The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (Isis). The original name for the group in Arabic was Al-Dawla Al-Islamiya fi al-Iraq wa al-Sham. The first three words translate to the Islamic State of Iraq while “al-Sham” refers to Syria and the wider surrounding area.he Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil). The undefined region around Syria is historically referred to as the Levant (an archaic French phrase for the “lands of the rising sun”), including modern-day Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine and Jordan.