Tuesday, April 10, 2007
The Great Hallelujah vs Alleluia Controversy
I overheard a discussion among some of the band members about the difference between the words “Hallelujah” and “Alleluia.” So I wanted to share a bit of history about the words. “Hallelujah” is Hebrew and means simply “Praise Yahweh.” It comes from “Hillēl” which means “to praise” and “Yāh” which means Yahweh. Sometimes you will see it spelled “Halleluyah” Alleluia is the English translation and is derived from the Latin and the Greek. So either word can be used in place of the other. In fact, if you look up the word “Alleluia” it is defined as “Hallelujah” and both are used in music and liturgy (the words and actions that are used by the church to worship God) in praises to God.
Hallelujah is the most common form of the word. But Alleluia appears frequently in music. Since many pieces of church music throughout the ages were written in Latin, Alleluia would be a common choice for many traditional hymns and songs. And of course, contemporary Christian songs are generally written in English—thus Alleluia is used most often.
While the term Hallelujah comes from our Jewish worship roots, both Hallelujah and Alleluia are used most often in Christian worship in relationship to the resurrection of Jesus. And in many Christian churches, they are not said or sung during Lent. In fact, some churches have a ceremonial burying of the Alleluia at the beginning of Lent and then “resurrect” its use for Easter.
Probably more than you wanted to know, but in case you are on Jeopardy some day ;-D