The Plural of "Mother" Is "Ummahat", Not "A'imma"; and the Meaning of the Verse "On the Day We Call Every People by Their Leader"

Question

[ar]يَوْمَ نَدْعُوا۟ كُلَّ أُنَاسٍۭ بِإِمَـٰمِهِمْ[/ar] "On the Day when We shall call every people together with their leader (imam)" (Surah Al-Isra, 17:71). A certain scholar, declaring the word imam to be the plural of umm (mother), translates [this verse] to mean that "people will be called by the names of their mothers." Is it even correct to call [the word imam] a plural of umm?

Answer

The plural of umm (mother) is ummahat, as stated in the Noble Qur'an: [ar]حُرِّمَتْ عَلَيْكُمْ أُمَّهَـٰتُكُمْ[/ar] "Forbidden to you are your mothers..." (Surah An-Nisa, 4:23). Some also pronounce the plural as ummat, without the ha. [It is said]: "As for the plural, most of the Arabs [say] ummahat, and some of them say ummat" ("Lisan al-'Arab", vol. 12, p. 30).

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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