Mashrabaمشربة

Root · 63 in the Quran · 199 in 23 texts of the library

حمدone word and one root, denoting the contrary of blame, i.e. praise. (root hmd)

الحاء والميم والدال كلمة واحدة وأصل واحد يدل على خلاف الذم

Ibn Fāris, Maqāyīs al-lugha · English rendering

حمد

The family of the root

Patterns computed · our data

The words of ح م د that our sources attest: the root's letters in green, the added letters in gold.

27 words7 verbs3 verbal nouns4 participles1 place or instrument4 intensives and elatives4 other nouns3 plurals1 relative or abstract

  • حَمْدpraise, eulogy, or commendation
  • حَمِيدplace where one alights, sojourns, or abides, such as is praised, or …
  • أَحْمَدmore praiseworthy
  • مَحْمُودlaudable; commendable
  • مُحَمَّدِيّ—
The whole family8 groups, by pattern; tap a pattern to see what it does
Verbs7حَمِدَ · حَمَّدَ · أَحْمَدَ

The root as an action: the bare Form I, and the Forms made by adding letters before, inside or after the root.grammar →

Form I vowels: فَعِلَ يَفْعَلُ (i – a; the imperfect from Lane's “aor.”)

  • حَمِدَhe praised, eulogized, or commended, himLaneForm IQurʾān ×1library ×6Lane
  • حَمَّدَForm IILane
  • أَحْمَدَhe came to a state, or result, such as was praised, or commended, or approvedLaneForm IVLane
  • تَحَمَّدَhe affected, or made a show of, praiseLaneForm VLane
Verbal nouns3حَمْد · تَحْمِيد · حَمَد

The action itself, named as a noun (maṣdar).grammar →

  • حَمْدpraise, eulogy, or commendationLaneForm I · Lane: inf. n.Qurʾān ×43library ×40Lane
  • تَحْمِيدForm II · Lane: inf. n.Lane
  • حَمَدForm I · Lane: inf. n.Lane
Participles4مَحْمُود · مُحَمَّد · مُتَحَمِّد

The one who does it, and the one it is done to.grammar →

  • مَحْمُودlaudable; commendableautopassive, Form IQurʾān ×1library ×8LaneIbn Fāris
  • مُحَمَّدman praised much, or repeatedly, or time after timeLanepassive, Form IILaneIbn Fāris
  • مُتَحَمِّدactive, Form VLane
  • مُحْتَمِدday intensely, or vehemently, hotLaneactive, Form VIIILane
Place, time and instrument1مَحْمَدَة

Where or when it happens, and what it is done with: the m- nouns.grammar →

  • مَحْمَدَةcause of praise, commendation, or approvalLanenoun of place (with -a)library ×1Lane
Intensives, qualities and the elative4حَمِيد · أَحْمَد · حَمَّاد

The quality carried far, held as a trait, or compared.grammar →

  • حَمِيدplace where one alights, sojourns, or abides, such as is praised, or …Lanequality (faʿīl)Qurʾān ×17Lane
  • أَحْمَدmore praiseworthyautoelative or colour adjective (afʿal)library ×18Lane
  • حَمَّادman who praises things muchLaneintensive (faʿʿāl)Lane
  • حَمُودintensive (faʿūl)Lane
Other nouns4حَمَدَة · حُمَادَاك · حُمَدَة

Nouns on other patterns; their meaning is learned word by word.grammar →

  • حَمَدَةthe sound of the flaming, or blazing, of fireLanenounLaneIbn Fāris
  • حُمَادَاكnounLaneIbn Fāris
  • حُمَدَةnounLaneIbn Fāris
  • حَمَادpraise, and thanks, be to himLanenounLane
Plurals3مُحَمَّدِيِّيْن · حَامِدُون · مَحَامِد

Broken plurals rebuild the word on a new pattern; sound plurals add an ending.grammar →

  • مُحَمَّدِيِّيْنbroken plural of مُحَمَّدِيّlibrary ×4
  • حَامِدُونsound plural of حَامِدQurʾān ×1
  • مَحَامِدcauses of praise, commendation, or approvalfrom the singularbroken plural of مَحْمَدَةlibrary ×1Lane
Relative and abstract1مُحَمَّدِيّ

-iyy relates a thing to its source; -iyya makes an abstract noun.grammar →

  • مُحَمَّدِيّrelative adjective (-iyy)library ×10

Reference

Why this shape?What each of the 21 patterns does

What each pattern does. The pattern gives a tendency, not a rule: many words have drifted into meanings of their own.

The pattern machinePour the root into a pattern; see whether the word exists

Choose a pattern; the root's letters pour into it. Then see whether the word exists in our sources. The machine makes shapes; only usage makes words.

مَفْعَلَةح م دمَحْمَدَة
  • Attested: مَحْمَدَة, noun of place (with -a), “cause of praise, commendation, or approval” (library, Lane)

Place noun with -a. The place noun with the feminine -a. Sometimes it is only a variant of mafʿal; often it names the place where a thing is found in abundance (maʾsada, 'a place full of lions'). So maktab is the place of writing, and maktaba, where writings are gathered: a library, a bookshop. Our summary

But: maktaba is not in our classical dictionaries for k-t-b: Lane and al-Jawharī give maktab ('a school'), none gives maktaba. Its sense of 'library, bookshop' fits the pattern of abundance, but that is our reading of the pattern, not a classical entry. Many mafʿala words are single items of usage (maqbara 'cemetery'), which the grammarians call heard, not formed by rule.

The grammarians on this pattern (4)

  • ما يكون مفعلة لازمة لها الهاء والفتحة … وذلك إذا أردت أن تكثر الشيء بالمكان، وذلك قولك: أرض مسبعة، ومأسدة

    Chapter on what is mafʿala, with the -a and the a-vowel always: that is when you mean that a thing abounds in a place, as you say 'a land of many beasts of prey (masbaʿa), of many lions (maʾsada)'

    Sībawayh (d. c. 180/796), al-Kitāb, ed. ʿAbd al-Salām Hārūn, 3rd ed. (Cairo: al-Khānjī, 1988), 4:94 · OpenITI line 21027–21028 ↗ · on this site · OpenITI RELEASE v2025.1.9, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

  • و نحو المظنة و المقبرة فتحا و ضما ليس بقياس

    and words like maẓinna and maqbara (with a or u) are not by rule

    Ibn al-Ḥājib (d. 646/1249), al-Shāfiya fī ʿilm al-taṣrīf, ed. Ḥasan Aḥmad al-ʿUthmān (Mecca: al-Maktaba al-Makkiyya, 1995), 1:30 · OpenITI line 223 ↗ · on this site · OpenITI RELEASE v2025.1.9, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

  • “designate the place where the object signified by the noun from which they are formed, is found in large numbers or quantities” Wright, Grammar I, §247, p. 148 ↗ · on nouns of abundance, maf'ala · 3rd ed. (Cambridge, 1896) · public domain
  • “Nouns of time and place not unfrequently take the feminine form” Wright, Grammar I, §225, p. 128 ↗ · on maf'ala as a variant of maf'al · 3rd ed. (Cambridge, 1896) · public domain
About thisWhat “attested” means here; the sources

Attested means found in our data: the Quranic Arabic Corpus (lemmas, verb Forms, participles, verbal nouns, plurals), the library's words (automatic analysis), Lane's Lexicon (his headwords, the Forms he numbers, the verbal nouns and plurals he names) and Ibn Fāris's entry. Nothing is generated for this list. Meanings are Lane's first gloss in his entry, or else the analyser's gloss (“auto”). Vowelling follows the corpus, then Lane, then the analyser; verbs are given in the regular perfect. Lane's Lexicon thins out after qāf, and a few of his entries cover several roots at once: those roots show no Lane. The patterns, written with ف ع ل, are computed by us.

The dictionaries

English: AI translation
  • al-Khalīl · 170Ḥamd (الحمد) is the opposite of dhamm (blame).

    al-Khalīl b. Aḥmad (d. c. 170/786), Kitāb al-ʿAyn. The first Arabic dictionary, arranged by permutations of the root letters.

    Ḥamd (الحمد) is the opposite of dhamm (blame). One says: balawtuhu fa-aḥmadtuhu (بلوته فأحمدته), 'I tested him and found him praiseworthy,' i.e., I found him ḥamīd (حميد), praiseworthy in conduct. And ḥamadtuhu 'alā dhālika (حمدته على ذلك), 'I praised him for that,' from which comes al-maḥmadah (المحمدة). Ḥamādāka (حماداك) an taf'ala kadhā means '[your praise]'; and ḥamādāka an tanjuwa min fulānin ra'san bi-ra'sin (حماداك أن تنجو من فلان رأسا برأس) [means: the best you can hope for is to escape from so-and-so on even terms]. Al-taḥmīd (التحميد) is frequent praising of God with beautiful praises (maḥāmid). Aḥmada al-rajulu (أحمد الرجل) means he performed a deed for which he is praised. Al-A'shā said: "And I was praised (aḥmadtu) when, yesterday, I released a small band of camels with young ones, and the stragglers keep catching up." Al-ḥamd (الحمد) is al-thanā' (الثناء), praise. Five prophets each have two names: Aḥmad and Muḥammad, God bless him and his family and grant him peace; 'Īsā and al-Masīḥ; Dhū al-Kifl and Ilyās; Isrā'īl and Ya'qūb; and Yūnus and Dhū al-Nūn, peace be upon them and upon the rest of His prophets. Their saying aḥmadu ilayka Allāha (أحمد إليك الله) means 'together with you' (ma'aka); it is said this is like your saying ashkū ilayka (أشكو إليك), 'I complain to you.' And his saying innī aḥmadu ilaykum ghasla al-iḥlīli (إني أحمد إليكم غسل الإحليل) means 'I am pleased for you with that [practice].'

    AI translation of the Arabic below

    الحمد: نقيض الذم، يقال: بلوته فأحمدته أي وجدته حميدا محمود الفعال. وحمدته على ذلك، ومنه المحمدة. وحماداك أن تفعل كذا أي: [حمدك] «4» ، وحماداك أن تنجو من فلان رأسا برأس. والتحميد: كثرة حمد الله بحسن المحامد. وأحمد الرجل: أي: فعل فعلا يحمد عليه، قال الأعشى: وأحمدت إذ نجيت بالأمس صرمة ... لها غددات واللواحق تلحق «5» والحمد: الثناء. وخمسة من الأنبياء ذوو «1» اسمين: أحمد ومحمد صلى الله عليه وعلى آله وسلم- وعيسى والمسيح، وذو الكفل وإلياس، وإسرائيل ويعقوب، ويونس وذو النون عليهم السلام وعلى غيرهم من أنبيائه- «2» . وقولهم: أحمد إليك الله أي: معك، ويقال: إنما هو كقولك: أشكو إليك. وقوله: إني أحمد إليكم غسل الإحليل، أي أرضى لكم ذلك.

    al-Khalīl · 170 · OpenITIvowelled page on al-Maktaba al-Shāmila (print 3, p. 188) ↗
  • al-Jawharī · 393Ḥamd (الحمد) is the opposite of dhamm (blame).

    al-Jawharī (d. c. 393/1003), al-Ṣiḥāḥ. Admits only usage he judged sound.

    Ḥamd (الحمد) is the opposite of dhamm (blame). You say: ḥamadtu al-rajula aḥmaduhu ḥamdan wa-maḥmadatan (حمدت الرجل أحمده حمدا ومحمدة), 'I praised the man, I praise him — praise (ḥamd) and (maḥmadah),' so he is ḥamīd (حميد) and maḥmūd (محمود). And al-tam... [entry continues]

    AI translation of the Arabic below

    الحمد: نقيض الذم. تقول: حمدت الرجل أحمده حمدا ومحمدة، فهو حميد ومحمود. والتم

    al-Jawharī · 393 · OpenITIvowelled page on al-Maktaba al-Shāmila (print 2, p. 466) ↗
  • Ibn Fāris · 395Ḥā', mīm, and dāl (حمد) is one word with a single root-meaning indicating the opposite of dhamm (ذم, blame).

    Ibn Fāris (d. 395/1004), Maqāyīs al-Lugha. Seeks each root's original sense (aṣl).

    Ḥā', mīm, and dāl (حمد) is one word with a single root-meaning indicating the opposite of dhamm (ذم, blame). One says ḥamadtu fulānan aḥmaduhu (حمدت فلانا أحمده), 'I praised so-and-so, I praise him,' and a man is maḥmūd (محمود) and muḥammad (محمد) when his praiseworthy, non-blameworthy qualities are numerous. Al-A'shā said, praising al-Nu'mān ibn al-Mundhir — and it is said that he was preferred by this very verse over everyone else who praised him on that occasion: "To you — may cursing never touch you — was directed her weariness [i.e., the she-camel's, from the long journey] — to the glorious one, the excellent-branched, the generous, the muḥammad (much-praised)." For the reason we have mentioned, our Prophet, God bless him and grant him peace, was named Muḥammad (محمد). The Arabs say ḥamādāka (حماداك) an taf'ala kadhā, meaning 'your utmost/limit and your praiseworthy, non-blameworthy deed.' One says aḥmadtu fulānan (أحمدت فلانا) if you found him praiseworthy, just as one says abkhaltuhu (أبخلته) if you found him miserly, and a'jaztuhu (أعجزته) if you found him incapable — this being a consistent pattern (qiyās muṭṭarid) running through all such descriptive terms — and ahijtu al-makāna (أهيجت المكان) if you found the place in a parched state (hā'ij), its plants having dried up. He [a poet] said: "And I found al-Khalṣā' parched, from Dhāt al-Barq..." If someone asks about their expression for the sound of a fire's blazing, al-ḥamdah (الحمدة), the answer is: this does not belong to this root, for it is a metathesized form (maqlūb), its original being ḥadamah (حدمة), which has been mentioned in its [proper] place.

    AI translation of the Arabic below

    الحاء والميم والدال كلمة واحدة وأصل واحد يدل على خلاف الذم يقال حمدت فلانا أحمده ورجل محمود ومحمد إذا كثرت خصاله المحمودة غير المذمومة قال الأعشى يمدح النعمان بن المنذر ويقال إنه فضله بكلمته هذه على سائر من مدحه يومئذ : — إليك ابيت اللعن كان كلالها … إلى الماجد الفرع الجواد المحمد … ولهذا الذي ذكرناه سمي نبينا محمدا صلى الله عليه وسلم ويقول العرب حماداك أن تفعل كذا أي غايتك وفعلك المحمود منك غير المذموم ويقال أحمدت فلانا إذا وجدته محمودا كما يقال أبخلته إذا وجدته بخيلا وأعجزته إذا وجدته عاجزا وهذا قياس مطرد في سائر الصفات وأهيجت المكان إذا وجدته هائجا قد يبس نباته قال : — وأهيج الخلصاء من ذات البرق … فإن سأل سائل عن قولهم في صوت التهاب النار الحمدة قيل له هذا ليس من الباب لأنه من المقلوب وأصله حدمة وقد ذكرت في موضعها

    Ibn Fāris · 395 · OpenITIvowelled page on al-Maktaba al-Shāmila (print 2, p. 100) ↗
  • al-Rāghib · 502Al-ḥamdu li-Llāhi ta'ālā (الحمد لله تعالى) is praise of Him for [His] excellence (faḍīlah);

    al-Rāghib al-Iṣfahānī (d. c. 502/1108), al-Mufradāt. Quranic vocabulary, from core sense to Quranic usage.

    Al-ḥamdu li-Llāhi ta'ālā (الحمد لله تعالى) is praise of Him for [His] excellence (faḍīlah); it is more specific than madḥ (مدح, commendation) and more general than shukr (شكر, gratitude). For madḥ is said of what proceeds from a person by his own choice, and also of what is said of and about him by way of compulsion/predetermination (taskhīr) — a person may be commended (yumdaḥ) for the tallness of his stature and comeliness of his face, just as he is commended for the generosity of his wealth, his openhandedness, and his knowledge; ḥamd occurs in the second case but not the first. Shukr is said only in response to a favor (ni'mah); so every shukr is ḥamd, but not every ḥamd is shukr, and every ḥamd is madḥ, but not every madḥ is ḥamd. One says: fulānun maḥmūd (فلان محمود), 'so-and-so is praised,' when he has been praised; and muḥammad (محمد), when his praiseworthy qualities are numerous; and muḥammad (محمد), when he is found to be praised. His saying, Exalted is He: "innahu ḥamīdun majīd" (إنه حميد مجيد) [Hūd 11:73] may validly mean 'praised' (maḥmūd) or 'one who praises' (ḥāmid). Ḥamādāka (حماداك) an taf'ala kadhā means 'your praiseworthy limit.' His saying, Exalted is He: "wa-mubashshiran bi-rasūlin ya'tī min ba'dī ismuhu Aḥmad" — "and bringing good tidings of a messenger to come after me whose name is Aḥmad (أحمد)" [al-Ṣaff 61:6] — Aḥmad here points to the Prophet, God bless him and grant him peace, both by name and by attribute, indicating that just as his name was found to be Aḥmad, so he would be found praised (maḥmūd) in his character and states; the term Aḥmad was singled out in what 'Īsā, peace be upon him, foretold, to indicate that he is more praiseworthy (aḥmad) than himself and than those before him. His saying, Exalted is He: "Muḥammadun rasūlu Llāh" (محمد رسول الله) [al-Fatḥ 48:29] — Muḥammad here, though in one respect a proper name for him, nonetheless carries an indication of describing him by that quality and specifying him with its meaning, as was shown earlier regarding His saying: "innā nubashshiruka bi-ghulāmin ismuhu Yaḥyā" — "We give you good tidings of a boy named Yaḥyā (يحيى)" [Maryam 19:7] — that it carries the sense of ḥayāh (life), as explained in its [proper] place, God willing.

    AI translation of the Arabic below

    الحمد لله تعالى: الثناء عليه بالفضيلة، وهو أخص من المدح وأعم من الشكر، فإن المدح يقال فيما يكون من الإنسان باختياره، ومما يقال منه وفيه بالتسخير، فقد يمدح الإنسان بطول قامته وصباحة وجهه، كما يمدح ببذل ماله وسخائه وعلمه، والحمد يكون في الثاني دون الأول، والشكر لا يقال إلا في مقابلة نعمة، فكل شكر حمد، وليس كل حمد شكرا، وكل حمد مدح وليس كل مدح حمدا، ويقال: فلان محمود: إذا حمد، ومحمد: إذا كثرت خصاله المحمودة، ومحمد: إذا وجد محمودا «2» ، وقوله عز وجل: إنه حميد مجيد [هود/ 73] ، يصح أن يكون في معنى المحمود، وأن يكون في معنى الحامد، وحماداك أن تفعل كذا «3» ، أي: غايتك المحمودة، وقوله عز وجل: ومبشرا برسول يأتي من بعدي اسمه أحمد [الصف/ 6] ، فأحمد إشارة إلى النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم باسمه وفعله، تنبيها أنه كما وجد اسمه أحمد يوجد وهو محمود في أخلاقه وأحواله، وخص لفظة أحمد فيما بشر به عيسى صلى الله عليه وسلم تنبيها أنه أحمد منه ومن الذين قبله، وقوله تعالى: محمد رسول الله [الفتح/ 29] ، فمحمد هاهنا وإن كان من وجه اسما له علما- ففيه إشارة إلى وصفه بذلك وتخصيصه بمعناه كما مضى ذلك في قوله تعالى: إنا نبشرك بغلام اسمه يحيى [مريم/ 7] ، أنه على معنى الحياة كما بين في بابه «4» إن شاء الله.

    al-Rāghib · 502 · OpenITIvowelled page on al-Maktaba al-Shāmila (print 1, p. 256) ↗
  • Lisān · 711Ḥamd (الحمد) is the opposite of dhamm (blame);

    Ibn Manẓūr (d. 711/1311), Lisān al-ʿArab. The great compendium of the earlier dictionaries (entry shortened).

    Ḥamd (الحمد) is the opposite of dhamm (blame); one says ḥamadtuhu 'alā fi'lihi (حمدته على فعله), 'I praised him for his deed,' from which comes al-maḥmadah (المحمدة), the opposite of al-madhammah (المذمة). In the Noble Revelation: "al-ḥamdu li-Llāhi rabbi al-'ālamīn" (الحمد لله رب العالمين) [Q 1:2]. As for the Arabs' saying badā'tu bi-l-ḥamdi li-Llāh (بدأت بالحمد لله), 'I began with al-ḥamdu li-Llāh,' this is by way of quotation, meaning 'I began by saying: al-ḥamdu li-Llāhi rabbi al-'ālamīn.' It has been read as al-ḥamdu li-Llāhi (nominative, as the underlying maṣdar-subject), and as al-ḥamda li-Llāhi and al-ḥamdi li-Llāhi by assimilation (ittibā'). Al-Farrā' said: the [canonical] reciters agree on the nominative al-ḥamdu li-Llāhi; among the Bedouin, some say al-ḥamda li-Llāhi with the dāl in the accusative, some say al-ḥamdi li-Llāhi with the dāl in the genitive, and some say al-ḥamdu li-Llāhi with both dāl and lām in the nominative. It is related from Ibn 'Abbās that he said the nominative is the [correct] reading, being the transmitted one and the preferred choice in Arabic. The grammarians said: those Bedouin who put al-ḥamda li-Llāhi in the accusative do so on the basis of the maṣdar, as though saying aḥmadu al-ḥamda li-Llāhi. As for whoever reads al-ḥamdi li-Llāhi, al-Farrā' said: this expression became so frequent on tongues that it came to be like a single word, so the ḍammah followed by a kasrah became burdensome, and so they assimilated the vowel to the following kasrah. Al-Zajjāj said: this dialectal form should not be heeded or given weight, and likewise whoever reads al-ḥamdi li-Llāhi outside the Qur'an is using a poor dialectal form. Tha'lab said: ḥamd occurs whether or not a favor has been rendered, whereas shukr (شكر) occurs only in return for a favor rendered — this will be discussed [further]. Al-Liḥyānī said: al-ḥamd is [the same as] al-shukr, making no distinction between them. Al-Akhfash [said]: al-ḥamdu li-Llāh means al-shukru li-Llāh; he said: and al-ḥamdu li-Llāh is thanā' (praise). Al-Azharī said: shukr can only be praise for a favor or benefaction rendered, whereas ḥamd may be gratitude for a good deed and may also be the initial praise bestowed on a man; thus ḥamd Allāh is praise of Him, and it may be gratitude for His favors which encompass all; and ḥamd is more general than shukr. One says ḥamadahu (حمده) — ḥamdan, maḥmadan, maḥmadatan, maḥmadan, and maḥmadatan (rare) — 'he praised him,' so he is maḥmūd (محمود) and ḥamīd (حميد), the feminine being ḥamīdah (حميدة); they added the tā' marbūṭah to it even though in meaning it is a passive participle (maf'ūl), likening it to rashīdah (رشيدة); they likened what is in the sense of a passive participle to what is in the sense of an active participle (fā'il) due to the closeness of the two meanings. Al-ḥamīd (الحميد) is one of the attributes of God, Exalted and Sanctified, meaning 'the One who is praised (maḥmūd) in every state,' and is one of the Beautiful Names, of the pattern fa'īl in the sense of maḥmūd. Muḥammad ibn al-Mukarram [the author] said: this term, in the original sources, is of the pattern fa'īl in the sense of a passive participle, but the term maf'ūl in this context is repugnant to the nature of faith [when applied to God], so I departed from it and said 'ḥamīd in the sense of maḥmūd,' though the meaning is one and the same — but excessive precision in [grammatical] terminology here does not accord with the pure transcendence and sanctification due to God, Mighty and Exalted. Al-ḥamd and al-shukr are close in meaning, and al-ḥamd is the more general of the two, because you praise (taḥmadu) the... [entry continues]

    AI translation of the Arabic below

    الحمد: نقيض الذم؛ ويقال: حمدته على فعله، ومنه المحمدة خلاف المذمة. وفي التنزيل العزيز: الحمد لله رب العالمين* . وأما قول العرب: بدأت بالحمد لله، فإنما هو على الحكاية أي بدأت بقول: الحمد لله رب العالمين؛ وقد قرئ الحمد لله على المصدر، والحمد لله على الإتباع، والحمد لله على الإتباع؛ قال الفراء: اجتمع القراء على رفع الحمد لله، فأما أهل البدو فمنهم من يقول الحمد لله، بنصب الدال، ومنهم من يقول الحمد لله، بخفض الدال، ومنهم من يقول الحمد لله، فيرفع الدال واللام؛ وروي عن ابن العباس أنه قال: الرفع هو القراءة لأنه المأثور، وهو الاختيار في العربية؛ وقال النحويون: من نصب من الأعراب الحمد لله فعلى المصدر أحمد الحمد لله، وأما من قرأ الحمد لله فإن الفراء قال: هذه كلمة كثرت على الألسن حتى صارت كالاسم الواحد، فثقل عليهم ضمة بعدها كسرة فأتبعوا الكسرة للكسرة؛ قال وقال الزجاج: لا يلتفت إلى هذه اللغة ولا يعبأ بها، وكذلك من قرأ الحمد لله في غير القرآن، فهي لغة رديئة؛ قال ثعلب: الحمد يكون عن يد وعن غير يد، والشكر لا يكون إلا عن يد وسيأتي ذكره؛ وقال اللحياني: الحمد الشكر فلم يفرق بينهما. الأخفش: الحمد لله الشكر لله، قال: والحمد لله الثناء. قال الأزهري: الشكر لا يكون إلا ثناء ليد أوليتها، والحمد قد يكون شكرا للصنيعة ويكون ابتداء للثناء على الرجل، فحمد الله الثناء عليه ويكون شكرا لنعمه التي شملت الكل، والحمد أعم من الشكر. وقد حمده حمدا ومحمدا ومحمدة ومحمدا ومحمدة، نادر، فهو محمود وحميد والأنثى حميدة، أدخلوا فيها الهاء وإن كان في المعنى مفعولا تشبيها لها برشيدة، شبهوا ما هو في معنى مفعول بما هو بمعنى فاعل لتقارب المعنيين. والحميد: من صفات الله تعالى وتقدس بمعنى المحمود على كل حال، وهو من الأسماء الحسنى فعيل بمعنى محمود؛ قال محمد بن المكرم: هذه اللفظة في الأصول فعيل بمعنى مفعول ولفظة مفعول في هذا المكان ينبو عنها طبع الإيمان، فعدلت عنها وقلت حميد بمعنى محمود، وإن كان المعنى واحدا، لكن التفاصح في التفعيل هنا لا يطابق محض التنزيه والتقديس لله عز وجل؛ والحمد والشكر متقاربان والحمد أعمهما لأنك تحمد الإنسان على صفاته الذاتية وعلى عطائه ولا تشكره على صفاته؛ ومنه الحديث: الحمد رأس الشكر؛ ما شكر الله عبد لا يحمده ، كما أن كلمة الإخلاص رأس الإيمان، وإنما كان رأس الشكر لأن فيه إظهار النعمة والإشادة بها، ولأنه أعم منه، فهو شكر وزيادة. وفي حديث الدعاء: سبحانك اللهم وبحمدك أي وبحمدك أبتدئ، وقيل: وبحمدك سبحت، وقد تحذف الواو وتكون الواو للتسبب أو للملابسة أي التسبيح مسبب بالحمد أو ملابس له. ورجل حمدة كثير الحمد، ورجل حماد مثله. ويقال: فلان يتحمد الناس بجوده أي يريهم أنه محمود. ومن أمثالهم: من أنفق ماله على نفسه فلا يتحمد به إلى الناس؛ المعنى أنه لا يحمد على إحسانه إلى نفسه، إنما يحمد على إحسانه إلى الناس؛ وحمده وحمده وأحمده: وجده محمودا؛ يقال: أتينا فلانا فأحمدناه وأذممناه أي وجدناه محمودا أو مذموما. ويقال: أتيت موضع كذا فأحمدته أي صادفته محمودا موافقا، وذلك إذا رضيت سكناه أو مرعاه. وأحمد الأرض: صادفها حميدة، فهذه اللغة الفصيحة، وقد يقال حمدها. وقال بعضهم: أحمد الرجل إذا رضي فعله ومذهبه ولم ينشره. سيبويه: حمده جزاه وقضى حقه، وأحمده استبان أنه مستحق للحمد. ابن الأعرابي: رجل حمد وامرأة حمد وحمدة محمودان ومنزل حمد؛ وأنشد: وكانت من الزوجات يؤمن غيبها، ... وترتاد فيها العين منتجعا حمدا ومنزلة حمد؛ عن اللحياني. وأحمد الرجل: فعل ما يحمد عليه. وأحمد الرجل: صار أمره إلى الحمد. وأحمدته: وجدته محمودا؛ قال الأعشى: وأحمدت إذ نجيت بالأمس صرمة، ... لها غددات واللواحق تلحق وأحمد أمره: صار عنده محمودا. وطعام ليست محمدة «2». أي لا يحمد. والتحميد: حمدك الله عز وجل، مرة بعد مرة. الأزهري: التحميد كثرة حمد الله سبحانه بالمحامد الحسنة، والتحميد أبلغ من الحمد. وإنه لحماد لله، ومحمد هذا الاسم منه كأنه حمد مرة بعد أخرى. وأحمد إليك الله: أشكره عندك؛ وقوله: طافت به فتحامدت ركبانه أي حمد بعضهم عند بعض. الأزهري: وقول العرب أحمد إليك الله أي أحمد معك الله؛ وقال غيره: أشكر إليك أياديه ونعمه؛ وقال بعضهم: أشكر إليك نعمه وأحدثك بها. هل تحمد لهذا الأمر أي ترضاه؟ قال الخليل: معنى قولهم في الكتب أحمد إليك الله أي أحمد معك الله؛ كقول الشاعر: ولوحي ذراعين في بركة، ... إلى جؤجؤ رهل المنكب يريد مع بركة إلى جؤجؤ أي مع جؤجؤ. وفي كتابه، عليه السلام: أما بعد فإني أحمد إليك الله أي أحمده معك فأقام إلى مقام مع؛ وقيل: معناه أحمد إليك نعمة الله عز وجل، بتحديثك إياها. وفي الحديث: لواء الحمد بيدي يوم القيامة ؛ يريد انفراده بالحمد يوم القيامة وشهرته به على رؤوس الخلق، والعرب تضع اللواء في موضع الشهرة؛ ومنه الحديث: وابعثه …

    Lisān · 711 · OpenITIvowelled page on al-Maktaba al-Shāmila (print 3, p. 155) ↗
  • Lane · 1876English, synthesising the classical dictionaries.

    E. W. Lane (d. 1876), An Arabic-English Lexicon. English, synthesising the classical dictionaries.

    حَمِدَهُ

    1. حَمِدَهُ, aor. حَمَدَ , inf. n. حَمْدٌ (S, L, Msb, K) and مَحْمَدٌ and مَحْمِدٌ (L, K) and مَحْمَدَةٌ (S, L, K) and مَحْمِدَةٌ; (L, K, and so in a copy of the S;) the last of these inf. ns. [and the third also] extr.; (L;) or the last is an inf. n. and the last but one signifies “ a praiseworthy quality, ” or “ a quality for which one is praised; ” (ElFenáree, MF;) or the last may be a simple subst.; (Har p. 392;) He praised, eulogized, or commended, him; spoke well of him; mentioned him with approbation; (Akh, S, L, Msb;) عَلَى كَذَا for such a thing; (L, Msb;) contr. of ذَمَّهُ: (S, L:) accord. to IAmb, formed by transposition from مَدَحَ: (marginal note in a copy of the MS:) but it is of less common application than the latter verb; (Msb in art. مدح;) signifying he praised him, &c., for something depending on his (the latter's) own will: thus, the describing a pearl as clear is not حَمْدٌ, but it is مَدْحٌ: (Kull p. 150:) or i. q. شَكَرَهُ: (Lh, K:) but it differs [sometimes] from this; (Msb;) for شُكْرٌ is only on account of favour received; whereas حَمْدٌ is sometimes because of favour received, (Th, Az, Msb,) and sometimes from other causes; (Th;) [and thus] the latter is of more common application than the former; (S;) therefore you do not say, شَكَرْتُهُ عَلَى شَجَاعَتِهِ; but you say, حَمِدْتُهُ على شجاعته I praised him, &c., for his courage. (Msb.) حمد also implies admiration: and it implies the magnifying, or honouring, of the object thereof; and lowliness, humility, or submissiveness, in the person who offers it; as in the saying of the afflicted, الحَمْدُ لِلّٰهِ Praise be to God; since in this case there is no worldly blessing, favour, or benefit. (Msb.) This last phrase is generally pronounced as it is written above: but some of the Arabs are related to have pronounced it الحَمْدَ لِلّٰهِ, putting the former word in the accus. case as the absolute complement of the verb أَحْمَدُ understood: and others, الحَمْدِلِلّٰهِ; assimilating the final vowel of the former word to the vowel immediately following it: and others, الحَمْدُ لُلّٰهِ; assimilating the first vowel in للّٰه to the vowel immediately preceding it: Zj, however, disapproves of the latter two modes of pronouncing it: some of them also said, بَدَأْتُ بِالحَمْدُ لِلّٰهِ, meaning I began with the saying Praise be to God. (L.) [See also حَمْدٌ below.] You say, أَحْمَدُ إِلَيْكَ ٱللّٰهَ I praise God (Az, A, * L, K) to thee, or in thy presence: (L:) or with thee: (Kh, Az:) or I praise to thee God's benefits, and his blessings, or favours; or I praise to thee God's blessings, or favours, and discourse to thee of them. (L.) And حَمِدَ لَهُ أَمْرًا (tropical:) He approved of a thing for him. (L, K. *) And حَمِدَ إِلَيْهِ أَمْرًا (tropical:) He approved of a thing for him, and commanded, or enjoined, him to do it. (L.) And جاوَرْتُهُ فَمَا حَمِدْتُ جِوَارَهُ (tropical:) [I became his neighbour, and did not approve of being so]. (A.) See also 4. Also, (aor. and inf. n. as above in the beginning of this art., K,) He recompensed, or requited, him: he gave him, or paid him, his due. (L, K.) حَمِدَ عَلَيْهِ, aor. حَمَدَ , (L, K, *) inf. n. حَمَدٌ, (TA,) He was angry with him. (L, K.)

    حمّد

    2. حمّد, inf. n. تَحْمِيدٌ, has a more intensive signification than حَمدَ; (S;) [He declared the praises of God: or] he praised God much, with good forms of praise (بِالمَحَامِدِ الحَسَنَةِ): (T, L:) or repeatedly; or time after time. (L, K.) تحميد [used as a simple subst.] has a pl., namely, تَحَامِيدُ. (A.) [See an ex. voce خَاتَمٌ, in the latter part of the paragraph.]

    احمد

    4. احمد He (a man, S) came to a state, or result, such as was praised, or commended, or approved; properly, his affair, or case, came to such a state or result: (S, L, K:) or (so in the K, but in the L “ and ”) he did, or said, that for which he should be praised, or commended; or that which was praiseworthy, or commendable; (A, L, K; *) contr. of أَذَمَّ. (A.) And احمد أَمْرُهُ (assumed tropical:) His affair, or case, was, or became, praiseworthy, or approvable, in his estimation: (K:) or احمد أَمْرَهُ (as in the L) he esteemed his affair, or case, praiseworthy, or approvable. (L [agreeably with what next follows].) احمدهُ He found him (a man, A, L) [or it] to be such as is praised, commended, or approved; or praiseworthy, commendable, or approvable; (S, A, L, Msb;) contr. of أَذَمَّهُ: (TA in art. ذم:) he made it manifest that he was worthy of praise, eulogy, commendation, or approbation: (L:) he approved of his action, and his course of conduct, or his tenet or tenets, and did not expose it, or them, to others. (K.) And أَحْمَدْتُ صَنِيعَهُ (tropical:) [I found his action to be praiseworthy, or commendable, or approvable]. (A.) And احمد الأَرْضَ (tropical:) He approved the land as a dwelling-place: (A:) or he found the land to be such as is praised, commended, or approved; as also حَمِدَهَا; (L, K;) but the former verb is the more chaste in this sense. (L.) And احمد مَوْضِعًا (tropical:) He found a place to be such as is praised, commended, or approved, and convenient, or suitable, so that he approved it as a dwelling-place, or for its pasture. (S, L.)

    تحمّد

    5. تحمّد He affected, or made a show of, (تَكَلَّفَ,) praise. (A.) You say, وَجَدْتُهُ مُتَحَمِّدًا مُتَشَكِّرًا [I found him affecting, or making a show of, praise and thanks]. (A.) He praised himself. (KL.) [Golius assigns this meaning to احتمد, as on the authority of the KL; but it is not assigned to this verb in my copy of the KL.] فُلَانٌ يَتَحَمَّدُ النّاس [app. a slight mistranscription, for لِلنَّاسِ, i. q. إِلَى النَّاسِ, as in an ex. in the next sentence but one,] Such a one pretends to men, or shows them, that he is praiseworthy, بِجُودِهِ for his liberality. (L.) تحمّد عَلَيْهِ He reproached him for a favour, or benefit, which he (the former) had bestowed, or conferred; or recounted his gifts, or actions, to him; syn. اِمْتَنَّ. (S, L, K.) One says, مَنْ أَنْفَقَ مَالَهُ عَلَى نَفْسِهِ فَلَا يَتَحَمَّدْ بِهِ عَلَى النَّاسِ [Whoso expends his property upon himself, he shall not reproach men therewith as for favours, or benefits, bestowed]: (S, A:) or فلا يتحمّد بِه إِلَى النَّاسِ [he shall not pretend to men that he is praiseworthy on account of it]: a prov., meaning that a man is not praised for his beneficence to himself, but for his beneficence to others. (L.)

    تحامدوا

    6. تحامدوا (tropical:) [They praised, or commended, a thing, one to another]. You say, الرُّعَآءُ يَتَحَامَدُونَ الكَلَأَ (tropical:) [The pastors praise, or commend, one to another, the herbage]. (A.)

    احتمد

    8. احتمد: see 5. Said of heat, [It burned, or burned fiercely; or was, or became, vehement:] formed by transposition from احتدم. (S.)

    اِسْتَحْمِدِ ٱللّٰهَ إِلَى خَلْقِهِ بِإِحْسَانِهِ إِلَيْهِمْ وإِنْعَامِهِ

    10. اِسْتَحْمِدِ ٱللّٰهَ إِلَى خَلْقِهِ بِإِحْسَانِهِ إِلَيْهِمْ وإِنْعَامِهِ عَلَيْهِمْ [so I find it written, as though meaning Demand thou, of his creatures, the praising of God, by reason of his beneficence to them, and his bounty to them: but I think that we should read اِسْتَحْمَدَ ٱللّٰهُ, and that the meaning is, God hath demanded praise of his creatures by his beneficence, &c.]. (A.)

    حَمْدٌ

    حَمْدٌ Praise, eulogy, or commendation; &c. (S, &c. [For further explanations of this word, and respecting the phrase الحَمْدُ لِلّٰهِ and its variations, see 1: and see also شَكَرَ.]) سُبْحَانَكَ ٱللّٰهُمَّ وَبِحَمْدِكَ, said by a person praying, means [I extol, or celebrate, or declare, thy remoteness, or freedom, from every impurity, or imperfection, &c., O God, (see art. سبح,)] and I begin with praising Thee; أَبْتَدِئُ being understood: (Az, L, Msb:) or by بحمدك is meant الحَمْدُ لَكَ praise be to Thee: and nearly the same is said in explanation of the phrase in the Kur [ii. 28], نُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدِكَ, that by بحمدك is meant حَامِدِينَ لَكَ: [see, again, art. سبح:] or by the expression وبحمدك is meant, accord. to Aboo-'Othmán ElMázinee, and by praising Thee I extol thy remoteness, or freedom, from every impurity, &c.; سَبَّحْتُكَ being understood: or the و is redundant, as it is in the phrase, رَبَّنَاوَلَكَ الحَمْدُ [O our Lord, praise be to Thee], in which the و is sometimes omitted: or, accord. to Aboo-'Amr Ibn-El-'Alà, the و is corroborative, as in the phrase, وَهُوَ لَكَ, for هُوَ لَكَ. (Msb.) لِوَآءُ الحَمْدِ بِيَدِى يَوْمَ القِيَامَةِ [The standard of praise shall be in my hand on the day of resurrection (said by Mohammad)] means that he shall be singularly distinguished by praise, or praising, on that day. (L.) See حَمَادِ: and حُمَادَاكَ. See also حَمِيدٌ. It is also said to signify The young one of the kind of bird called قَطًا: so in the prov., A young one of a katà desires to make the hares its prey: applied to a weak man who desires to insnare a strong one. (Meyd, TA.) See also what next follows.

    حَمَدَةٌ

    حَمَدَةٌ The sound of the flaming, or blazing, of fire; (S, K;) as also حَدَمَةٌ [from which it is formed by transposition: see 8: and حَمْدٌ app. signifies the same: see حَدْمٌ]. (TA.)

    حُمَدَةٌ

    حُمَدَةٌ: see حَمَّادٌ.

    حَمَادِ لَهُ

    حَمَادِ لَهُ Praise, and thanks, be to him: (S, L, K:) i. e., to such a one: (S, L:) contr. of جَمَادِ لَهُ [q. v.]. (S and A in art. جمد.) حَمَادِ is indecl., with kesr for its termination, because it deviates from its original, which is the inf. n. [الحَمْدُ]: (S, L:) [i. e.,] it is [a quasi-inf. n., (see اِسْمُ مَصْدَرٍ in art. صدر,) being] a proper name for المَحْمَدَةُ [as syn. with الحَمْدُ]. (Sharh Shudhoor edh-Dhahab.)

    حَمُودٌ

    حَمُودٌ: see what next follows.

    Lane, Arabic-English Lexiconread Lane's entry online ↗
Technical definitions7 · Ibn ʿArabī’s Iṣṭilāḥ, al-Jurjānī’s Taʿrīfāt

  • الحمد

    هو الثناء على الجميل من جهة التعظيم من نعمة وغيرها.

    Al-ḥamd (الحمد): It is praise for what is beautiful/good, from the standpoint of exaltation, whether arising from a favor (ni'mah) or otherwise.

    al-Jurjānī, al-Taʿrīfāt, line 1901 ↗

  • الحمد القولي

    هو حمد اللسان وثناؤه على الحق بما أثنى به على نفسه على لسان أنبيائه.

    Al-ḥamd al-qawlī (الحمد القولي, 'verbal praise'): It is the praise of the tongue and its lauding of the Truth (al-Ḥaqq) with that by which He praised Himself upon the tongues of His prophets.

    al-Jurjānī, al-Taʿrīfāt, line 1902 ↗

  • الحمد الفعلي

    هو الإتيان بالأعمال البدنية ابتغاء لوجه الله تعالى.

    Al-ḥamd al-fi'lī (الحمد الفعلي, 'praise through deeds'): It is the performing of bodily acts seeking the Face of God, Exalted.

    al-Jurjānī, al-Taʿrīfāt, line 1904 ↗

  • الحمد الحالي

    هو الذي يكون بحسب الروح والقلب، كالاتصاف بالكمالات العلمية والعملية، والتخلق بالأخلاق الإلهية.

    Al-ḥamd al-ḥālī (الحمد الحالي, 'praise of state'): It is that which occurs according to the spirit and the heart, such as being characterized by perfections of knowledge and action, and taking on divine character traits.

    al-Jurjānī, al-Taʿrīfāt, line 1905 ↗

  • الحمد اللغوي

    هو الوصف بالجميل على جهة التعظيم والتبجيل باللسان وحده.

    Al-ḥamd al-lughawī (الحمد اللغوي, 'lexical praise'): It is describing [something] with what is beautiful, by way of exaltation and honoring, with the tongue alone.

    al-Jurjānī, al-Taʿrīfāt, line 1907 ↗

  • الحمد العرفي

    فعل يشعر بتعظيم المنعم بسبب كونه منعما، أعم من أن يكون فعل اللسان أو الأركان.

    Al-ḥamd al-'urfī (الحمد العرفي, 'conventional praise'): An act conveying exaltation of the benefactor (mun'im) on account of his being a benefactor, more general than whether it be an act of the tongue or of the bodily limbs.

    al-Jurjānī, al-Taʿrīfāt, line 1908 ↗

  • فقال محمد في الجواب

    لما كانت أمينة كانت ثمينة، فلما خانت هانت.

    al-Jurjānī, al-Taʿrīfāt, line 2388 ↗

Look this root up elsewhere:Doha Historical Dictionary ↗Quranic Arabic Corpus ↗Arabic Almanac ↗Hawramani Arabic Lexicon ↗

The same letters, turned

The same three letters in all six orders. Choose one.

ح م د

الحاء والميم والدال كلمة واحدة وأصل واحد يدل على خلاف الذم

ḥ-m-d: a single word and one root indicating the opposite of blame.

Ibn Fāris ↗Lisān ↗Lane ↗al-Khalīl: used ↗Quran ×63

an entry in Ibn Fārislater sources onlyin none of them

Do these six share one core meaning?

Reference

About thisal-Khalīl, Ibn Jinnī, Ibn Fāris; the counts across the dictionary

al-Khalīl (d. c. 170/786), Kitāb al-ʿAyn, as transmitted by al-Layth: a two-letter word “turns in two ways”, a three-letter word “in six ways” (masdūsa), four letters in 24, five in 120; “its used forms are written down and its unused ones dropped” (line 975 ↗). The dictionary is built on this: each chapter takes a set of letters and names which orders are used (mustaʿmal) and which unused (muhmal). The ring shows that verdict, from the chapter heading as edited (documented in the text; how much of the book is al-Khalīl's own is disputed).

A reported total. al-Suyūṭī transmits, from Ḥamza al-Iṣfahānī, that al-Khalīl put the possible forms, used and unused, of two to five letters at 12,305,412 (al-Muzhir, line 1347 ↗). It is reported, not found in the ʿAyn. It equals exactly the arrangements of 2 to 5 different letters out of 28 (756 + 19,656 + 491,400 + 11,793,600); the breakdown printed beside it is corrupt, and al-Zubaydī's count, given next, differs (6,659,400).

Ibn Jinnī (d. 392/1002), al-Khaṣāʾiṣ, names the greater derivation (al-ishtiqāq al-akbar): bind a three-letter root and its six orders to one meaning, and bring stray members back “by the subtlety of the craft and interpretation” (line 7536 ↗). He says himself that it does not hold for every root (line 167 ↗; line 7603 ↗).

Ibn Fāris (d. 395/1004) gives each root its own aṣl and treats a rearranged word as maqlūb, “turned round”, and so not a root of its own: “j-b-dh is not a root, because it is a single word, turned round” (Maqāyīs, line 6147 ↗). The ring sets his aṣl for each order side by side; whether they meet is the question.

Neighbours on the ring differ by one swap of two letters.

The critique. A source quoted by al-Suyūṭī calls the greater derivation Ibn Jinnī's innovation, “not relied on in the language” (al-Muzhir, line 6159 ↗).

The other axis. The root's letters also go into patterns that keep their order and change the frame: the patterns (awzān) and the verb Forms I–X.

Across Ibn Fāris's dictionary. Of the 2,300 possible sets of three different sound letters (no hamza, w or y), 1,021 have at least one order as an entry. How many of their six orders are entries:

Ibn Fāris, entries found (1,021 letter-sets)
  1. 1 of 6319
  2. 2 of 6218
  3. 3 of 6164
  4. 4 of 6155
  5. 5 of 6107
  6. 6 of 658
al-Khalīl, orders his headings call used (746 letter-sets)
  1. 1 of 6148
  2. 2 of 6108
  3. 3 of 6157
  4. 4 of 6179
  5. 5 of 6111
  6. 6 of 643

Of the orders al-Khalīl calls used, 2,097 are entries in Ibn Fāris and 267 are not; 17 that he calls unused are entries in Ibn Fāris.

Our computation from the OpenITI texts; heading detection can miss entries

Attested here means found in our digital texts (Ibn Fāris, Lisān al-ʿArab, Lane, the Quranic Arabic Corpus), with w and y kept apart and hamza spellings merged; it is our data, not a classical verdict. English beside the Arabic is AI translation. Sources and grades: docs/research/root-permutations.md.

Letters & sound

How each letter is made, in brief, from Sībawayh's and Ibn Jinnī's own sentences (linked); their words are under Reference.

Sharing two of its three letters (computed; kinship of form, not of meaning)

16 more

Reference

How it is madeSībawayh and Ibn Jinnī · phonetics

English throughout: AI translation of the Arabic

ح

ومن أوسط الحلق مخرج العين والحاء

From the middle of the throat is the place of the ʿayn and the ḥāʾ. Sībawayh, lines 26548–26549 ↗

ومن وسط الحلق مخرج العين والحاء

From the middle of the throat is the place of the ʿayn and the ḥāʾ. Ibn Jinnī, line 970 ↗

م

ومما بين الشفتين مخرج الباء، والميم، والواو

From between the two lips is the place of the bāʾ, the mīm and the wāw. Sībawayh, line 26563 ↗

ومما بين الشفتين مخرج الباء والميم والواو

From between the two lips is the place of the bāʾ, the mīm and the wāw. Ibn Jinnī, line 986 ↗

د

ومما بين طرف اللسان وأصول الثنايا مخرج الطاء، والدال، والتاء

From between the tip of the tongue and the roots of the front teeth is the place of the ṭāʾ, the dāl and the tāʾ. Sībawayh, line 26559 ↗

ومما بين طرف اللسان وأصول الثنايا، مخرج الطاء والدال والتاء

From between the tip of the tongue and the roots of the front teeth is the place of the ṭāʾ, the dāl and the tāʾ. Ibn Jinnī, line 982 ↗

Sībawayh, al-Kitāb (ed. Hārūn) and Ibn Jinnī, Sirr ṣināʿat al-iʿrāb; OpenITI digital texts (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). Full credits on each letter's page.

In the Breath of the All-MercifulIbn ʿArabī · metaphysics

English throughout: AI translation of the Arabic

ح

Level of existence: الجوهر الهبابي · the dust-like substance (spelled الهبابي in the text)

Divine Name: الآخر · al-Ākhir, the Last

Lunar mansion: الدبران · al-Dabarān

Futūḥāt ch. 198, line 62076

Spheres of its simples (ch. 2): 10 line 2573 ↗

م

Level of existence: الإنسان · the human being

Divine Name: الجامع · al-Jāmiʿ, the Gatherer

Lunar mansion: المؤخر · al-Muʾakhkhar

Futūḥāt ch. 198, line 62119

Spheres of its simples (ch. 2): 10 line 2573 ↗

Nature (ch. 2)

المرتبة العشرية فحروفها حارة يابسة

The tenfold rank: its letters are hot and dry.

Ibn ʿArabī, al-Futūḥāt al-Makkiyya, line 2582

د

Level of existence: السماء الدنيا · the lowest heaven (al-samāʾ al-dunyā)

Divine Name: المبين · the Clarifier (al-Mubīn)

Lunar mansion: الأكليل · al-Iklīl

Futūḥāt ch. 198, line 64682

Spheres of its simples (ch. 2): 10 line 2573 ↗

Nature (ch. 2)

المرتبة العشرية فحروفها حارة يابسة

The tenfold rank: its letters are hot and dry.

Ibn ʿArabī, al-Futūḥāt al-Makkiyya, line 2582
Meaning by vowelal-Dabbāgh · a visionary claim about a primordial “Syriac”, not historical Syriac

English throughout: AI translation of the Arabic

ح

With fatḥa ـَ

فهي تدل على الإحاطة والشمول للجميع.

It denotes encompassing and inclusion of everything.

With ḍamma ـُ

فهي العدد الكثير الخارج عن بني آدم كالنجوم.

It is a great number external to the children of Adam, such as the stars.

With kasra ـِ

فهي العدد الداخل في الذات أو للذات عليه ولاية كملكية العبيد والدنانير والدراهم وغير ذلك.

It is a number contained within the self, or over which the self has authority, such as ownership of slaves, dinars, dirhams and the like.

al-Dabbāgh (d. 1132/1719), al-Ibrīz, ch. 2 §15, compiled by al-Lamaṭī

م

With fatḥa ـَ

فهي جميع المكونات.

It is all created beings.

With ḍamma ـُ

فهي العزيز القليل كماء العين، ومنه قيل مومو.

It is the precious, scarce thing, like the water of the eye; from it comes the expression 'mūmū'.

With kasra ـِ

فهي نور الذات ظاهرا كما في العين، وباطنا كما في القلب.

It is the light of the self, outwardly as in the eye and inwardly as in the heart.

al-Dabbāgh (d. 1132/1719), al-Ibrīz, ch. 2 §15, compiled by al-Lamaṭī

د

With fatḥa ـَ

فهي إشارة إلى خارج عن الذات.

It is an indication of something external to the self.

With ḍamma ـُ

فهي إشارة إلى ما هو قليل أو قبيح ومعه غضب فيهما.

It is an indication of what is small or ugly, accompanied by anger in both cases.

With kasra ـِ

فهي إشارة إلى ما في الذات أو إلى ما هو داخل عليها أو إلى ما هو قريب منها.

It is an indication of what is in the self, or what is entering upon it, or what is near to it.

al-Dabbāgh (d. 1132/1719), al-Ibrīz, ch. 2 §15, compiled by al-Lamaṭī
Two-letter nucleus10 roots in Ibn Fāris’s chapterح م

Ibn Fāris groups his roots under two-letter chapters (“the X and the Y and what makes them three”). These are the roots of this root's chapter with the core sense he gives each. Setting them side by side is our juxtaposition; he does not himself draw a shared meaning. His chapter heading, line 7562 ↗

  • حمدالحاء والميم والدال كلمة واحدة وأصل واحد يدل على خلاف الذمQ 63 · L7563
  • حمرالحاء والميم والراء أصل واحد عندي وهو من الذي يعرف بالحمرة وقد يجوز أن يجعل أصلين أحدهما هذا والآخر جنس من الدوابQ 6 · L7575
  • حمزالحاء والميم والزاء أصل واحد وهو حدة في الشيء كالحرافة وما أشبهها فالحمزة حرافة في الشيءL7611
  • حمسالحاء والميم والسين أصل واحد يدل على الشدة فالأحمس الشجاع والحمس والحماسة الشجاعة والشدة ورجل حمسL7618
  • حمشالحاء والميم والشين أصلان أحدهما التهاب الشيء وهيجه والثاني الدقةL7627
  • حمصالحاء والميم والصاد ليس أصلا يقاس عليه وما فيه قياس ويجوز أن يكون من جفاف في الشيء ويقولون انحمص الورم إذا سكن هذا أصح ما فيه والحمصيص بقلةL7632
  • حمضالحاء والميم والضاد أصل واحد صحيح وهو شيء من الطعومL7634
  • حمطالحاء والميم والطاء ليس أصلا ولا فرعا ولا فيه لغة صحيحة إلا شيء من النبت أو الشجرL7638
  • حمقالحاء والميم والقاف أصل واحد يدل على كساد الشيء والضعف والنقصان فالحمق نقصان العقل والعرب تقول انحمق الثوب إذا بلي وانحمقت السوق كسدتL7644
  • حملالحاء والميم واللام أصل واحد يدل على إقلال الشيءQ 64 · L7646
In the sister scriptsHebrew ח מ דSyriac ܚ ܡ ܕ
Arabicح م د
Hebrewח מ ד
Syriacܚ ܡ ܕ
Ancient South Arabian (musnad)𐩢 𐩣 𐩵
Phoenician𐤇 𐤌 𐤃

Letter for letter, by the regular sound correspondences of the Semitic languages (Arabic keeps several sounds the others merged). This shows how the root would be spelled; whether a related word exists is a separate question, answered in the Semitic lens. Where an Arabic sibilant (s, sh) continues two older sounds, both spellings are shown.

Lenses

  • Classical lexiconAl-Khalīl defines ḥamd as the opposite of blame and as thanāʾ ('laudation').well attested

    The lexicographers in chronological order, from al-Khalīl to Lane.

    Al-Khalīl defines ḥamd as the opposite of blame and as thanāʾ ('laudation'). He adds aḥmadtuhu, 'I found him praiseworthy', taḥmīd, 'abundant praise of God', and aḥmada, 'to do a praiseworthy deed', citing al-Aʿshā. Al-Jawharī repeats the opposition to blame and lists maḥmada, ḥamīd and maḥmūd. Ibn Fāris adds that muḥammad is one whose praised qualities are many, citing al-Aʿshā on al-Nuʿmān. He explains ḥamādāka as 'your utmost, your praised deed', and puts aḥmadtu ('I found him praiseworthy') in the same class as abkhaltu ('I found him miserly'). Al-Rāghib sets the three terms in order. Ḥamd is narrower than madḥ, which can praise involuntary traits such as stature or a handsome face. It is wider than shukr, which answers only a favour received: every shukr is ḥamd, but not every ḥamd is shukr. Ibn Manẓūr reports al-Farrāʾ on the case endings of al-ḥamdu lillāh (nominative among the readers, accusative and genitive among Bedouin), and Lane lists the verbal nouns.

    Draws on: al-Khalīl · al-Jawharī · Ibn Fāris · al-Rāghib · Ibn Manẓūr · Lane

    • Lane, Arabic-English Lexicon, s.v. حمد
    • al-Rāghib, Mufradāt, s.v. ḥmd
  • Letters & soundAl-Dabbāgh reads ḥāʾ as encompassing and including everything, mīm as all created beings, and dāl as pointing to something outside the self.speculative

    What the theorists of sound symbolism would say of these letters. Speculative by nature.

    Al-Dabbāgh reads ḥāʾ as encompassing and including everything, mīm as all created beings, and dāl as pointing to something outside the self. Taken together, the letters suggest a praise that encloses all creatures and is directed beyond the one praising. No Akbarian letter data is given for these letters. In the grammarians' order, the word moves from the middle of the throat (ḥ) to the lips (m) to the tongue-tip (d). Such readings are suggestive at most for mainstream linguistics.

    Draws on: al-Dabbāgh · makhārij order

    • al-Lamaṭī, al-Ibrīz min kalām ... al-Dabbāgh
  • Root structureIbn Fāris's ḥ-m neighbours include ḥ-m-r (redness), ḥ-m-z (pungent sharpness), ḥ-m-s (hardness, courage), ḥ-m-sh (flaring up;plausible

    The two-letter nucleus (Ibn Fāris's own chapters) and the permutations of the letters (Ibn Jinnī).

    Ibn Fāris's ḥ-m neighbours include ḥ-m-r (redness), ḥ-m-z (pungent sharpness), ḥ-m-s (hardness, courage), ḥ-m-sh (flaring up; thinness), ḥ-m-ḍ (a taste), ḥ-m-q (deficiency) and ḥ-m-l (lifting, carrying). Several of these cluster around heat and intensity, and the permutation ḥ-d-m ('intense heat') sits nearby. This is a pattern set side by side, not a proven nuclear sense. The clearest permutation is m-d-ḥ, 'to describe merits in fine words'. Al-Zamakhsharī calls ḥamd and madḥ 'brothers', and here Ibn Jinnī's greater derivation genuinely fits. Across the whole set it does not: d-ḥ-m ('to push hard', which Ibn Fāris calls 'nothing') is unrelated, and m-ḥ-d is unattested.

    Draws on: Ibn Fāris chapter siblings · permutations · ishtiqāq akbar (partial)

  • Semitic kin & loanwordsHebrew ḥāmad means 'to desire, delight in', as in lōʾ taḥmōd, 'you shall not covet' (Exod 20:17), with the noun ḥemdâ, 'desirable thing'.well attested

    Cognates in the sister languages, and whether the word was borrowed.

    Hebrew ḥāmad means 'to desire, delight in', as in lōʾ taḥmōd, 'you shall not covet' (Exod 20:17), with the noun ḥemdâ, 'desirable thing'. Aramaic and Syriac ḥmd likewise mean 'to desire', and Ugaritic ḥmd means 'to desire, be pleasant'. Sabaic, like Arabic, uses ḥmd for praise and thanks, as in the monotheistic formula b-ḥmd Rḥmnn, 'with the praise of Raḥmānān' (CIH 541, 548 CE). The sense 'praise' is thus South Semitic, and 'desire' is Northwest Semitic. The word is native, not a loan.

    Draws on: Hebrew · Aramaic/Syriac · Ugaritic · Sabaic

  • Quranic exegesisOn 1:2, al-Ṭabarī treats ḥamd and shukr as equivalent and takes the article to mean that all praise belongs to God alone, not to anything worshipped besides Him.plausible

    How the classical exegetes read the word in the Quran.

    On 1:2, al-Ṭabarī treats ḥamd and shukr as equivalent and takes the article to mean that all praise belongs to God alone, not to anything worshipped besides Him. Al-Zamakhsharī distinguishes the two. For him, ḥamd is praise with the tongue for a beautiful voluntary quality, and shukr answers a favour with tongue, heart and limbs. He also reads the nominative al-ḥamdu as expressing permanence. Al-Rāzī elaborates the ḥamd–madḥ–shukr distinctions and asks why the verse uses a nominal sentence and not 'I praise God'. In 3:188, the censure of those who 'love to be praised for what they have not done' presupposes the lexicographers' link between ḥamd and one's own deeds. Al-Ṭabarī reports intercession as the majority reading of al-maqām al-maḥmūd (17:79).

    Draws on: al-Ṭabarī · al-Zamakhsharī · al-Rāzī · al-Rāghib

  • Akbarian readingFaṣṣ Ādam closes its reading of taqwā with this counsel: since the affair is blame and praise (dhamm wa-ḥamd), be God's protection in what is blamed and make Him your protection in what is praised.plausible

    The word in Ibn ʿArabī's text and terminology.

    Faṣṣ Ādam closes its reading of taqwā with this counsel: since the affair is blame and praise (dhamm wa-ḥamd), be God's protection in what is blamed and make Him your protection in what is praised. Doing so, he says, makes one courteous and knowing (udabāʾ ʿālimīn). Blame is thus referred to the creaturely side and praise to the divine. The chapter list in the same preface ends with 'a wisdom of singularity (fardiyya) in a Muḥammadan word', the final faṣṣ. More broadly, Ibn ʿArabī holds that every praise, whatever its apparent object, returns in the end to God.

    Draws on: Faṣṣ Ādam · Fuṣūṣ structure

    • Ibn ʿArabī, Fuṣūṣ al-ḥikam, Faṣṣ Ādam

Reference

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