The Definition of the Adhan Linguistically and Legally, and Its Wording

Question:
We are in the chapter on the Adhan, Your Eminence the Shaykh. What is the definition of the Adhan linguistically and legally?

Answer:
Notification. The adhan is notification, as stated in , meaning notification. It is called adhan because it notifies people of the entry of the time and the presence of the prayer. The iqamah is notification of its presence, its establishment, and entering into it. Its takbirs are known, and its wording is known. The adhan consists of fifteen phrases: four takbirs at the beginning, the two testimonies—the testimony that there is no god but Allah and the testimony that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah—then “hayya ‘ala al-salah” (come to prayer) and “hayya ‘ala al-falah” (come to success), then the takbir twice at the end, and then the word of tawhid (the oneness of Allah) once. The iqamah consists of eleven phrases: the takbir twice at the beginning, then the testimony—the testimony that Allah is one or the testimony that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah—then “hayya ‘ala al-salah,” “hayya ‘ala al-falah,” then “qad qamat al-salah” (the prayer has begun) twice, then “Allahu Akbar” (Allah is the Greatest) twice, and “la ilaha illa Allah” (there is no god but Allah). Yes.