Allah as a lunar deity

The theory that Allah (God in Islam) originated as a moon god began in 1901 with the archaeologist Hugo Winckler. He associated Allah with a pre-Islamic Arabian deity, either Lah or Hubal, whom he identified as lunar in nature. However, modern scholars have rejected this theory due to its speculative character and lack of archaeological or textual evidence from pre-Islamic Arabia. Hubal, a deity worshipped at the Kaaba before Islam, is often mentioned in these claims. Some suggest that Hubal originated from the Levant or Mesopotamia. Historian Philip K. Hitti posits that Hubal's name may derive from an Aramaic term for "spirit".

In the 1990s, the idea was popularized in the United States by Christian apologists, especially Robert Morey, who argued in his works that "Allah" was originally a moon god, citing the Islamic lunar calendar and crescent imagery. However, scholars like Wilfred Cantwell Smith argue this view misinterprets the symbolism and lacks historical support. Smith emphasized that Allah has always been understood in Islam as a transcendent, monotheistic deity, distinct from tribal gods or natural phenomena. The presence of the lunar calendar and symbols in Islamic culture stems from cultural and practical use, not theological moon worship.

Academics continue to reject the theory as unsubstantiated. The claim has also been criticized for being offensive to Muslims and Arab Christians, who also use the term "Allah" for God.