As-salamu alaykum (Arabic: ٱلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ, as-salāmu ʿalaykum, [as.sa.laː.mu ʕa.laj.kum]) is a greeting in Arabic that means "Peace be upon you". The salam is a religious salutation among Muslims when greeting, though it is also used by Arabic speakers of other religions, such as Arab Christians, as well as by Muslims generally. In colloquial speech, often only the first part of the phrase (i.e. Salām, "peace") is used to greet a person. The typical response to the greeting is wa ʿalaykumu s-salām (وَعَلَيْكُمُ ٱلسَّلَامُ, [wa.ʕa.laj.ku.mu‿s.sa.laː.mu]), "And peace be upon you, too." The complete phrase is as-salāmu ʿalaykum wa-raḥmatu -llāhi wa-barakātuhū (ٱلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ ٱللَّٰهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ, [as.sa.laː.mu ʕa.laj.kum wa.raħ.ma.tu‿ɫ.ɫaː.hi wa.ba.ra.kaː.tu.huː]), "Peace be upon you, as well as the mercy of God and his blessings."
This greeting appears in abbreviated forms in many languages as some variant of salām (سَلَام, cf. Persian [sæ.lɒːm]). Among Christians, during Mass, the priest and the congregation often use the salutation, "peace be with you."
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