Etymology of the Word "God"

(Anglo-Saxon God; German Gott; akin to Persian khoda; Hindu khooda).

God can variously be defined as:

the proper name of the one Supreme and Infinite Personal Being, the

Creator and Ruler of the universe, to whom man owes obedience and

worship;

the common or generic name of the several supposed beings to whom, in

polytheistic religions, Divine attributes are ascribed and Divine worship

rendered;

the name sometimes applied to an idol as the image or dwelling-place of a

god.

The root-meaning of the name (from Gothic root gheu; Sanskrit hub or emu, "to

invoke or to sacrifice to") is either "the one invoked" or "the one sacrificed to."

From different Indo-Germanic roots (div, "to shine" or "give light"; thes in

thessasthai "to implore") come the Indo-Iranian deva, Sanskrit dyaus (gen.

divas), Latin deus, Greek theos, Irish and Gaelic dia, all of which are generic

names; also Greek Zeus (gen. Dios, Latin Jupiter (jovpater), Old Teutonic Tiu or

Tiw (surviving in Tuesday), Latin Janus, Diana, and other proper names of pagan

deities. The common name most widely used in Semitic occurs as 'el in Hebrew,

'ilu in Babylonian, 'ilah in Arabic, etc.; and though scholars are not agreed on the

point, the root-meaning most probably is "the strong or mighty one."

P.J. TONER

Transcribed by Tomas Hancil

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume VI

Nihil Obstat, September 1, 1909. Remy Lafort, Censor

Imprimatur. +John M. Farley, Archbishop of New York