I'rab of Surah Al-Fatihah Ayah 2: word by word Arabic grammar
Surah Al-Fatiha (الفاتحة) · Meccan · Ayah 2
ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ Transliterational-ḥamdu lillāhi rabbi l-ʿālamīn
MeaningAll praise belongs to God, the Lord of all the worlds.
This verse is a nominal sentence. "Al-hamdu" is the subject (mubtada') in the nominative. The prepositional phrase "lillah" is linked to an omitted predicate (khabar). "Rabbi" follows the name of God as an adjective (na't) in the genitive, and "al-'alamin" is its possessed noun (mudaf ilayh), also genitive.
Word by word i'rab
subject (mubtada')
It opens the nominal sentence as the subject and carries the nominative ending (damma) shown by the final u.
nominativepreposition + genitive noun forming the predicate
The preposition li joined to the name of God puts it in the genitive, and the whole phrase is attached to an understood predicate such as 'is due' or 'belongs'.
genitiveadjective (na't) of the name of God
It describes the preceding name of God and follows it in the genitive, its ending marked by the kasra.
genitivepossessed noun (mudaf ilayh)
As the second term of the construct with 'Rabb', it is genitive, marked by the ya because it patterns like a sound masculine plural.
genitiveDetailed i'rab
This ayah is a nominal sentence (jumla ismiyya). It begins with "al-hamdu," the subject (mubtada'), which is nominative, its case shown by the damma on the final letter. The prepositional phrase "lillah": the preposition li attached to the genitive name of God: does not stand alone; it relates to an omitted predicate (khabar) understood as something like "is established" or "is due," so the sense is "all praise is due to God." The word "Rabbi" is an adjective (na't) qualifying the name of God; it agrees with it in being genitive, marked by the kasra. Finally, "al-'alamin" is the possessed noun (mudaf ilayh) governed by "Rabb"; it is genitive, but its case appears through the ya rather than a kasra, since it takes the ending pattern of the sound masculine plural.
Frequently asked
Where is the predicate (khabar) in this verse?
The predicate is not stated explicitly. The prepositional phrase 'lillah' points to an omitted predicate, understood as a word like 'is due' or 'belongs.' So the full sense is: 'Praise is [due] to God.'
Why does 'al-'alamin' end in -in rather than a kasra?
Although it is genitive as the possessed noun (mudaf ilayh) after 'Rabb,' it follows the pattern of the sound masculine plural, whose genitive is marked by the ya (-in) instead of the usual kasra.
What is the relationship between 'Rabbi' and the name of God?
'Rabbi' is an adjective (na't) describing the name of God. An adjective matches the word it describes in case, so since the name of God is genitive here, 'Rabbi' is also genitive.