Element in Arabic names denoting place of origin, tribal affiliation, or ancestry
In
Arabic names, a nisba (
Arabic: نسبة nisbah, "attribution"), also rendered as nesba or nesbat, is an adjective
surname indicating the person's place of origin, ancestral tribe, or ancestry, used at the end of the name and occasionally ending in the
suffix -iyy for males and -iyyah for females. Nisba, originally an Arabic word, has been passed to many other languages such as
Turkish,
Persian,
Bengali and
Urdu.
In Persian, Turkish, and Urdu usage, it is always pronounced and written as nisbat. In
Arabic usage, that pronunciation occurs when the word is uttered in its
construct state only.
The practice has been adopted in
Iranian names and South Asian Muslim names. The nisba to a tribe, profession or a town is the most common form of
surname in Arabic.
Original use
A nisba "relation" is a grammatical term referring to the suffixation of masculine -iyy, feminine -iyyah to a word to make it an adjective. As an example, the word ‘Arabiyy (عربي) means "Arab, related to Arabic, Arabian". Nisba forms are very common in Arabic names.
Use in onomastics
Traditional Arabic names are
patronymics (nasab), where the full name of the person is followed by the name of his father, usually linked by ibn or bin ('son'). Patronymics may be long as they may include all known forefathers. When a name is simplified to one or two ancestors, it may become confusing to distinguish from other similar names; in such cases, the nisba may be added as an additional specifier.
A nisba is usually prefixed by the definite article 'al-' and can take a number of forms:
Places
-
Al-Afghani, related to or from
Afghanistan
-
Al-Albani, related to or from
Albania e.g.
Muhammad Nasiruddin al-Albani.
-
Al-Almani, related to or from
Germany
-
Al-Amriki, related to or from
America
- al-Andalusi, related to or from the region of
Al-Andalus (modern day
Iberia) e.g.
Said al-Andalusi, Abū ʿAbdallāh Yaʿīsh ibn Ibrāhīm ibn Yūsuf ibn Simāk al-Andalusī al-Umawī
-
Al-Armani, related to or from
Greater Armenia or Armenians
-
al-Astarabadi – from
Astarabad (modern Gorgan), Persia
-
al-Baghdadi, related to or from the city of
Baghdad, e.g.
Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi,
Junayd al-Baghdadi.
- al-Bakkaniy - from the Royal Town of
Pekan in the state of
Pahang in
Malaysia, Mohammad Faeez Harith al-Bakkaniy
- al-Bantani - from the province of
Banten in
Indonesia e.g. Syeikh Abdur Rauf al-Bantani
- al-Basri - from
Basra, e.g.
Ibn Sa'd
-
al-Britani, related to or from the
United Kingdom
- al-Busnawi, related to or from
Bosnia, e.g.
Matrakçı Nasuh al-Busnawi.
- al-Buthuni - from the island of
Buton in
Indonesia e.g. Haji Abdul Ghaniu al-Buthuni
-
al-Daylami - from
Daylam, northern Iran
-
al-Dimashqi, related to or from the city of
Damascus e.g.
Al-Dimashqi (geographer),
Abu al-Fadl Ja'far ibn 'Ali al-Dimashqi,
Abu al-Fadl Ja'far ibn 'Ali al-Dimashqi.
- al-Falembani - from a capital city in the province of South Sumatera in Indonesia, e.g.
Abdul Samad Al-Falimbani
- al-Fansuri - from the town of Pancur in the
Central Tapanuli Regency in
North Sumatera Indonesia e.g. Hamzah al-Fansuri
- al-Farsi, related to or from the region of
Pars (Fars) or the country of
Persia; e.g.
Salman al-Farsi,
Saud Al-Farsi,
Abdulaziz Mohammed Majid Al-Farsi
- al-Fatani - from the province of
Pattani in
Thailand e.g.
Syeikh Daud al-Fatani
- al-Filfulani - from the state of
Penang in
Malaysia e.g. Syeikh Zubeir al-Filfulani
- al-Filisṭīnī, related to or from the region of
Palestine e.g.
Abu Qatada al-Filistini.
- al-Ghari - Literally means cave in Arabic. From the district of
Gua Musang (literally meaning Fox Cave in
Malay) in the state of
Kelantan in
Malaysia, e.g.
Zamihan al-Ghari
- al-Hadrami, related to or from the region of
Hadhramaut e.g.
Al-Ala al-Hadhrami,
Ahmed Al-Hadrami,
Imam al-Hadrami.
-
al-Hamadani, from
Hamadan, Persia
- al-Hijazi, related to or from the region of
Hijaz e.g.
Amal Hijazi,
Farouk Hijazi,
Abu'l Abbas al-Hijazi
- al-Himsi, related to or from the city of Homs e.g.
Qustaki al-Himsi,
Ibn Na'ima al-Himsi.
- al-Iraqi, related to or from the country of
Iraq e.g.
Fakhr-al-Din Iraqi,
Abdul Hadi al Iraqi,
Abu Ayoub al-Iraqi
-
al-Isfahani – from
Isfahan, Persia
-
al-Jannabi - from Jannaba port city,
Arrajan province of Persia
- al-Johori - from the state of
Johor in
Malaysia e.g. Ahmad bin Ya'kob al-Johori
-
al-Jurjani – from
Jurjan
-
al-Juzjani – from
Juzjan
- al-Kairouani, related to or from the city of
Kairouan in
Tunisia.
- al-Kalantani - from the state of
Kelantan in
Malaysia e.g. Syeikh Ismail bin Abdul Majid al-Kalantani, Syeikh Wan Ali bin Abdul Rahman al-Kalantani
- al-Kedahi - from the state of
Kedah in
Malaysia e.g. Syeikh Mahmud al-Kedahi
- al-Khwarizmi, related to or from the region of
Khwarazm, e.g.
Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi.
- al-Kuwaiti, related to or from the country of
Kuwait e.g.
Abu Omar al-Kuwaiti,
Abu Ahmed al-Kuwaiti,
Jandal al-Kuwaiti.
- al-Lubnani, related to or from the country of
Lebanon e.g.
Bilal al-Berjawi al-Lubnani.
- al-Lusunji - from
Losong, in
Kuala Terengganu,
Malaysia, e.g. Afif al-Lusunji
- al-Maghrebi, related to or from the region of
Maghreb e.g.
Ibn Yaḥyā al-Maghribī al-Samawʾal,
Mahmud Sulayman al-Maghribi,
Yusuf al-Maghribi.
- al-Mankatsi from the city of
Makassar in
Indonesia e.g. Syeikh Yusuf Tajul Khalwati bin Abdullah al-Mankatsi
-
al-Masri, related to or from
Egypt. e.g.
Taher al-Masri,
Abu Hamza al-Masri.
-
al-Nahawandi,
al-Nihawandi - from
Nahavand, Iran
- al-Najdi, related to or from the region of
Najd in
Saudi Arabia e.g. Qutaybah al-Najdi
-
al-Nisaburi,
al-Naysaburi - from
Nishapur, Iran
-
al-Qazwini – from
Qazvin
-
al-Quhistani - from
Quhistan
-
al-Qumisi,
al-Kumisi - from
Qumis, Iran
-
al-Razi – from
Ray, Iran
- al-Rûmani, from
Rome
- al-Shami, related to or from the region of
Levant or from the country of
Syria e.g.
Nasser al-Shami,
Husayn al-Shami,
Abu Anas al-Shami,
Abu Humam al-Shami.
-
al-Shirazi – from
Shiraz, Fars, Persia
- al-Sindhi, related to or from the region of
Sindh e.g.
Mohammad Hayyat al-Sindhi
- al-Sinkili - from the town of
Singkel in the province of
Aceh in
Indonesia
Abd al-Rauf ibn Ali al-Fansuri al-Sinkili
-
al-Sistani,
al-Sijistani,
al-Sajistani,
al-Sijzi – from
Sistan, Persia or
Greater Iran
-
al-Tabari – from
Tabaristan, Persia
- al-Tantawi - from
Tanta, Egypt, e.g.
Nasrudin Hasan Tantawi
-
al-Tiflisi, from
Tiflis (Tbilisi), Georgia
- al-Tihami, related to or from the region of
Tihamah in
Saudi Arabia.
-
al-Tikriti, related to or from the city of
Tikrit, e.g.
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti,
Abu Raita al-Takriti,
Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti
-
al-Tunisi, related to or from the country of
Tunisia e.g.
Abu Nasr al-Tunisi,
Abu Osama al-Tunisi,
Ali ibn Ziyad at-Tarabulsi al-Tunisi al-'Absi,
Nabilah al-Tunisi
- al-Turki, related to or from the country of Turkey e.g.
Abu Yusuf Al-Turki,
Azjur al-Turki,
Hassan Abdullah Hersi al-Turki,
Hussain Al-Turki
-
al-Tusi – from
Tus, Khurasan, Persia
- al-Yemeni, related to or from the country of Yemen e.g.
Abu Bara al Yemeni,
Haitham al-Yemeni,
Hussein al-Yemeni.
- al-Yrifani, related to or from
Yerevan
- al-Zayla'i, related to or from
Zeila region in
Horn of Africa e.g.
Al-Zaylaʽi
- ar-Raniri - from the town of
Rander, in
Surat district in the state of
Gujarat, India. e.g.
Nuruddin ar-Raniri
- as-Sambasi - from the regency of
Sambas in
Indonesia e.g. Muhammad Jabir as-Sambasi
- as-Sarawaki - from the state of
Sarawak in
Malaysia, e.g. Muhtar Suhaili As-Sarawaki
- as-Sembilani - from the state of
Negeri Sembilan in
Malaysia, e.g. Muhammad Musa al-Hafiz as-Sembilani
- as-Subanji - from the city of
Subang Jaya in the state of
Selangor in
Malaysia e.g. Kamarul Afiq as-Subanji
- as-Sumatrani - from the island of
Sumatera in
Indonesia e.g.
Syeikh Syamsuddin as-Sumatrani
- as-Sumbawi - from the island of
Sumbawa in
Indonesia Syeikh Muhammad Zainuddin as-Sumbawi
- at-Tranjanuwi - from the state of
Terengganu in
Malaysia e.g. Iskandar at-Tranjanuwi
-
al Bukhari - from
Bukhara, Uzbekistan
-
al-Darbandi,
Darbandi - from
Derbent, Persia
- El Djezairi, related to or from
Algeria e.g.
Abdelkader El Djezairi.
- Faridi, related to or from the region of
Greater Faridpur in Bangladesh e.g.
Abdul Haque Faridi
-
al-Khurasani – from Khurasan e.g.
Abu Muslim,
Abdallah ibn Tahir al-Khurasani
- Islamabadi, related to or from the city of
Chittagong (previously known as Islamabad) e.g.
Maniruzzaman Islamabadi
- Maneri - from
Maner Sharif, India, e.g.
Makhdoom Yahya Maneri.
-
al-Marwazi, from
Marw, Khurasan
-
al-Rûmi – from
Rûm (
The Balkans and
Asia Minor)
- Siraji, related to or from the district of
Sirajganj in Bangladesh e.g.
Ismail Hossain Siraji
Tribes, clans or families
People
Faith
Multiples
One can have more than one nisba, one can be related to a city, a clan, a profession and a person at the same time. Examples include:
The nisba is optional but is quite widespread.
Examples
See also
References