How was "Abdullah" (servant of Allah) called in the pre-Islamic era despite the worship of idols?
The Arabs in the pre-Islamic era (Jahiliyyah) knew Allah the Almighty, glorified Him, and believed that He is the Creator, the Sustainer, the Giver of life, and the Giver of death. However, they associated others with Him, such as idols, stones, and trees, believing that these would intercede for them with Allah, as mentioned in the verses: "And if you ask them who created them, they will surely say, 'Allah'," and "And if you ask them who created the heavens and the earth, they will surely say, 'The Exalted in Might, the All-Knowing, created them'," and "Say, 'Who provides for you from the heaven and the earth?'... They will surely say, 'Allah'," and "And they say, 'These are our intercessors with Allah'," and "We only worship them that they may bring us nearer to Allah in position." In times of hardship, they would forget their deities and turn to Allah alone, as in His saying: "And when they board ships, they supplicate Allah, sincerely devoting their religion to Him. But when He delivers them to the land, at once they associate others with Him." They were monotheists in the Tawhid of Rububiyyah (Oneness of Lordship), but they lacked the Tawhid of Uluhiyyah (Oneness of Worship), which is why names like "Abdullah" (servant of Allah) existed alongside "Abdul Uzza" (servant of Uzza) and others.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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