Glossary_of_Arabic_toponyms References

The glossary of Arabic toponyms gives translations of Arabic terms commonly found as components in Arabic toponyms. A significant number of them were put together during the PEF Survey of Palestine carried out in the second half of the 19th century.

A

'Ain, pl.: `Ayūn, ʿUyūn

Spring, fountain, source.^[1] Examples: El Aaiún

Ab, Abu

Father; as a geographical term it signifies "producing", "containing", etc.;^[1]

Arak, pl.: Arkan

Cavern or cliff (among various meanings);^[1] see All pages with titles containing Arak

B

Bab, pl.: Buwab: Gate.^[1] Examples Bab el-Mandeb; see All pages with titles containing Bab
Bahr: Arabic: بحر - Sea, large river.^[1] see All pages with titles containing Bahr
Beit: House.^[1] see All pages with titles containing Beit
Balad: Arabic: بلد (sometimes transliterated as Beled or Belled) - Town;^[1] see All pages with titles containing Balad
Bir: Arabic: بير, Well;^[1] see All pages with titles containing Bir
Birkeh: Artificial pool, tank;^[1] see All pages with titles containing Birkeh
Buhayra, Baheirah: Arabic: بحيرة, Lake, lagoon;^[1] Diminutive of بَحْر (baḥr, “sea”).
Burj: Arabic: برج, Tower, castle;^[1] see All pages with titles containing Burj

D

Deir: wikt:دير monastery, convent, cloister (often ruins thereof);^[1] see All pages with titles containing Deir
Derb: wikt:درب road, pass;^[1] see All pages with titles containing Derb
Dhahr: wikt: ridge;^[1] see All pages with titles containing Dhahr

H

Haram: Sacred place;^[1] see All pages with titles containing Haram
Haud: Reservoir,^[1] pond; see All pages with titles containing Haud

I

Ibn: Son; as a geographical term it signifies "producing", "containing", etc.;^[1] see All pages with titles containing Ibn

J

Jama'a, Djama'a, Jami'a

place of gathering, community, mosque;^[1]

Jazira, Jezireh, Jeziret

Island;^[1]

Jebel, Djebel, Jebal, Jabal

mountain;^[1]

Jisr

bridge;^[1]

All pages with titles containing Jisr

Jubb

(Arabic: جُبّ ): well, pit;^[1]

All pages with titles containing Jubb

K

Khirbet, Khurbet, Khirbat, etc.

is the conjunctive form "ruin of" (خربة) of the Arabic word for "ruin" ( خرب, khirba, kharab ("ruined"))

Kul'ah,^[1] Kal'at, Kalat, Kala, Kaleh

Arabic, Persian. See "Qalat"

All pages with titles containing Kalat

M

Mazar

مزار: shrine, grave, tomb, etc. cf. " Mazar (mausoleum)". The placename usually refers to a grave of a saint, ruler, etc.. Examples: Mazar-i-Sharif

Mazra', Mazra'a, Al-Mazra'a, Mazraa

مزرعة, mazraʿa: farm, مزرع, mazraʿ: field, farmland, origin for majra, hamlet in Indian subcontinent^[2]

N

Nahr: wikt:نهر, river, e.g., Nahr-e Mian; see All pages with titles containing Nahr-e

O

Oued

In North African Arabic, same as Wadi

All pages with titles containing Oued

Q

Qabr, Kabr, pl.:Qubūr

Arabic: قَبْر, pl. Arabic: قُبُور - tomb, grave^[1]

Qasr, Kasr, al-Qasr, pl.:Qusūr

Arabic: قصر, lit. 'palace/castle/fortress', from Latin castrum

All pages with titles containing Qasr
All pages with titles containing Kasr
All pages with titles containing Qusur
It entered into Spanish and Portuguese placenames in the forms Alcazar, Alcácer
North African ( Maghrebi Arabic) form: Ksar

The dictionary definition of qasr at Wiktionary

Qal'at, Qalat, Qala, Qalaat, Qal'a

Arabic, Persian. Fortified place, fort, fortress, castle;^[3] see All pages with titles containing Qalat

R

Ras

wikt:رأس, head, cape, top, peak, etc.,^[1]

All pages with titles containing Ras

Rujm, plural: rujum

wikt:رجم, mound, cairn, hill, spur, and also as "stone heap" or " tumulus".^[4]^[5]^[1]

U

Umm

Mother; as a geographical term it signifies "producing", "containing", etc.; cf. " Mother of all";^[1]

All pages with titles containing Umm

W

Wadi, Wad, North African Arabic: Oued

Watercourse: stream (often intermittent stream), sometimes dry waterbed, valley ^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z ^aa ^ab C.R. Conder; H.H. Kitchener (1880). Map of western Palestine in 26 sheets / from surveys conducted for the Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund by C.R. Conder and H.H. Kitchener during the years 1872-1877. London: Ordnance Survey Office. Index sheet (27): Topographical and Geographical Terms in Arabic. OCLC 1166941168.
^ Siddiqi 1982, p. 335.
^ Siddiqi & Bastian 1985, p. 74.
^ Mann 2005, p. 139
^ Negev & Gibson 2005, p. 518

Sources

Mann, Joel F. (2005). An international glossary of place name elements. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-5040-8.
Negev, Avraham; Gibson, Shimon (2005). Archaeological encyclopedia of the Holy Land (4th, revised, illustrated ed.). Continuum International Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-8264-8571-7.
Siddiqi, Akhtar Husain; Bastian, Robert W. (1985). "Urban Place Names in Pakistan: A Reflection of Cultural Characteristics". Names. 29 (1): 65–84. OCLC 500207327.
Siddiqi, Jamal Mohd (1982). Significance of technical terms in place names—a case-study of Aligarh District. Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. Vol. 43. pp. 332–341. JSTOR 44141245.

External links

The intro to a 1950s gazeteer for 35,000 placenames of Arabian Peninsula and surrounding waters and islands contains a glossary of generic toponymic features

[map-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z ^aa ^ab C.R. Conder; H.H. Kitchener (1880). Map of western Palestine in 26 sheets / from surveys conducted for the Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund by C.R. Conder and H.H. Kitchener during the years 1872-1877. London: Ordnance Survey Office. Index sheet (27): Topographical and Geographical Terms in Arabic. OCLC 1166941168.

[FOOTNOTESiddiqi1982335-2] Siddiqi 1982, p. 335.

[FOOTNOTESiddiqiBastian198574-3] Siddiqi & Bastian 1985, p. 74.

[Mannp139-4] Mann 2005, p. 139

[Negevp518-5] Negev & Gibson 2005, p. 518

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

A

B

D

H

I

J

K

M

N

O

Q

R

U

W

See also

References

Sources

External links