Glossary
‘abd: servant or slave. Used in proper names in combination with Allāh, e.g. ‘Abd Allāh (Servant of God), ‘Abd al-Raḥīm (Servant of the Compassionate).
the abrogating and the abrogated: the al-nāsikh wa-al-mansūkh. This phrase refers to verses in the Qur’ān which modify the instructions in earlier verses and to the verses thus modified. Thus, at first the Muslims were ordered to turn toward Jerusalem in prayer, but later they were told to turn toward Makkah. See Qur’ān, 2:133, 134, 149, 150.
abū: father. Written as abī after ibn.
abwāb (s., bāb): doors. The form is also used for the sections of a book. The Shī‘ah used it for their imams. See Hitti, Arabs, p. 442; “Bāb,” Enc. Islām, (1960) I, 832. It may refer to the gates of Heaven. See Qur’ān, 38: 50.
accidents: al-a‘rāḍ. Unexpected and fortuitous events.
accounts: akhbār. This translation is given frequently, especially in the headings of paragraphs.
acrostic: al-muwashshah. Verses arranged so that the initial letters of each line together form a word or verse.
adab: training, good manners, culture. The plural form, ādāb, is used even more often than the singular for morals, literary pursuits, and belles-lettres. See “Adab,” Enc. Islam, I, 122.
aḥkām al-nujūm. See judgments of the stars.
Ahl al-Bayt: People of the House. Members of the familyof the Prophet.
Ahl al-Da‘wah: People of the Summons. The name which the Ismā‘īlīyah used for members of their own sect.
Abl al-Dhimmah. Conquered peoples, who were obliged to pay taxes but were not forced to accept Islām. See “Dhimma,” Enc. Islam, I, 958.
akhbār (s., khabar): account, accounts, historical traditions, news, information. These are the most common translations.
algebra and equation: al-jabr wa-al-muqābalah. Smith, History of Mathematics, I, 170, translates the Arabic as “reduction and cancellation.”
906
allegorical interpretation: mutashābihah (pl., mutashābihāt). This word is used to refer to the allegorical material in the Qur’ān, such as the “throne of God.” Other possible translations are allegory, simile, metaphor, comparison, similitude.
analogy: al-qiyās. Interpretation of the law by means of comparisons and precedents. See Schacht, Origins of Muhammadan Jurisprudence, pp. 98-132; “Kiyās,” Enc. Islam, II, 1051.
anthology: al-dīwān, when used for a collection of poetical verses.
anwā’: conditions in the heavens and the atmosphere. Al-Anwā’ is also a group of 28 stars, which divide the stages of the moon as it passes through the zodiac. See Qutaybah, Kitāb al-Anwā’; also Ma‘lūf, Al-Munjid, p. 844.
apostasy: al-riddah. In early Islām this word was used for persons and tribes who turned against the Prophet. See Hitti, Arabs, pp. 141–2.
aristocratic families: al-būyūtāt. A plural form from bayt (“house”), used for the families of tribal chiefs.
art: al-ṣan‘ah. In addition to its common meaning, this word was used for akhemy. See “al-Kīmiyā’,” Enc. Islam, II, 1010–16.
ascetic: al-zāhid, al-nāsik. See also Ṣūfī.
asceticism: al-zuhd. This way of life included renunciation of worldly things, fasting, prayer at night, observance of mosque ceremonies, study of the Qur’ān, and similar religious practices.
aṣḥāb (s., ṣāḥib): Companions of the Prophet, associates, pupils, adherents, owners, or friends.
Ashkanian dynasty. See Parthians.
associates: al-julasā’. The word was often used for persons who took part in intellectual discussions, often at the court of the caliph. See also aṣḥāb.
astrolabe. There was the plane type (al-musaṭṭah or dhāt al-ṣafā’iḥ), which was often hung from a ring, and the spherical type (al-kurī). See “Asturlāb,” Enc. Islam, I, 501; Hitti, Arabs, p. 374; Smith, History of Mathematics, I, 91, 169.
astronomicai tables: al-zīj. See “Astronomy,” Enc. Islam, I, 497–500; Pingree, Journal of the American Oriental Society, LXXXII, No. 4 (October–December 1962), 487–502; Salam and Kennedy, ibid, LXXXVII, No. 4 (October–December 1967), 492–497; Ḥājj Khalīfah. III, 566. The book entitled Zīj al-Shāhriyār was a compilation written during the late Sasanian period. It was known in Persian as Zīj al-Shāh or Zik i Shatro-ayār (“Royal Astronomical Tables”). It became popular among the Muslims during the ninth century. SCC Battānī,
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Al-Battani sive Albatenii Opus astronomicum, and Nallino, ‘Ilm al-Falak, which explain how these tables formed the basis for Muslim astronomy.
Aswārīyah. A sect of the Mu‘tazilah. See Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part I, pp. 27, 60; Baghdādī (Seelye), p. 116; Jār Allāh, Mu‘tazilah, p. 140.
atom: al-juz’ (pl., al-ajzā’). The particle which was considered to be a constituent part of matter. See Nādir, Système philosophique, p. 152.
attributes: al-ṣifāt (s., al-ṣifah). Qualities of Allāh. The theologian al-Ash‘arī regarded them as knowledge, power, will, hearing, sight, and speech. The Mu‘tazilah denied their existence, as limiting the oneness of Allāh.
authorities on the Ḥadīth: al-muḥaddithūn.
‘ayn: the eighteenth letter of the Arabic alphabet. It is also a word which may mean eye, spring, or essence.
ayyām (s., al-yawm): days. Also used to mean “battles” and “times.”
Azāriqah, also called in the singular Azraqī. A dangerous group of early Islām, defeated A.D. 698. See Hitti, Arabs, p. 208; “Azraḳites,” Enc. Islam, I, 542; “Khāridjites,” Enc. Islam, II, 907; Baghdādī (Seelye), p. 83; Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part I, 133.
bāb: door, gate. See abwāb.
Badr: the battle fought in A.D. 624, 20 miles southeast of al-Madīnah when the Muslims attacked a caravan. See Hitti, Arabs, pp. 116–17.
Bakrīyah. A heretical sect, which followed the tenets of Bakr ibn Ukht ‘Abd al-Waḥīd ibn Ziyād. See Baghdādī (Seelye), pp. 38, 41; Baghdādī (Halkin), pp. 15–16, 169, 225.
banū: sons. Used for the members of a tribe or family.
Banū al-‘Abbās. The ‘Abbāsids, members of the dynasty which ruled from A.D. 750 until the fall of Baghdād.
Banū Hāshim. The family of the Prophet’s great-grandfather. See Hitti, Arabs, p. 189.
Banū Umayyah. The Umayyads, members of the dynasty who ruled at Damascus A.D. 661–750.
Barmak (p., Barāmakah). The members of a Persian family, many of whom became distinguished as viziers and scholars at Baghdād. See “Barmakids,” Enc. Islam, I, 663; Hitti, Arabs, 294–96.
Bayhāsiyah. Followers of Abū Bayhas Hayṣim ibn Jābir. See Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part 1, p. 139; “Abū Baihas,” Enc. Islam, I, 80; Baghdādī (Seelye), p. 110, which gives ibn ‘Āmir instead of ibn Jābir.
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Bayt al-Ḥikmah: House of Wisdom. A research center, library, and translation bureau founded by A-Ma’mūn at Baghdād, A.D. 830. See Hitti, Arabs, p. 310.
bint: girl. When used in proper names it means “daughter of.”
Būdāsaf (Būtāsaf, Yūdāsaf, Buwāsaf, Budāsf). Corruptions for Bodisattva, used to designate a Buddhist ready to become an enlightened one, and also applied to the Buddha himself. See “Bodhisattva,” Enc. of Religion and Ethics, II, 739.
Būdāsāf and Balawhar. The Arabic translation from the Pahlavi of an old story about how the Buddha, here called Būdāsāf, was persuaded by an ascetic companion, Balawhar, to relinquish worldly things. In Europe the story became famous as Barlaam and Josaphat. See Introduction to Budge, Baralām and Yèwāsèf; “Barlaam and Josaphat,” Enc. Islam, I, 663; “Josaphat,” Enc. of Religion and Ethics, VII, 567; “Barlaam and Josaphat,” Enc. Brit., III, 403; “Bidpai,” ibid., III, 919; “Fable,” ibid., X, 114; “Jātaka,” ibid., XV, 280; anonymous note in ZDMG, XXIV (1870), 480; Jacobs, Barlaam and Josaphat, pp. xiv, xv, xxvii-xxxiii, and Part 2, p. 3.
buffoons. See jesters.
Bureau of al-Sawād: Dīwān al-Sawād. The government office in charge of taxes and other affairs for central and southern ‘Irāq.
Byzantines: al-Rūm. The word is used for both Greeks and Romans. In Al-Fihrist it usually applies to the people of the Byzantine Empire, unless the context shows that it refers to the more ancient Greeks and Romans.
calculations for nativities: al-numūdārāt (s., al-numūdār). A system of complicated rules for selecting the heavenly body to be ascendant at the time of birth. See “Astrology,” Enc. Islam, I, 496 bottom.
caliph: al-khalīfah. The successor of the Prophet and ruler of the Islamic empire.
Camel, the Battle of. A battle fought between ‘Alī and his opponents, A.D. 656. See Hitti, Arabs, 179.
charms: al-‘azā’im. These were often made from verses of the Qur’ān, though other things were also used to form them. Other words for “charm” or “incantation” are al-ruqyah (pl., al-ruqā) and al-nīranj (cf. incantation). See Fück, Ambix, p. 113, n. 17.
choices: al-ikhtiyārāt. Used in astrology for thc choiccs of auspicious moments for action, by observing in which of its twelve celestial houses the moon is located. See “Astrology,” Enc. Islam, I, 496.
909
City of Peace: Madīnat al-Salām. The popular name for Baghdād.
clowns. See jesters.
Commander of the Faithful: Amīr al-Mu’minīn. A popular title for the caliph.
commentary: al-tafsīr. The word was often used in the titles of books, which explained the Qur’ān or some other famous book. Only the great scholars wrote original works; their pupils and the less brilliant scholars wrote commentaries.
compilation: al-jāmi‘. This also means a “collecting” or “compendium,” when referring to books.
compulsion: al-jabr. Predestination, which excluded free will.
condition: sharṭ (pl., shurūṭ). For its legal use, see “Shart,” Enc. Islam, IV. 335.
conjunction: al-qirān, al-ijtimā‘, or al-ittiṣāl. The meeting of two planets, which were usually Jupiter and Venus, Jupiter and Saturn, or Mars and Saturn. The Ṣābians of Ḥarrān used the word al-ijtimā‘ to signify the simultaneous setting of the moon and rising of the sun. See Bīrūnī, Chronologie orientalischer Volker, p. 319, I.2.
consensus of opinion: al-ijmā‘. Interpretation of the law according to the opinions of the leading jurists. See Schacht, Origins of Muhammadan Jurisprudence, pp. 82–97; “Idjmā’,” Enc. Islam, II, 448.
court companion: al-nadīm (pl., al-nudamā’). A drinking companion of the caliph or of a high official, or a more serious-minded person attached to the court.
created: al-makhlūq. This can mean “what has been created by Allāh.” It was also used by the Mu‘tazilah for the Qur’ān. They believed that the orthodox tenet that the Qur’ān was uncreated contradicted the idea of unity of God, so that they regarded the Qur’ān as created by Allāh.
Dahrīyah. Heretical materialists. The word is derived from a term in the Qur’ān 45.23 (24). See also “Dahrīya,” Enc. Islam, I, 894; Baghdādī (Seelye), pp. 125, 127, 129; Jār Allāh, Mu‘tazilah, pp. 38, 60, 196, 203; Khayyāt, Intiṣār (Nyberg), pp. 6, 14, 38, 81.
darb: street or pathway.
days. See ayyām.
Dayṣānīyūn (al-Dayṣānīyah). Members of the sect which followed Ibn Dayṣān, who was called Bardayṣān in Europe. See “Bardaiṣān,” Enc. Brit., III, 395; “Docetae,” ibid., VII, 353; “Gnostocism,” ibid., III, 158; Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part I, p. 293; Bīrūnī, Chronologie orientalischer Volker, pp. 23, 207; Sarton, I, 298; “Ibn Daiṣān,” Enc. Islam,
910
II, 3 70; Smith, GRMB, I, 462; also for reference, Hilgenfeld, Bardesanes der letzte Gnostiker.
deputations: al-wufūd. Negotiators between the tribes and Muḥammad. See Isḥāq, Life of Muhammad, p. 627.
dīnār. The gold coin of the Muslims. See Hitti, Arabs, p. 171, n. 4.
dirham. May be used for money or for a silver coin. See Hitti, Arabs, p. 172, n. 4.
disposition: al-khulq. Refers to temperament, character, or nature. The form al-khalq means “creation,”
dīwān: government bureau or official register, usually in connection with the taxes. It can also designate an anthology of poetry.
doorkeeper: al-ḥājib. The Arabic word also means “chamberlain.”
dualists: al-thanawīyah. A term as a rule applied to Zoroastrians and Manichaeans. They were called Asḥāb al-Ithnayn. They were disliked because as Persians they were rebellious against the Arab rule. See “Thanawīya,” Enc. Islam, IV, 736.
ecstasy: al-ḥulūl. Union with God by means of mystical practices.
edit: ‘amil, ja‘al. Used for the revision of poetry and ancient works. Verses which were retained only in memory or written in an imperfect way were corrected and edited, so as to form properly written anthologies and books.
elixir: al-iksīr. The Philosopher’s Stone; also the substance which could change crude metal into gold. See alchemy.
emir: al-amīr (pl., al-umarā’). A prince, governor, or descendant of an aristocratic family.
enslaved by love: al-mutayyam (pl., al-mutayyamūn).
epistle: al-risālah (pl., al-rasa’il). A letter, monograph, or essay.
essence.
In certain cases this word denotes the following: al-nafs, which also
means “the soul”; al-jawhar, which also means “the jewel”;
al-ma’iyah (mahīyah), which is like the Greek
. When speaking
about material phenomena, the word implies “essential properties.” See Qiftī,
p. 369 n. c; Sprenger, pp. 131 ff.
etymology: al-ishtiqāq. See Durayd, Kitāb al-Ishtiqāq.
external alchemy: al-a‘māl al-barrānīyah. Refers to fabrication of ceramics, imitation precious stones, artificial pearls, and similar things, rather than to changing metal into gold.
fa‘ala wa-af‘ala. Other forms are fa‘ala wa-yaf‘al and fa‘altu wa-af‘altu. These are forms of the verb discussed in books on grammar. For the theological significance, see Macdonald, Development of Muslim Theology, p. 137; Baghdādī (Seelye), p. 131.
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Fātiḥah. The first sūrah of the Qur’ān, used by Muslims much as Christians use the Lord’s Prayer. It was called the Sūrah of Praise.
faults: al-mathālib. Used for political purposes to condemn the vices of tribes and individuals.
Fuḍaylīyah. A sect which was probably connected with disputes over the legal heir to the caliphate. Perhaps it was named for Fuḍayl al-Risān. See Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part 1, p. 179.
Ghāliyah. See Ghulāt.
Ghaylānīyah. Members of a sect who were almost certainly followers of Ghaylān al-Dimashqī. See Baghdādī (Seelye), p. 119; Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part 1, p. 160.
ghulām. See young man.
Ghulāt (al-Ghāliyah, al-Ghulāh). A sect which was so heretical that it was not regarded as belonging to Islām. See Baghdādī (Seelye), pp. 17, 34–6; Baghdādī (Halkin), pp. 49–57; Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part 1, pp. 199-200. “Ghālī,” Enc. Islam, II, 137.
grace: al-na‘īm. The doctrine that God shows grace by refraining to foreordain actions of a sinful nature for man to appropriate.
grammar: al-naḥw. In modern times the Arabic term is used for syntax, but in Al-Fihrist it is used for grammar.
Ḥadīth: Traditions of the Prophet. The collection of sayings and precedents of the Prophet, handed down by his associates and followers.
ḥājih (pl., al-ḥujjāb). See doorkeeper.
ḥamāsah: valor. Often used as the title of a book on tribal anecdotes or poetry. The most famous book was that of Abū Tammām: see Nicholson, Literary History of the Arabs, p. 129.
hamzah. A sign in Arabic script, which indicates a connection between two letters or an initial vowel sound.
ḥanīf (pl., al-ḥunafa’). A Pre-Islāmic worshiper with pure ideas about religion. Abraham was the classic example. See Qur’ān 3:67, 6:79; “Hanīf,” Enc. Islam, II, 258.
Ḥashawīyah (Ḥashwīyah). A sect which upheld anthropomorphic tenets. See Jār Allāh, Mu‘tazilah, pp. 6, 190, 261 top; Murtaḍā, pp. 6, 64; Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part 1, pp. 89, 101; Part 2, p. 403; “Ḥashwīya,” Enc. Islam, II, 287; Khayyāṭ, Intiṣār (Nādir), pp. 68, 120.
heretics: al-mulḥidūn. Other forms of the word were the Mulḥidah or the Malāḥidah, names for a group of the Bātinīyah in Khurāsān. See Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part 1, p. 221.
heroic deeds: al-māthir (s., al-ma’tharah).
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Ḥijāz. The central region of western Arabia, which includes part of the Tihāmah Plain along the Red Sea, as well as the mountains to the east. It includes the holy cities of Makkah and al-Madīnah and the seaport of Jidda (Juddah). See “al-Ḥidjāz,” Enc. Islam, II, 300; Yāqūt, Geog., II, 204.
Hijrah: the Hegira.
Hishāmīyah. Two heretical sects named for Hishām ibn al-Ḥakam and Hishām ibn Sālim al-Jawālīqī. Their heresies concerned the imamate and they also attributed physical characteristics to Allāh. See Baghdādī (Seelye), p. 67; Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part 1, p. 212.
historical traditions. See akhbār.
holy war: al-jihād. See Qur’ān 2:190–93; Hitti, Arabs, p. 136.
ḥunafā’. See ḥanīf.
Ibāḍīyah. A sect which started as an offshoot of the Khawārij during the eighth century but spread to North Africa, where it was called the Abāḍīyah. See “Abāḍītes,” Enc. Islam, I, 3; “Ibāḍīya,” ibid., II, 350; Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part 1, p. 151; Baghdādī (Seelye), pp. 104, 120, 129.
ibn (pl., banū, abnā’): son.
ikhwān: brothers. Often used to denote the members of some special group or movement.
‘ilal (s., ‘illah): causes, diseases, defects, reasons.
imam: al-imām. A term used among other things for the caliph, a descendant of ‘Alī claiming the right to rule, certain famous legal and religious leaders, the prayer leader in a mosque and the Manichaean prelate. For the Shī‘ite imams, see Hitti, Arabs, p. 442.
imamate: al-imāmah. Office of the caliph. See “Imām,” Enc. Islam, II, 473–74.
Imāmīyah. A sect concerned with the legality of the imamate. See Baghdādī (Seelye), 35, 43–4, 60; Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part 1, p. 184.
incantation: al-nīranj (nīraj) (pl., al-nīranjāt). Other translations are “charm” and “enchantment.”