Malak — Name Meaning in Islam

Root: here the lexicographers genuinely differ, and the disagreement is old. Most of the classical grammarians derive malak (angel) from أ-ل-ك (ʾ-l-k), from alūka, a message — the original form being maʾlak, one who is sent with a message, with the hamza dropped in use. Others take it from م-ل-ك. The first reading is the one most books of language prefer, and it means the word describes a function, not a rank: an angel is a carrier of messages.

From the same field: malāʾika (angels, the plural), alūka (a message), and the separate root م-ل-ك with malik (king), mālik (owner), mulk (dominion — Surah al-Mulk), malakūt.

Note worth keeping: ملك is written the same way for malak (angel) and malik (king). They are different words with different vowels, and in Latin letters Malak and Malik are two names, not two spellings of one. The name given to girls is the angel; Malik, given to boys, is the king.

Spellings: Malak, Malaak, Melek (Turkish, the ordinary word for angel), Malak (Indonesian), Malak (Urdu), Malak (Maghrebi), ملك.

Pronunciation: MA-lak, both vowels short and open, stress on the first.

Masculine counterpart: none from this word; Malik is a separate name from the other root.