haram

Haram is an Arabic term used in Islamic law to designate actions, substances, or circumstances that are forbidden or prohibited. It is the opposite of halal, which means permissible. The word stems from a root meaning prohibition and sanctity, reflecting how some things are considered off limits for believers.

Rulings on what is haram come primarily from the Qur’an and the hadith, and are interpreted by Islamic scholars through methods such as ijma (consensus) and qiyas (analogical reasoning). Some prohibitions are universal, while others may be contextual or vary across legal schools. Scholars distinguish between acts that are haram in themselves (haram al-ayn) and those forbidden by a specific ruling (haram li-ghayrihi). The classification can influence whether a prohibition applies in certain situations or to certain people, but the underlying principle is abstention from what is forbidden by God.

Common examples of haram include pork and its byproducts, blood, and animals not slaughtered according to Islamic ritual, intoxicants such as alcohol, gambling, and usury (riba). Other haram acts commonly cited in jurisprudence include illicit sexual relations, murder, theft, bearing false witness, deception, bribery, oppression, and breaking certain oaths or trusts. The aim of labeling these acts as haram is to safeguard religious duties, personal well-being, and social justice.

In addition to its legal sense, haram can also denote sacred precincts in Arabic, such as Al-Haram (the Sacred Mosque in Mecca) and Al-Haram al-Sharif in Jerusalem. In these contexts, it conveys sanctity rather than prohibition.