Qur’anic root م و ل — M W L

1. The semantic core and property in early Arabic

Māl: the property a person possesses

Arabic lexical sources use الْمَال (al-māl) for what a person owns or keeps as property. It may consist of money, goods, livestock or other things valued in life and exchange.

Some lexical explanations begin with gold and silver, then extend the word to other property. Other accounts identify livestock, especially camels, among its most familiar referents in Arabic. These differences show how the word could refer to different things in different economic settings. Such lexical accounts alone do not establish the historical order in which these referents developed; that requires independent, datable evidence.

For pastoral Arabs, camels and sheep could constitute a large part of their property, providing food, milk, transport, travel, exchange and the growth of herds. Traders relied on goods and trading capital. Farmers’ property could include land, produce and tools.

Māl therefore does not fundamentally name a particular means of payment. Money is one instance, but does not exhaust the word’s semantic field.

This matters when translating the Qur’an. Rendering amwāl everywhere as “cash” would obscure uses concerning orphans’ property, the possessions of garden owners or wealth mentioned separately from land and homes.

Māl and tamawwul in Arabic

تَمَوَّلَ الرَّجُلُ (tamawwala al-rajulu) describes a man acquiring property or becoming a person of means. مَالَ يَمُولُ (māla / yamūlu) is also recorded for becoming wealthy or increasing in wealth.

Here the verb concerns someone’s economic condition: they have acquired property or their wealth has increased.

The existence of tamawwala does not make māl itself mean accumulating or increasing wealth. Māl is what a person possesses; acquiring or adding to it are actions concerning that property.

The present-day use of tamwīl for financing an activity is a familiar specialised use of this family. This modern economic sense should not be made the direct meaning of māl in every Qur’anic verse.

Māl in poetry before Islam

Ḥātim al-Ṭāʾī, the well-known Arab poet from before Islam, says:

«لَا تَعْذِلِينِي عَلَى مَالٍ وَصَلْتُ بِهِ
رَحِمًا وَخَيْرُ سَبِيلِ الْمَالِ مَا وَصَلَا»

“Do not blame me for wealth with which I maintained a bond of kinship; the best course for wealth is that which maintains such bonds.”

The poet speaks of property that can be spent and can affect human relationships. To him, wealth is not merely something to count and keep: it can be used to care for relatives.

This usage shows māl in early Arabic concerning property available for disposal and use. Giving is one thing people do with their possessions, but generosity is not part of the word’s lexical meaning.

In the same poem, the poet contrasts the miser’s view of wealth with the generous person’s. The miser places greater importance on keeping it; the generous person sees many ways to use it.

This moral contrast describes the conduct of those who possess wealth. The word denotes property in both cases; what changes is people’s relationship to it and how they use it.

Does māl originally mean something people incline towards?

Some later explanations connect the name māl with people’s inclination towards and love of wealth. The semantic association is understandable: people generally grow attached to what benefits their lives and seek to preserve or increase it.

This explanation does not, however, establish the root’s historical derivation.

مَالَ (māla), “to incline,” belongs to م ي ل (mīm yāʾ lām), whereas the noun مَال (māl), property, belongs to م و ل. Similar written forms do not establish identical roots.

Love of wealth therefore cannot be treated as the certain origin of its name. Inclination and attachment may appear in an owner’s conduct, but the word itself denotes property, rather than the feeling of liking it.

2. Property and the means of life

الْمَالُ وَالْبَنُونَ زِينَةُ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا — wealth and children as adornment

Al-Kahf 18:46 says:

«الْمَالُ وَالْبَنُونَ زِينَةُ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَالْبَاقِيَاتُ الصَّالِحَاتُ خَيْرٌ عِنْدَ رَبِّكَ ثَوَابًا وَخَيْرٌ أَمَلًا»

“Wealth and children are the adornment of worldly life; and enduring good deeds are better with your Lord in reward and better in hope.”

(Al-Kahf 18:46)

Wealth appears alongside children, and both are identified as adornments of worldly life.

Adornment concerns what makes life attractive and desirable. Wealth can provide resources and comfort; children can bring joy and attachment to a family.

The verse immediately speaks of الْبَاقِيَاتُ الصَّالِحَاتُ (al-bāqiyātu al-ṣāliḥātu), enduring good deeds, and calls them better in reward and hope. The Qur’an thus does not reduce life’s value to possessing wealth and children.

Calling wealth adornment, on the other hand, does not make it forbidden or objectionable. The verse distinguishes worldly benefits and beauty from the enduring value of good deeds, rather than condemning the possession of property itself.

Māl here is an economic and social reality. Whether people behave well or badly with it is a separate question.

Property is more than coins and money

Al-Tawbah 9:24 mentions relatives, spouses, family, acquired possessions, trade and pleasing homes:

«وَأَمْوَالٌ اقْتَرَفْتُمُوهَا وَتِجَارَةٌ تَخْشَوْنَ كَسَادَهَا وَمَسَاكِنُ تَرْضَوْنَهَا»

“And possessions you have acquired, trade whose decline you fear, and dwellings with which you are pleased.”

(Al-Tawbah 9:24; part of the verse)

Amwāl appears alongside trade and homes in this passage.

The distinction shows that the Qur’an can name property separately from an economic activity or a particular kind of asset. Trade involves buying, selling and exchange; māl can be the capital, goods or proceeds of that activity.

Naming homes and trade separately does not, however, establish that land, homes or merchandise can never be māl. Coordinating several descriptions can highlight different aspects of economic life even when their referents overlap.

Al-Aḥzāb 33:27 also says:

«وَأَوْرَثَكُمْ أَرْضَهُمْ وَدِيَارَهُمْ وَأَمْوَالَهُمْ وَأَرْضًا لَمْ تَطَئُوهَا وَكَانَ اللَّهُ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرًا»

“And He caused you to inherit their land, their dwellings, their possessions and land you had not trodden; and The God is capable of all things.”

(Al-Aḥzāb 33:27)

Land, dwellings and property are again named separately. In this context, amwālahum denotes possessions mentioned alongside land and homes.

This manner of expression does not establish a permanently restricted definition of māl. Elsewhere, it can serve as a broad designation for people’s property.

The word’s general meaning must therefore be distinguished from the particular things an individual verse names separately.

Wealth, capital and livelihood

Al-Nisāʾ 4:5 says:

«وَلَا تُؤْتُوا السُّفَهَاءَ أَمْوَالَكُمُ الَّتِي جَعَلَ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ قِيَامًا وَارْزُقُوهُمْ فِيهَا وَاكْسُوهُمْ وَقُولُوا لَهُمْ قَوْلًا مَعْرُوفًا»

“And do not entrust to those lacking sound judgement your property, which The God has made a support for your lives. Provide them with food and clothing from it, and speak to them in a recognised good manner.”

(Al-Nisāʾ 4:5)

This is among the clearest economic uses of amwāl in the Qur’an.

جَعَلَ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ قِيَامًا (jaʿala Allāhu lakum qiyāman) connects property with sustaining and organising life. People use it to provide food, clothing and other necessities.

Property here is therefore more than adornment or a means of boasting. Life depends on it, and caring for it properly matters.

Qiyām, however, is not the lexical meaning of amwāl. Sustaining or maintaining comes from ق و م (qāf wāw mīm), expressing a role that property plays in human life.

The verse itself concerns entrusting property to people unable to manage it properly. The meaning of property must therefore remain distinct from competence to administer it and responsibility for safeguarding it.

3. Ownership, safeguarding property and others’ rights

أَمْوَالَهُمْ: the property of orphans

Al-Nisāʾ 4:2 says:

«وَآتُوا الْيَتَامَىٰ أَمْوَالَهُمْ وَلَا تَتَبَدَّلُوا الْخَبِيثَ بِالطَّيِّبِ وَلَا تَأْكُلُوا أَمْوَالَهُمْ إِلَىٰ أَمْوَالِكُمْ إِنَّهُ كَانَ حُوبًا كَبِيرًا»

“And give orphans their property. Do not exchange the good for the bad, and do not consume their property together with your own; indeed, that is a great sin.”

(Al-Nisāʾ 4:2)

أَمْوَالَهُمْ (amwālahum) denotes the orphans’ property, and أَمْوَالِكُمْ (amwālikum) that of the addressees. The Qur’an distinguishes them and forbids wrongful appropriation of orphans’ possessions.

This matters because property can belong to someone not yet able to manage it independently. Their inability to administer it does not extinguish their rights over it.

Al-Nisāʾ 4:6 makes this clearer:

«فَإِنْ آنَسْتُمْ مِنْهُمْ رُشْدًا فَادْفَعُوا إِلَيْهِمْ أَمْوَالَهُمْ»

“Then, if you discern sound judgement in them, hand over their property to them.”

(Al-Nisāʾ 4:6; part of the verse)

Amwālahum remains their own property. Whoever safeguards it must hand it over to its owner when the stated conditions are met.

The end of the same verse commands the taking of witnesses when property is handed over. The Qur’an thus distinguishes the owner’s right, the custodian’s responsibility and proper delivery.

This matters especially in comparison with Al-Nisāʾ 4:5. There the expression was أَمْوَالَكُمُ (amwālakumu), “your property”; surrounding verses speak of أَمْوَالَهُمْ (amwālahum), “their property.”

These different pronouns should not be overlooked. Nor should amwālakum in verse 5 lead to the conclusion that every asset discussed must belong personally to its guardian. The continuity of the verses shows that responsibility for administration and safekeeping is also involved.

Amwālahum, meanwhile, clearly preserves the owners’ right. Keeping another person’s property does not automatically transfer ownership to the custodian.

Consuming orphans’ property: wrongful use, beyond eating food

Al-Nisāʾ 4:10 says:

«إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَأْكُلُونَ أَمْوَالَ الْيَتَامَىٰ ظُلْمًا إِنَّمَا يَأْكُلُونَ فِي بُطُونِهِمْ نَارًا وَسَيَصْلَوْنَ سَعِيرًا»

“Indeed, those who consume orphans’ property unjustly consume nothing but fire into their bellies, and they will enter a blazing fire.”

(Al-Nisāʾ 4:10)

يَأْكُلُونَ أَمْوَالَ الْيَتَامَىٰ (yaʾkulūna amwāla al-yatāmā) concerns wrongful appropriation and consumption of orphans’ property.

The property may be food, coins, goods or other possessions. “Consuming property” here is therefore not limited to eating something with the mouth; it also expresses wrongful appropriation and exploitation.

ظُلْمًا (ẓulman), “unjustly,” clarifies the character of this appropriation. Māl itself does not mean stolen or forbidden property: the injustice comes from the person’s conduct and the verse’s qualification.

يَأْكُلُونَ فِي بُطُونِهِمْ نَارًا (yaʾkulūna fī buṭūnihim nāran), consuming fire into their bellies, expresses the severity of the condemnation. The verse associates wrongful appropriation with consuming fire; it does not establish that the physical substance of every orphan’s property is fire.

Māl here is property whose owner’s rights must be respected; consuming it wrongfully is injustice to its owner.

لَا تَأْكُلُوا أَمْوَالَكُمْ بَيْنَكُمْ بِالْبَاطِلِ — wrongful consumption of property

Al-Baqarah 2:188 says:

«وَلَا تَأْكُلُوا أَمْوَالَكُمْ بَيْنَكُمْ بِالْبَاطِلِ وَتُدْلُوا بِهَا إِلَى الْحُكَّامِ لِتَأْكُلُوا فَرِيقًا مِنْ أَمْوَالِ النَّاسِ بِالْإِثْمِ وَأَنْتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ»

“And do not consume one another’s property among yourselves wrongfully, or use it with the judges to knowingly appropriate a portion of people’s property sinfully.”

(Al-Baqarah 2:188)

أَمْوَالَكُمْ بَيْنَكُمْ (amwālakum baynakum) concerns financial relations among people. The plural pronoun situates the possessions within the community addressed; the command is not limited to someone’s consumption of their personal possessions.

The verse continues with أَمْوَالِ النَّاسِ (amwāli al-nāsi), “people’s property,” clarifying that wrongful appropriation of others’ possessions is at issue.

It also discusses bringing wealth to judges to acquire part of people’s possessions. A judgement or an apparently lawful procedure does not in itself guarantee that an appropriation is right. The verse concerns people knowingly seeking to acquire others’ property sinfully.

Al-Nisāʾ 4:29 gives a related command:

«يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تَأْكُلُوا أَمْوَالَكُمْ بَيْنَكُمْ بِالْبَاطِلِ إِلَّا أَنْ تَكُونَ تِجَارَةً عَنْ تَرَاضٍ مِنْكُمْ»

“O you who have believed, do not consume one another’s property among yourselves wrongfully, except through trade by mutual consent among you.”

(Al-Nisāʾ 4:29; part of the verse)

This verse distinguishes wrongful appropriation from trade by consent.

Consent and trade are not the lexical meaning of māl. Property is the object of exchange; other words in the verse determine whether its transfer is proper or wrongful.

In Shuʿayb’s story, the people also ask:

«أَوْ أَنْ نَفْعَلَ فِي أَمْوَالِنَا مَا نَشَاءُ»

“Or [give up] doing whatever we wish with our property?”

(Hūd 11:87; part of the verse)

These words belong to Shuʿayb’s opponents, and should not be presented as the Qur’an’s unconditional approval of any exercise of an owner’s power over property.

Overall, the Qur’an recognises people’s possessions, while possessing something does not make every method of acquiring and using it permissible.

رُءُوسُ أَمْوَالِكُمْ: the principal

Al-Baqarah 2:279 says:

«وَإِنْ تُبْتُمْ فَلَكُمْ رُءُوسُ أَمْوَالِكُمْ لَا تَظْلِمُونَ وَلَا تُظْلَمُونَ»

“And if you turn back, your principal is yours: neither wronging nor being wronged.”

(Al-Baqarah 2:279; part of the verse)

This passage appears in the prohibition of ribā.

رُءُوسُ أَمْوَالِكُمْ (ruʾūsu amwālikum) is an economic expression for the principal: the original capital, set against the additional amount demanded.

Raʾs does not mean a physical head here, nor has māl acquired a new meaning. The two words together express the familiar concept of the principal.

This use shows property entering relationships of loans, debts and financial claims. The root م و ل alone, however, cannot supply every rule concerning ribā, lending or trade.

4. مَالِ اللَّهِ and the needy’s rights in wealth

The God’s wealth and people’s possessions

Al-Nūr 24:33 says:

«وَآتُوهُمْ مِنْ مَالِ اللَّهِ الَّذِي آتَاكُمْ»

“And give them from The God’s wealth which He has given you.”

(Al-Nūr 24:33; part of the verse)

The passage concerns those seeking a contract for release from enslavement, and the Qur’an speaks of providing them with financial help.

The wealth is attributed to The God: مَالِ اللَّهِ (māli Allāhi). The verse then says الَّذِي آتَاكُمْ (alladhī ātākum), “which He has given you.”

The verse thus preserves two relationships together. Wealth is attributed to The God, while people are those who have received it and hold it.

This attribution should not be turned into a denial of all human property rights. The same Qur’an uses amwālahum, “their property,” for orphans’ possessions in Al-Nisāʾ 4:2 and Al-Nisāʾ 4:6, commanding respect for their rights.

Conversely, attributing property to people does not mean they may use it however they wish, disregarding The God’s commands and others’ rights.

Al-Ḥadīd 57:7 also says:

«وَأَنْفِقُوا مِمَّا جَعَلَكُمْ مُسْتَخْلَفِينَ فِيهِ»

“And spend from that in which He has made you successors.”

(Al-Ḥadīd 57:7; part of the verse)

This verse concerns succession and spending. That relationship can illuminate human responsibility for what has come into people’s hands; māl itself, however, does not lexically mean a trust or succession.

Property remains property. People’s responsibility towards The God and others concerning it comes from the verses and their commands.

وَفِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ حَقٌّ — a right within their wealth

Al-Dhāriyāt 51:19 says:

«وَفِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ حَقٌّ لِلسَّائِلِ وَالْمَحْرُومِ»

“And in their possessions is a right for the one who asks and the deprived.”

(Al-Dhāriyāt 51:19)

This is among the clearest connections between property and others’ rights.

أَمْوَالِهِمْ (amwālihim) attributes the property to the people being discussed. Within that same property, however, a right is recognised for the one who asks and the deprived.

Possessing property and another person having a right within it are thus not incompatible in this verse.

Al-Maʿārij 70:24 and Al-Maʿārij 70:25 also say:

«وَالَّذِينَ فِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ حَقٌّ مَعْلُومٌ ۝ لِلسَّائِلِ وَالْمَحْرُومِ»

“And those in whose possessions is a known right for the one who asks and the deprived.”

(Al-Maʿārij 70:24 and Al-Maʿārij 70:25)

Here the expression is حَقٌّ مَعْلُومٌ (ḥaqqun maʿlūmun), a known right. Maʿlūm stresses that the right is identified, but these two verses do not themselves specify a numerical amount or every method of discharging it.

That right should not be inserted into the lexical meaning of māl without separate examination. Māl remains property; ḥaqq describes a further relationship the Qur’an establishes within that property.

The two verses nevertheless make one point clear: caring for the needy is not explained solely through voluntary generosity. The Qur’an speaks of a right belonging to the one who asks and the deprived.

Ṣadaqah taken from property

Al-Tawbah 9:103 says:

«خُذْ مِنْ أَمْوَالِهِمْ صَدَقَةً تُطَهِّرُهُمْ وَتُزَكِّيهِمْ بِهَا وَصَلِّ عَلَيْهِمْ إِنَّ صَلَاتَكَ سَكَنٌ لَهُمْ وَاللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ»

“Take from their possessions a ṣadaqah through which you cleanse them and foster their growth and purity; and offer salat for them. Indeed, your salat is a source of tranquillity for them; and The God is hearing and knowing.”

(Al-Tawbah 9:103)

Here ṣadaqah, a charitable contribution, is taken from possessions and connected with cleansing and cultivating the people’s purity and growth.

The important point is that the Qur’an does not say property is lexically impure. Cleansing and cultivation concern the people: تُطَهِّرُهُمْ وَتُزَكِّيهِمْ (tuṭahhiruhum wa-tuzakkīhim).

Property is what the contribution is taken from; ṣadaqah is the act or the property given in this relationship; and tazkiyah is the outcome the verse states concerning the people.

These three concepts should therefore not be collapsed into a single meaning for م و ل.

Nor does this verse establish that every use of zakat and tazkiyah in the Qur’an is restricted to financial payment. It presents a particular financial application; the wider field of ز ك و (zāy kāf wāw) requires separate examination.

Infāq: spending wealth for different purposes

Al-Baqarah 2:261 says:

«مَثَلُ الَّذِينَ يُنْفِقُونَ أَمْوَالَهُمْ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ كَمَثَلِ حَبَّةٍ أَنْبَتَتْ سَبْعَ سَنَابِلَ فِي كُلِّ سُنْبُلَةٍ مِائَةُ حَبَّةٍ وَاللَّهُ يُضَاعِفُ لِمَنْ يَشَاءُ وَاللَّهُ وَاسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ»

“The likeness of those who spend their wealth in The God’s way is that of a grain that grows seven ears, in each ear a hundred grains. And The God multiplies for whomever He wills; and The God is vast [in bounty] and knowing.”

(Al-Baqarah 2:261)

Here wealth is what is spent. The image of a growing grain and increased yield concerns the outcome of this spending.

Māl does not mean a grain or agricultural yield, nor is spending the lexical meaning of property itself. These are distinct concepts brought together within the verse’s comparison.

Al-Baqarah 2:264 discusses someone spending wealth to show off before people:

«كَالَّذِي يُنْفِقُ مَالَهُ رِئَاءَ النَّاسِ»

“Like one who spends his wealth to show off before people.”

(Al-Baqarah 2:264; part of the verse)

Spending has occurred here too, but the person’s intention and conduct are criticised.

Spending property alone therefore does not guarantee a good action. One verse praises spending in The God’s way; another condemns spending for display.

Al-Anfāl 8:36 also says:

«إِنَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا يُنْفِقُونَ أَمْوَالَهُمْ لِيَصُدُّوا عَنْ سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ»

“Indeed, those who have engaged in kufr spend their possessions to obstruct The God’s way.”

(Al-Anfāl 8:36; part of the verse)

This shows that even infāq, spending, must be assessed through its purpose. Property may be spent for good or to obstruct others from The God’s way.

The property remains property in both; the moral difference arises from how and why it is used.

5. Wealth as testing, adornment and a means of boasting

أَمْوَالُكُمْ وَأَوْلَادُكُمْ فِتْنَةٌ — wealth and children as a test

Al-Anfāl 8:28 says:

«وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّمَا أَمْوَالُكُمْ وَأَوْلَادُكُمْ فِتْنَةٌ وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ عِنْدَهُ أَجْرٌ عَظِيمٌ»

“And know that your possessions and children are only a test, and that with The God is a great reward.”

(Al-Anfāl 8:28)

Al-Taghābun 64:15 contains a similar statement.

فِتْنَة (fitnah) here concerns testing and the assessment of human conduct. People love their wealth and children and strive to protect them, while that very attachment may affect their decisions.

The verse does not make possessing wealth or children sinful in itself. The Qur’an identifies them as a test, rather than declaring them intrinsically impure or wrong.

In Al-Baqarah 2:155, loss of property is also among the difficulties through which people are tested:

«وَلَنَبْلُوَنَّكُمْ بِشَيْءٍ مِنَ الْخَوْفِ وَالْجُوعِ وَنَقْصٍ مِنَ الْأَمْوَالِ وَالْأَنْفُسِ وَالثَّمَرَاتِ وَبَشِّرِ الصَّابِرِينَ»

“And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger, and loss of possessions, lives and produce; and give good news to those who patiently endure.”

(Al-Baqarah 2:155)

These two uses matter together. One verse identifies possessions and children themselves as a test; another presents a decrease in property as one difficulty of testing.

Neither possessing wealth alone therefore signals The God’s pleasure nor losing it alone His displeasure. The Qur’an can place both conditions within human testing.

Property and claims to superiority

In Al-Kahf 18:34, the owner of two gardens tells his companion:

«أَنَا أَكْثَرُ مِنْكَ مَالًا وَأَعَزُّ نَفَرًا»

“I have more wealth than you and am stronger in followers.”

(Al-Kahf 18:34; part of the verse)

Māl becomes a means of comparison between two people. The speaker points to his greater wealth and stronger following.

This is the person’s own claim. As the story continues, the Qur’an challenges his assumptions about his garden’s permanence and his future.

أَكْثَرُ مِنْكَ مَالًا (aktharu minka mālan) indicates only having more wealth. Moral superiority, truthfulness or permanent security do not follow from the phrase itself.

Sabaʾ 34:35 reports a similar claim:

«وَقَالُوا نَحْنُ أَكْثَرُ أَمْوَالًا وَأَوْلَادًا وَمَا نَحْنُ بِمُعَذَّبِينَ»

“And they said: We have more possessions and children, and we will not be punished.”

(Sabaʾ 34:35)

The speakers infer their security from punishment from their abundant wealth and children.

The Qur’an challenges that inference in the following verses. Sabaʾ 34:37 says:

«وَمَا أَمْوَالُكُمْ وَلَا أَوْلَادُكُمْ بِالَّتِي تُقَرِّبُكُمْ عِنْدَنَا زُلْفَىٰ إِلَّا مَنْ آمَنَ وَعَمِلَ صَالِحًا»

“Your possessions and your children are not what brings you near to Us in closeness, except one who believes and does good.”

(Sabaʾ 34:37; part of the verse)

This contrast makes clear that the amount of property is not the measure of nearness to The God. Faith and good conduct matter in this context.

This verse, too, does not call property intrinsically objectionable. The issue is inferring one’s truthfulness and superiority from abundant possessions.

Loving wealth and becoming distracted by it

Al-Fajr 89:20 says:

«وَتُحِبُّونَ الْمَالَ حُبًّا جَمًّا»

“And you love wealth with an exceedingly strong love.”

(Al-Fajr 89:20)

The preceding verses discuss neglecting the orphan, failing to encourage feeding the needy and consuming inheritance. Intense love of wealth is then addressed.

This context shows that the condemnation concerns more than the existence of possessions: people’s conduct towards others’ rights and the intensity of their attachment to wealth are involved.

Al-Humazah 104:2 and Al-Humazah 104:3 say:

«الَّذِي جَمَعَ مَالًا وَعَدَّدَهُ ۝ يَحْسَبُ أَنَّ مَالَهُ أَخْلَدَهُ»

“Who has gathered wealth and counted it over; he thinks his wealth has made him immortal.”

(Al-Humazah 104:2 and Al-Humazah 104:3)

Gathering and counting wealth appear alongside the assumption of immortality.

Māl itself does not mean greed or accumulation. جَمَعَ (jamaʿa), “gathered,” and عَدَّدَهُ (ʿaddadahu), “counted it over,” describe the person’s actions; يَحْسَبُ (yaḥsabu), “he thinks,” identifies his assumption.

These verses do not establish that everyone who counts possessions or saves for the future engages in this condemned behaviour. The subject is someone whose accumulation and counting accompany a false assumption about himself.

Al-Munāfiqūn 63:9 also says:

«يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تُلْهِكُمْ أَمْوَالُكُمْ وَلَا أَوْلَادُكُمْ عَنْ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ وَمَنْ يَفْعَلْ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ»

“O you who have believed, let neither your possessions nor your children distract you from remembrance of The God. Whoever does that—those are the losers.”

(Al-Munāfiqūn 63:9)

Again, the verse does not command abandoning possessions and children. It warns against becoming distracted by them from remembering The God.

People’s relationship to property can thus be right or wrong. Its value is recognised through their conduct and commitment to their other responsibilities.

مَا أَغْنَىٰ عَنِّي مَالِيَهْ — my wealth did not avail me

Al-Ḥāqqah 69:28 says:

«مَا أَغْنَىٰ عَنِّي مَالِيَهْ»

“My possessions did not benefit me at all.”

(Al-Ḥāqqah 69:28)

مَالِيَهْ (māliyah) means “my wealth.” The yāʾ is the first-person possessive pronoun; the final hāʾ is hāʾ al-sakt, originally used to preserve the word’s final vowel when pausing. This hāʾ is not part of م و ل.

The sentence is spoken by someone confronting his outcome in the scene of reckoning.

Māl still means property, but the speaker says that his possessions have not benefited him in the situation he now faces.

Al-Shuʿarāʾ 26:88 and Al-Shuʿarāʾ 26:89 also say:

«يَوْمَ لَا يَنْفَعُ مَالٌ وَلَا بَنُونَ ۝ إِلَّا مَنْ أَتَى اللَّهَ بِقَلْبٍ سَلِيمٍ»

“The day when neither wealth nor children benefit, except one who comes to The God with a sound heart.”

(Al-Shuʿarāʾ 26:88 and Al-Shuʿarāʾ 26:89)

These verses set wealth and children against another criterion. Property that can sustain livelihoods, facilitate exchange and provide help in worldly life does not in itself guarantee deliverance in the hereafter.

Its ineffectiveness in this scene does not establish that property has no value or function in worldly life. Other Qur’anic verses identify it as a support for life and a subject of human rights.

The situation differs: wealth useful for living does not necessarily replace faith and conduct at the final reckoning.

6. Distinguishing property from ownership, provision, acquisition and trade

م و ل (māl) and م ل ك (malaka)

Māl is property, whereas م ل ك (mīm lām kāf), in one of its uses, concerns ownership and possessing something.

A person can own property and have a right to use it, but the words are not lexically identical.

Al-Nisāʾ 4:2 and Al-Nisāʾ 4:6 discuss an orphan’s property while another person may temporarily safeguard it. This distinction itself shows that ownership of property and authority to administer it do not always rest with the same person.

Al-Baqarah 2:247 also says, concerning Ṭālūt:

«وَنَحْنُ أَحَقُّ بِالْمُلْكِ مِنْهُ وَلَمْ يُؤْتَ سَعَةً مِنَ الْمَالِ»

“And we have more right to kingship than he does, while he has not been given abundance of wealth.”

(Al-Baqarah 2:247; part of the verse)

الْمُلْك (al-mulk) here concerns kingship, and الْمَال (al-māl) property. The verse itself shows they are distinct.

Abundant wealth alone does not establish fitness to rule; lacking great wealth does not necessarily mean being unable to fulfil another responsibility.

م و ل (māl) and ر ز ق (razaqa)

ر ز ق (rāʾ zāy qāf) concerns what is provided or given for a person’s benefit. Food, the resources of life and property can be instances of rizq, provision.

Rizq is not semantically identical to māl. Māl is property; rizq in its uses highlights the giving and availability of benefit, and can extend beyond financial assets.

Al-Naḥl 16:112 describes a settlement whose provision arrived abundantly from every direction. This can concern food and other resources of life, but rizq itself does not mean coins or capital.

Amwāl, meanwhile, can be assets people keep or employ in exchange.

Translation should therefore not automatically turn every rizq into property or every māl into provision.

م و ل (māl) and ك س ب (kasaba)

ك س ب (kāf sīn bāʾ) concerns obtaining something or acquiring it through action. Property can be something a person acquires.

Al-Tawbah 9:24 speaks of أَمْوَالٌ اقْتَرَفْتُمُوهَا (amwālun iqtaraftumūhā), “possessions you have acquired.” The phrase connects property with the action through which it was obtained.

Al-Masad 111:2 says:

«مَا أَغْنَىٰ عَنْهُ مَالُهُ وَمَا كَسَبَ»

“His wealth and what he acquired did not benefit him at all.”

(Al-Masad 111:2)

مَالُهُ (māluhu), “his wealth,” and مَا كَسَبَ (mā kasaba), “what he acquired,” appear separately. This does not establish that property and the results of acquisition cannot overlap.

Property can result from effort and acquisition, while mā kasaba can, depending on context, range more widely than financial possessions.

Māl is thus what a person possesses, while kasb concerns obtaining or acquiring. The concepts can be connected, but are not identical.

م و ل (māl) and ت ج ر (tajara)

Trade concerns exchange undertaken in pursuit of gain. Property can be the capital or goods employed in trade.

Al-Baqarah 2:282 speaks of تِجَارَةً حَاضِرَةً (tijāratan ḥāḍiratan), an immediate transaction; Al-Tawbah 9:24 discusses trade that may decline.

Property need not be employed in trade. People can use their possessions for living, safekeeping, helping the needy or another purpose.

Trade, meanwhile, is an activity that can lead to profit or loss. Māl itself should therefore not be made to mean profit or a transaction.

م و ل (māl) and ن ف ق (anfaqa)

Infāq in a financial setting concerns spending or giving out property. Property can be its object, but spending is an action; property is what is spent or given.

The Qur’an uses يُنْفِقُونَ أَمْوَالَهُمْ (yunfiqūna amwālahum), “they spend their possessions,” in both good and wrongful contexts. The purpose and intention clarify the conduct’s value.

Property should therefore not be equated with generosity or spending. A person can possess wealth without spending it, or spend possessions for a wrongful purpose.

Distinguishing م ي ل (māla) and و ل ي (mawlā)

The verb مَالَ (māla), “to incline,” comes from م ي ل and should not be confused with the noun مَال (māl), property.

مَوْلَى (mawlā), وَلِيّ (waliyy) and وِلَايَة (wilāyah) likewise belong, in the usual analysis, to و ل ي (wāw lām yāʾ), rather than م و ل.

This matters especially in Qur’anic study, since mawlā expresses relationships such as guardianship, closeness and support. Property or capital should not be extracted as its meaning.

Similarity between written letters does not establish an identical root or meaning.

7. Translation choices for Forqan

For مَال (māl), “wealth,” “property” and “possessions” are natural core equivalents. In many verses, the familiar word “wealth” can convey the meaning directly.

“Property” or “possessions” can make the range clearer in some contexts, since “wealth” may suggest great affluence or money alone. “Property” here likewise extends beyond land and buildings.

In Al-Nisāʾ 4:2 and Al-Nisāʾ 4:6, أَمْوَالَهُمْ (amwālahum) is best rendered “their property,” since the possessions belong to the people concerned and must be safeguarded or returned to them.

In Al-Baqarah 2:188 and Al-Nisāʾ 4:29, أَمْوَالَكُمْ بَيْنَكُمْ (amwālakum baynakum) approaches “one another’s property among yourselves.” This conveys the reciprocal relationship and the issue of appropriating others’ rights.

In Al-Baqarah 2:279, رُءُوسُ أَمْوَالِكُمْ (ruʾūsu amwālikum) is “your principal.” “The heads of your possessions” is an unsuitable word-for-word rendering.

In Al-Kahf 18:46, الْمَالُ وَالْبَنُونَ (al-mālu wa-al-banūna) can remain “wealth and children.” In Al-Kahf 18:34, أَكْثَرُ مِنْكَ مَالًا (aktharu minka mālan) reads naturally as “I have more wealth than you.”

In Al-Nūr 24:33, مَالِ اللَّهِ الَّذِي آتَاكُمْ (māli Allāhi alladhī ātākum) is best rendered “The God’s wealth which He has given you.” Māl Allāh should not become a later legal term for public or state ownership.

In Al-Dhāriyāt 51:19 and Al-Maʿārij 70:24, فِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ حَقٌّ (fī amwālihim ḥaqqun) is appropriately “in their possessions is a right.” The right comes from ḥaqq, rather than amwāl itself meaning the needy’s entitlement.

In Al-Tawbah 9:103, خُذْ مِنْ أَمْوَالِهِمْ صَدَقَةً (khudh min amwālihim ṣadaqatan) naturally reads “take from their possessions a ṣadaqah,” a charitable contribution.

In Al-Ḥāqqah 69:28, مَالِيَهْ (māliyah) means “my wealth”; the sentence can be rendered “my possessions did not benefit me at all.” The final hāʾ should not turn the word into a new derivative.

Throughout, māl should not automatically become “provision,” “great riches,” “cash capital,” “legal title,” “illicit property,” “testing” or “a trust.” Such concepts may be connected with property in context, but each retains its own meaning.

8. Conclusion

م و ل in Arabic concerns wealth and property: money, livestock, goods and other things of economic value. Camels and other livestock were prominent instances in early Arabic, but the word is not restricted to them.

The Qur’an uses only the noun māl and its plural amwāl from this root. The central meaning remains throughout, while property enters different situations: sustaining livelihoods, forming the object of exchange, belonging to an orphan, or being spent or wrongfully appropriated.

Its moral value therefore does not arise from the word itself. The Qur’an does not consider possessing property sinful in itself, nor identify abundant wealth as proof of superiority, guidance or immunity from reckoning.

In Al-Nisāʾ 4:5, property supports life. In Al-Nisāʾ 4:2 and Al-Nisāʾ 4:6, orphans’ possessions must be safeguarded and handed over to their owners. Al-Baqarah 2:188 and Al-Nisāʾ 4:29 forbid wrongful appropriation of people’s property. Al-Dhāriyāt 51:19, Al-Maʿārij 70:24 and Al-Maʿārij 70:25 recognise a right for the needy in people’s possessions. In the verses about spending, property can serve good or wrongful conduct.

The Qur’an also criticises intense attachment to wealth, boasting of its abundance and assuming immortality or immunity because of riches. This criticism concerns human conduct and understanding; māl itself does not mean sin or corruption.

Property must also remain distinct from ownership, provision, acquisition, trade and spending. Māl is property; ownership relates a person to property; rizq is provision made available; kasb acquisition; trade exchange; and infāq spending or giving. These concepts can be related without being completely synonymous.

The semantic core of م و ل can be stated as follows: property and things of economic value that people possess or can use for livelihood, keeping, exchange, transfer and other needs of life.

This definition neither confines property to cash or great riches nor labels every immaterial benefit or divine blessing property without evidence.

In Qur’anic usage, property is a real and necessary part of human life, but does not alone measure a person’s worth. People may use it to sustain life and respect others’ rights, or make it a means of injustice, boasting and distraction. What changes in the verses is people’s relationship to property and how they use it, rather than the central meaning of possessions.