Glossary of Arabic toponyms

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. Examples: El Aaiún

• All pages with titles containing Ain
• All pages with titles containing Aiun

Ab, Abu

Father; as a geographical term it signifies "producing", "containing", etc.;

• All pages with titles containing Ab
• All pages with titles containing Abu

Arak, pl.: Arkan

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

B

Bab, pl.: Buwab

Gate. Examples Bab el-Mandeb; see All pages with titles containing Bab

Baḥr

Arabic: بحر - Sea, large river. see All pages with titles containing Bahr

Beit

House. see All pages with titles containing Beit

Balad

Arabic: بلد (sometimes transliterated as Beled or Belled) - Town; see All pages with titles containing Balad

Bir

Arabic: بير, Well; see All pages with titles containing Bir

Birkeh

Artificial pool, tank; see All pages with titles containing Birkeh

Buḥayra, Baḥeirah

Arabic: بحيرة, Lake, lagoon; Diminutive of بَحْر (baḥr, “sea”).

Burj

Arabic: برج, Tower, castle; see All pages with titles containing Burj

C

Casbah

a kind of medina (old city) or fortress; cf. "Qasba"; see All pages with titles containing Casbah

D

Deir

wikt:دير monastery, convent, cloister (often ruins thereof); see All pages with titles containing Deir

Derb

wikt:درب road, pass;see All pages with titles containing Derb

Dhahr

wikt: ridge; All pages with titles containing Dhahr

H

Haram

Sacred place; see All pages with titles containing Haram

Haud

Reservoir, pond; see All pages with titles containing Haud

I

Ibn

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

J

Jama'a, Djama'a, Jami'a

place of gathering, community, mosque;

• All pages with titles containing Jama'a
• All pages with titles containing Jami'a

Jazira, Jezireh, Jeziret

Island;

• All pages with titles containing Jazira
• All pages with titles containing Jezireh
• All pages with titles containing Jeziret

Jebel, Djebel, Jebal, Jabal

mountain;

• All pages with titles containing Jabal
• All pages with titles containing Jebal
• All pages with titles containing Jebel
• All pages with titles containing Djebel

Jisr

bridge; see All pages with titles containing Jisr

Jubb

(Arabic: جُبّ ): well, pit; see All pages with titles containing Jubb

K

Kasbah, Kasba, Kasaba

See Qasba

• All pages with titles containing Kasba
• All pages with titles containing Kasbah

Khirbet, Khurbet, Khirbat, etc.

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

• All pages with titles containing Khirbet
• All pages with titles containing Khirbat
• All pages with titles containing Khurbet
• All pages with titles containing Kharab

Ksar, qsar, plural: ksour, qsour

Maghrebi Arabic; See "Qasr"

• All pages with titles containing Ksar
• All pages with titles containing Ksour
• All pages with titles containing Qsar

Kul'ah, Kal'at, Kalat, Kala, Kaleh

Arabic, Persian. See "Qalat"

• All pages with titles containing Kal'at
• All pages with titles containing Kalat
• All pages with titles containing Kaleh

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

• All pages with titles containing Mazar
• All pages with titles containing Al-Mazar
• All pages with titles containing Almazar

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

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

N

Nahr

wikt:نهر, river, with the particular meaning of perennial water course, as opposed to a seasonal one, which is called a wadi; see All pages with titles containing Nahr-e

O

Oued

In North African Arabic, same as Wadi; see All pages with titles containing Oued

Q

Qabr, Kabr, pl.:Qubūr

Arabic: قَبْر, pl. Arabic: قُبُور - tomb, grave

• All pages with titles containing Qabr
• All pages with titles containing Qubur

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

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

Casbah, Kasbah, Qaṣba, Qaṣbah, Qaṣaba

Arabic: القصبة, romanized: al-qaṣaba), a kind of medina (old city) or fortress

• All pages with titles containing Casbah
• All pages with titles containing Qasba
• All pages with titles containing Qasbah
• All pages with titles containing Qasaba
• All pages with titles containing Kasbah

Qaṣr, Kaṣr, al-Qaṣr, pl.:Quṣūr

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

R

Ras

wikt:رأس, head, cape, top, peak, etc., see All pages with titles containing Ras

Rujm, plural: rujum

wikt:رجم, mound, cairn, hill, spur, and also as "stone heap" or "tumulus".

• All pages with titles containing Rujm
• All pages with titles containing Rujum

S

souk, sūq, souq

wikt:سوق, "market"

• All pages with titles containing Souk
• All pages with titles containing Suk
• All pages with titles containing Souq

U

Umm

Mother; as a geographical term it signifies "producing", "containing", etc.; cf. "Mother of all"; see All pages with titles containing Umm

W

Wadi, Wad, North African Arabic: see Oued

Watercourse: stream (often intermittent stream), sometimes dry waterbed, valley

• All pages with titles containing Wadi
• All pages with titles containing Wady
• All pages with titles containing Wad
• All pages with titles containing Oued

See also

• Maghreb place name etymology
• Oikonyms in Western and South Asia
• Place names of Palestine
• List of Arabic place names

References

Sources

External links

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