What does the arabic word "maktub" mean and how is it used in Coelho's novel, The Alchemist?

"Maktub," the merchant said, finally. "What does that mean?" "You would have to have been born an Arab to understand," he answered. "But in your language it would be something like 'It is written."

                                                            -- The Alchemist, pg. 31

And, as the camel driver had said, to die tomorrow was no worse than dying on any other day. Every day was there to be lived or to mark one's departure from this world. Everything depended on one word: "Maktub."

                                                             -- The Alchemist, pg. 60

"Maktub" is a word that comes up again and again in The Alchemist. As is mentioned in the first quote, it is Arabic for "it is written." Maktub means fate or destiny. The concept comes from the Islamic notion that Allah writes one's destiny and whatever we experience occurs because it is meant to be. The idea of destiny that is inevitable is emphasized throughout this book.

"Maktub" also exists in Farsi along with some other languages that borrow heavily from Farsi and Arabic. In contemporary Farsi and Turkish, for example, "maktub" or "mektup" means "letter." But its meaning in The Alchemist is "destiny."