What is "allahumma"

Allāhumma (اللَّهُمَّ) is a vocative form of Allah, the Islamic and Arabic term for God. It is translated as "O Allāh" and is seen as the equivalent of "Yā Allāh". Some grammarians (such as Sibawayh) argue that it is an abbreviation of يا الله أمّنا بخير (yā allāhu ʾummanā bi-khayr) (with the meaning of "O God, lead us in goodness"); others have argued without explanation that the suffix ـ هُمَّ (-humma) takes the place of yā (O). Muslim scholar Ibn ʿĀshūr, in his explanation of Sūrat ʾĀl ʿImrān, suggests that the word Allāhumma is of Hebrew or of Qaḥṭāni derivation. Non-Muslim scholars have speculated that this term is derived from the divine name Elohim, used in the Hebrew Bible. "Allahumma" is not used alone as a name, but is used to say "O Allah...". It is basically just another way of saying "Ya Allāh". The latter is more correctly pronounced "yallāh" since the first alif in "Allāh" is a wasla (that is, elided).