Glossary

What does haram mean?

حرام

In short

Haram means "forbidden" in Arabic: anything Muslims are not allowed to do, eat or drink under Islamic law.

Haram (حرام) means forbidden. In food, the main haram items are pork and anything made from pigs, blood, alcoholic drinks, carrion (animals that died without slaughter), and meat slaughtered in the name of other than God.

Many ingredients are haram only because of their source — for example gelatine from pigs, or carmine according to most scholars.

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Written by the Halal Check Online editorial team. Last reviewed 2026-10-06. How we write these answers · Suggest a correction