What Is the Name of the Angel Who Takes the Soul? An Islamic Clarification
Written by: Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amrpuri
What is the name of the angel responsible for taking the souls (qabḍ al-rūḥ)?
The angel responsible for taking the souls is known as "Malak al-Mawt" (ملك الموت – the Angel of Death). However, there is no authentic narration that definitively mentions his actual name.
✔ Imām Ibn Kathīr رحمه الله (d. 774 AH) said:
“As for the Angel of Death, his name is not explicitly mentioned in the Qur’an, nor in authentic ḥadīths. However, in some āthār, he is called ʿAzrāʾīl — and Allah knows best.”
(Al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah, 1/106)
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✔ Imām al-Suyūṭī رحمه الله (d. 911 AH) stated:
“His name is not mentioned in any marfūʿ ḥadīth.”
(Ḥāshiyat al-Suyūṭī ʿalā Sunan al-Nasā’ī, 4/118)
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✔ ʿAllāmah ʿAbd al-Ra’ūf al-Munāwī رحمه الله (d. 1031 AH) wrote:
“I have not come across any ḥadīth that names him as ʿAzrāʾīl.”
(Fayḍ al-Qadīr, 3/21)
✔ The Qur’ān and authentic Sunnah refer to the angel as “Malak al-Mawt”,
✘ The name ʿAzrāʾīl is not authentically established in any marfūʿ (Prophetic) narration,
Therefore, it is more accurate and appropriate to refer to him as Malak al-Mawt, as the Qur’ān does.
هٰذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
This is what I understand, and Allah knows best what is correct.
Written by: Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amrpuri❖ Question:
What is the name of the angel responsible for taking the souls (qabḍ al-rūḥ)?
❖ Answer:
The angel responsible for taking the souls is known as "Malak al-Mawt" (ملك الموت – the Angel of Death). However, there is no authentic narration that definitively mentions his actual name.
✿ Common Attribution of the Name "ʿAzrāʾīl":
- Some people refer to Malak al-Mawt as ʿAzrāʾīl,
- But this name is not confirmed through any authentic or reliable ḥadīth.
- It is mentioned in some weak reports, and a few non-authentic āthār (narrations from early generations),
- It is possible that this name originates from Isrā’īlī traditions (Judeo-Christian sources), not from the Prophet ﷺ.
✿ Scholarly Statements:
✔ Imām Ibn Kathīr رحمه الله (d. 774 AH) said:
“As for the Angel of Death, his name is not explicitly mentioned in the Qur’an, nor in authentic ḥadīths. However, in some āthār, he is called ʿAzrāʾīl — and Allah knows best.”
(Al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah, 1/106)
—
✔ Imām al-Suyūṭī رحمه الله (d. 911 AH) stated:
“His name is not mentioned in any marfūʿ ḥadīth.”
(Ḥāshiyat al-Suyūṭī ʿalā Sunan al-Nasā’ī, 4/118)
—
✔ ʿAllāmah ʿAbd al-Ra’ūf al-Munāwī رحمه الله (d. 1031 AH) wrote:
“I have not come across any ḥadīth that names him as ʿAzrāʾīl.”
(Fayḍ al-Qadīr, 3/21)
Conclusion:
✔ The Qur’ān and authentic Sunnah refer to the angel as “Malak al-Mawt”,
✘ The name ʿAzrāʾīl is not authentically established in any marfūʿ (Prophetic) narration,
Therefore, it is more accurate and appropriate to refer to him as Malak al-Mawt, as the Qur’ān does.هٰذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
This is what I understand, and Allah knows best what is correct.
