|'amīn}}<ref>{{Cite dictionary|last=Smith|first=Robert Payne |title=ܐܡܝܢ |url=https://sedra.bethmardutho.org/lexeme/get/162|dictionary=Thesaurus Syriacus|publisher=Clarendon|year=1879|page=118|script-entry=syc:ܐܡܝܢ |via=Beth Mardutho: The Syriac Institute}}</ref>{{pb}}{{langx|ar|آمين|ʾāmīna}}}} is an Abrahamic declaration of affirmation<ref name="ety" /> which is first found in the Hebrew Bible, and subsequently found in the New Testament.<ref name="ce">{{Cite Catholic Encyclopedia |wstitle=Amen |volume=1 |first=Herbert |last=Thurston}}</ref> It is used in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic practices as a concluding word, or as a response to a prayer.<ref name="ety"/> Common English translations of the word ''amen'' include "verily", "truly", "it is true", and "let it be so".<ref>{{Cite dictionary|title=ἀμήν|dictionary=An Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon |script-entry=grc:ἀμήν|first1=Henry George |last1=Liddell |first2=Robert |last2=Scott|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0058:entry=a)mh/n|access-date=2021-01-06|via=Perseus Digital Library}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite dictionary|title=ἀμήν|last1=Danker|first1=Frederick W.|last2=Bauer|first2=Walter|last3=Arndt|first3=William F.|dictionary=A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature|publisher=University of Chicago Press|year=2000|isbn=0-226-03933-1|edition=Third|location=Chicago|script-entry=grc:ἀμήν|oclc=43615529}}</ref> It is also used colloquially to express strong agreement.<ref name="ety">{{OEtymD|amen|access-date=2007-08-20}}</ref>
==Pronunciations== {{anchor|Pronunciation}} In English, the word ''amen'' has two primary pronunciations, {{respell|ah|MEN}} ({{IPAc-en|ɑː|ˈ|m|ɛ|n}}) or {{respell|ay|MEN}} ({{IPAc-en|eɪ|ˈ|m|ɛ|n}}),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/amen|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120713063553/http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/amen|url-status=dead|archive-date=13 July 2012|title=amen – definition of amen in English by Oxford Dictionaries|work=oxforddictionaries.com|access-date=2 September 2015}}</ref> with minor additional variation in emphasis (e.g., the two syllables may be equally stressed instead of placing primary stress on the second). In Anglophone North American usage, the ''ah-men'' pronunciation is used in performances of classical music and in churches with more formalized liturgy.
The ''ay-men'' pronunciation is a product of the Great Vowel Shift (i.e., it dates from the 15th century); it is associated with Irish Protestantism and with conservative evangelical denominations generally. It is also the pronunciation typically used in gospel music.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://bustedhalo.com/podcasts/two-ways-pronouncing-amen | title=Two Ways of Pronouncing 'Amen'}}</ref>
==Etymology== ''Amen'' is a word of Biblical Hebrew origin.<ref name="GBH">Paul Joüon, SJ, ''A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew'', trans. and revised by T. Muraoka, vol. I, Rome: Editrice Pontificio Instituto Biblico, 2000.</ref> It appears many times in the Hebrew Bible as a confirmatory response, especially following blessings.<ref name="Understanding Your Neighbor's Faith 2004, page 43">''Understanding Your Neighbor's Faith'', Philip Lazowski, (KTAV), 2004, p. 43</ref> The basic triconsonantal root א-מ-נ, from which the word is derived, is common to a number of languages in the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages, including biblical Aramaic. Meanings of the root in Hebrew include ''to be firm or confirmed, to be reliable or dependable, to be faithful, to have faith, to believe.'' The word was imported into Greek from the Judaism of the early Church.<ref name="ce"/><ref name = "JE">{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=1383&letter=A&search=Amen|encyclopedia=Jewish Encyclopedia|title=Amen|access-date=2008-02-19| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080216101007/http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=1383&letter=A&search=Amen| archive-date= 16 February 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> From Greek, ''amen'' entered other European languages. According to a standard dictionary etymology of the English word, ''amen'' passed from Greek into Late Latin, and thence into English.<ref name="AHD">{{cite dictionary|url=http://www.bartleby.com/61/75/A0247500.html |dictionary=American Heritage Dictionary |title=Amen |access-date=2008-02-26 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080421120804/http://www.bartleby.com/61/75/A0247500.html |archive-date=21 April 2008 }}</ref>
From Hebrew אָמֵן (ʾāmēn), from the Semitic root א־מ־נ “firm, sure; reliable,” used to express assent (“so be it; truly”).<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Amen |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/amen-prayer |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref>
From Hebrew, the word was later adopted into the Arabic religious vocabulary and leveled to the Arabic root {{lang|ar|أ م ن}},<ref>{{Cite web |title=Language Log » Amen |url=https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=56698 |access-date=2024-07-13}}</ref> which is of similar meanings to the Hebrew. The interjection occurs in the Christian and Islamic lexicons, most commonly in prayer, as well as secularly, albeit less commonly, so as to signify complete affirmation or deference. In religious texts, it occurs in Arabic translations of the Bible and after reciting the traditionally first chapter of the Quran, which is formally akin to religious supplications.
Popular among some theosophists,<ref>{{cite web| title=Collation of Theosophical Glossaries – Amen| url=http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/ctg/am-an.htm| access-date=2008-03-12| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080315181624/http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/ctg/am-an.htm| archive-date= 15 March 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref> proponents of Afrocentric theories of history,<ref>{{cite web| title=Origin of Amen.| url=https://panafricanrevoluntionmovement.wordpress.com/2017/07/14/origin-of-amen/| access-date=2019-06-28| date=14 July 2017}}</ref> and adherents of esoteric Christianity<ref>{{cite web | title = Amen | publisher = The Assembly of IaHUShUA MaShIaChaH | date = 15 December 2005 | url = http://www.iahushua.com/ST-RP/church.htm | access-date = 2008-03-13 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080206132401/http://www.iahushua.com/ST-RP/church.htm |archive-date = 6 February 2008 | url-status = usurped }}</ref> is the conjecture that ''amen'' is a derivative of the name of the Egyptian god Amun (which is sometimes also spelled Amen). Some adherents of Eastern religions believe that ''amen'' shares roots with the Hindu Sanskrit word ''Aum''.<ref>Yogananda, Paramahansa. Autobiography of a Yoga, 1946, chapter 26.</ref><ref>Sri H.W.L Poonja, 'The Truth is', Published by Samuel Weiser, 2000, {{ISBN|1-57863-175-0}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mandalayoga.net/content/mantra-om |title=The Mantra OM | Mandala Yoga Ashram |access-date=29 July 2015 |archive-date=22 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222171119/http://www.mandalayoga.net/content/mantra-om |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hindubooks.org/sudheer_birodkar/hindu_history/omkar.html|title=Hindu Culture – Omkar and Swastika|work=hindubooks.org|access-date=2 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906211023/http://www.hindubooks.org/sudheer_birodkar/hindu_history/omkar.html|archive-date=6 September 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> Such external etymologies are not included in standard etymological reference works. The Hebrew word, as noted above, starts with aleph, while the Egyptian name begins with a yodh.<ref>Erman, Adolf & Grapow, Hermann: Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache, Im Auftrage der Deutschen Akademien, Berlin: Akademie Verlag (1971), p. 85</ref>
In French, the Hebrew word ''amen'' is sometimes translated as ''Ainsi soit-il'', which means "So be it."<ref name="Amen: Behind the word and meaning">{{Cite web|url=http://www.abrahamicstudyhall.org/2018/08/12/amen-behind-the-word-and-meaning/|title=Amen: Behind the word and meaning|date=2018-08-12|website=ASH|language=en-US|access-date=2019-02-27}}</ref>
The linguist Ghil'ad Zuckermann argues that, as in the case of Hallelujah, the word ''amen'' is usually not replaced by a translation due to the speakers' belief in iconicity, their perception that there is something intrinsic about the relationship between the sound of the signifier (the word) and what it signifies (its meaning).<ref>Zuckermann, Ghil'ad (2003), Language Contact and Lexical Enrichment in Israeli Hebrew. Palgrave Macmillan. {{ISBN|978-1403917232|978-1403938695}} [http://www.palgrave.com/br/book/9781403917232] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190613220549/https://www.palgrave.com/br/book/9781403917232|date=13 June 2019}}</ref>{{rp|62}}
===Hebrew Bible=== The word occurs in the Hebrew Bible 30 times; in Deuteronomy alone 12 times beginning at 27:15. The fixed phrase 'Amen, Amen' is seen five times – Psalm 41:13; 72:19; 89:52; Numbers 5:22; Nehemiah 8:6. It is translated as 'of truth' two times in Isaiah 65:16. Three distinct Biblical usages of ''amen'' may be noted:<ref name="ce"/> # Initial ''amen'', referring back to words of another speaker and introducing an affirmative sentence, e.g. 1 Kings 1:36.<ref name="ce"/> # Detached ''amen'', again referring to the words of another speaker but without a complementary affirmative sentence, e.g. Nehemiah 5:13.<ref name="ce"/> # Final ''amen'', with no change of speaker, as in the subscription to the first three divisions of Psalms.<ref name="ce"/>
===New Testament=== [[File:The Sermon on the Mount (Owen Jones; p. 31).png|thumb|Ornamented "Amen" from the 1845 illuminated ''Sermon on the Mount'' designed by Owen Jones.]] In the New Testament, the Greek word ἀμήν is used as an expression of faith or as a part of a liturgical formula.<ref name=":0" /> It also may appear as an introductory word, especially in sayings of Jesus. Unlike the initial ''amen'' in Hebrew, which refers back to something already said, it is used by Jesus to emphasize what he is about to say (ἀμὴν λέγω, "truly I say to you"),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Strong's Greek: 281. ἀμήν (amen) -- truly|url=https://biblehub.com/greek/281.htm|access-date=2021-01-06|website=biblehub.com}}</ref> a rhetorical device that has no parallel in contemporary Jewish practice.<ref name="Amen">{{cite encyclopedia| title = Amen | encyclopedia = Encyclopædia Britannica | year = 2008 | url = https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9006072/amen | access-date = 2008-03-17 }}</ref> Raymond Brown says that Jesus's peculiar and authentic reminiscent use of amen in the Fourth Gospel is an affirmation that what he is about to say is an echo from the Father.<ref>Raymond Brown, The Gospel According to John Vol 1, Anchor Bible Dictionary, page 84</ref> The word occurs 52 times in the Synoptic Gospels; the Gospel of John has 25.<ref>"Amen", ''Encyclopedia Biblica''</ref>
In the New Testament of King James Bible, the word ''amen'' is seen in a number of contexts. Notable ones include: * ''Amen'' occurs in several doxology formulas in Romans 1:25, 9:5, 11:36, 15:33, and several times in Chapter 16.<ref name="ce"/><ref>cf. John L. McKenzie, SJ, "Dictionary of the Bible", New York: MacMillan Publ. Co., Inc., 1965. Entry: "Amen," (p. 25)</ref> * It concludes all of Paul's general epistles. * In Revelation 3:14, Jesus is referred to as, "the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation." The whole passage reads as "And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God". Notably, the text never specifically says that Jesus is the Amen. Although the letter is attributed to Jesus, the text refers to the Amen as having spoken the information that is being reported by Jesus in the letter. That the Amen is a witness, suggest some scholars, implies that the Amen is a being of some kind whose words are being referenced. * ''Amen'' concludes the last book of the New Testament, at Rev. 22:21.
==Congregational use== {{anchor|Religious use}}
===Judaism=== {{See also|Berakhah#Reciting amen}}
Although amen, in Judaism, is commonly used as a response to a blessing, it also is often used by Hebrew speakers as an affirmation of other forms of declaration (including outside of religious context).
Jewish rabbinical law requires an individual to say ''amen'' in a variety of contexts.<ref>Orach Chaim 56 (amen in kaddish)</ref><ref>O.C. 124 (amen in response to blessings recited by the prayer reader)</ref><ref>O.C. 215 (amen in response to blessings made by any individual outside of the liturgy)</ref> With the rise of the synagogue during the Second Temple period, ''amen'' became a common response, especially to benedictions. It is recited communally to affirm a blessing made by the prayer reader. It is also mandated as a response during the kaddish doxology. The congregation is sometimes prompted to answer "amen" by the terms ''ve-'imru'' ({{langx|he|ואמרו}}) = "and [now] say (pl.)," or, ''ve-nomar'' (ונאמר) = "and we will say." Contemporary usage reflects ancient practice: As early as the 4th century BCE, Jews assembled in the Temple responded "amen" at the close of a doxology or other prayer uttered by a priest. This Jewish liturgical use of amen was adopted by the Christians.<ref name="Amen"/> But Jewish law also requires individuals to answer ''amen'' whenever they hear a blessing recited, even in a non-liturgical setting.
The Talmud teaches homiletically that the word ''amen'' is an acronym for אל מלך נאמן ({{transliteration|he|ʾEl melekh neʾeman}}, "God, trustworthy King"),<ref name="Tractate Shabbat 119b">Tractate Shabbat 119b and Tractate Sanhedrin 111a</ref> the phrase recited silently by an individual before reciting the Shma.
Jews usually use Hebrew pronunciations of the word: {{IPAc-en|ɑː|ˈ|m|ɛ|n}} {{respell|ah|MEN|'}} (Israeli and Sephardi) or {{IPAc-en|ɔː|ˈ|m|eɪ|n}} {{respell|aw|MAYN|'}} (Ashkenazi).<ref>''To Pray as a Jew: A Guide to the Prayer Book and the Synagogue Service,'' Hayim Halevy Donin</ref>
===Christianity=== The use of "amen" has been generally adopted in Christian worship as a concluding word<ref name=EB1911>{{Cite EB1911 |wstitle=Amen |volume=1 |page=804}}</ref> for prayers and hymns and an expression of strong agreement.<ref name="Amen"/> The liturgical use of the word in apostolic times is attested (1 Corinthians 14:16<ref name="eastonsbibledictionary.com" />), and Justin Martyr (c. 150) describes the congregation as responding "amen" to the benediction after the celebration of the Eucharist.<ref name="ce"/><ref name=EB1911/> Its introduction into the baptismal formula (in the Eastern Orthodox Church it is pronounced after the name of each person of the Trinity) was probably later.<ref>Among certain Gnostic sects, ''Amen'' became the name of an angel.</ref><ref name=EB1911/>
In Isaiah 65:16, the authorized version has "the God of truth" ("the God of amen" in Hebrew). Jesus often used amen to put emphasis to his own words (translated: "verily" or "truly"). In John's Gospel, it is repeated, "Verily, verily" (or "Truly, truly"). Amen is also used in oaths (Numbers 5:22; Deuteronomy 27:15–26; Nehemiah 5:13; 8:6; 1 Chronicles 16:36).<ref name="eastonsbibledictionary.com">{{cite web|url=http://eastonsbibledictionary.com/a/amen.htm|title=Bible Dictionary: Amen|work=eastonsbibledictionary.com|access-date=2 September 2015}}</ref>
<!--:''(from an old encyclopedia)''--> ''Amen'' is also used in standard, international French, but in Cajun French ''{{lang|fr|Ainsi soit-il}}'' ("so be it") is used instead.
Amen is used at the end of the Lord's Prayer,<ref>{{cite web|title=Matthew 6:9–15|url=http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%206:9-15&version=WYC|work=Wycliffe Bible|author=Wycliffe}}</ref> which is also called the Our Father or the ''Pater Noster''.
In some Christian churches, the "amen corner" or "amen section" is any subset of the congregation likely to call out "Amen!" in response to points in a preacher's sermon.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hovda |first1=Robert W. |date=1983 |title=The amen corner |journal=Worship |volume=57 |issue=2 |pages=150–156}}</ref> Metaphorically, the term can refer to any group of heartfelt traditionalists or supporters of an authority figure. The term has also been used as a place name, and as a title for musical and literary works; see ''Amen Corner''.
==={{anchor|Amen in Islam}}Islam=== [[File:Ameen.gif|thumb|ʾĀmīn in Arabic.]] ''ʾĀmīn'' ({{langx|ar|آمين}}) is the Arabic form of ''Amen''. In Islam, it is used with the same meaning as in Judaism and Christianity; when concluding a prayer, especially after a supplication (du'a) or reciting the first surah Al Fatiha of the Qur'an, as in prayer (salat), and as an assent to the prayers of others.<ref>{{cite book | last = Hastings | first = James | author-link=James Hastings| title = A Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels: Volume I | publisher = The Minerva Group, Inc.| orig-year=1901| year = 2004 | page = 52}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last = Glassé | first = Cyril | title = The New Encyclopedia of Islam | publisher = Stacey International | year = 2003| page = 48 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=focLrox-frUC&pg=PA48 | isbn = 978-0759101906 }}</ref>
Arabic dictionaries define ''ʾāmīn'' as an imperative verbal noun, whose meaning is ''answer'' or ''reply'' (i.e., imploring God to grant one's prayer). The word was borrowed from Hebrew into Arabic in only this context, thus it is strictly used in Arabic as a final ''amen'' to conclude supplications or to declare affirmation, and has no initial ''amen'' usage with the meaning of ''truly'' or ''certainly'' as found in the word’s original Hebrew language grammar.
== Notes == {{Notelist}} ==See also== *''Selah'' *''Aum'' *"So mote it be"
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== * Schnitker, Thaddeus A. "Amen." In ''The Encyclopedia of Christianity'', edited by Erwin Fahlbusch and Geoffrey William Bromiley, 43–44. Vol. 1. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1999. {{ISBN|0802824137}}
==External links== {{Wiktionary|amen}} {{Wikiquote}} * "[https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2S.HTM Amen]" from the ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' * [https://archive.today/20121220154545/http://www.blueletterbible.org/cgi-bin/strongs.pl?strongs=0543 Strong's Concordance H543] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20090607043200/http://www.blueletterbible.org/cgi-bin/strongs.pl?strongs=281 Strong's Concordance G281]
Category:Christian prayer Category:Hebrew words and phrases in the Hebrew Bible Category:Interjections Category:New Testament Hebrew words and phrases Category:Religious terminology Category:Hebrew words and phrases in Jewish prayers and blessings