رافضي

رافضي

Arabic

Etymology

Relative adjective (nisba) composed of رَافِضَة‎ (rāfiḍa, “rejectors, active participle of رَفَضَ‎ (rafaḍa)”) +‎ ـِيّ‎ (-iyy).

Noun

رَافِضِيّ • (rāfiḍiyy) m (plural رَوَافِض‎ (rawāfiḍ) or رَافِضَة‎ (rāfiḍa), feminine رَافِضِيَّة‎ (rāfiḍiyya))

1. (Islam, religious slur) a person who rejects the legitimacy of the Sunni caliphs (typically used by Sunnis to refer to Shias)

   • c. 14th century CE, Ibn Taymiyyah, Minhaj as-Sunnah an-Nabawiyyah:

     ‏وكانت الشيعة أصحاب علي يقدمون عليه أبا بكر وعمر وإنما كان النزاع في تقدمه على عثمان ولم يكن حينئذ يسمى أحد لا إماميا ولا رافضيا وإنما سموا رافضة وصاروا رافضة لما خرج زيد بن علي بن الحسين بالكوفة في خلافة هشام فسألته الشيعة عن أبي بكر وعمر فترحم عليهما فرفضه قوم فقال رفضتموني رفضتموني فسموا رافضة وتولاه قوم زيدية لانتسابهم إليه ومن حينئذ انقسمت الشيعة إلى رافضة إمامية وزيدية وكلما زادوا في البدعة زادوا في الشر فالزيدية خير من الرافضة أعلم وأصدق وأزهد وأشجع‎

     The [original] followers of ʿAlī favored ʾAbū Bakr and ʿUmar over him, but the difference was on whether he outranks ʿUṯmān. At that time, no one was called "an Imamite" or "a rejector". These were called "rejectors" and became so when Zayd ibn ʿAlī ibn al-Husayn marched in Kufa against Caliph Hišām. The followers of ʿAlī asked him about ʾAbū Bakr and ʿUmar, and he wished the two peace and mercy from Allah, and thus, a group rejected him and he cried out "You have rejected me! You have rejected me!" and they were called "the rejectors", while another accepted him, now eponymously called the Zaydites. Since then, the followers of ʿAlī were thus split into Imamites and Zaydites, and their evil and harm are amplified as their deviancy and invention heighten. The Zaydites are far better than the rejectors: they are more knowledgeable, more truthful, more virutous and abstinent, and much braver.

2. (Islam, religious honorific) a rejector of falsehood. (used by Shias as honorific)

   Coordinate term: نَاصِبِيّ‎ (nāṣibiyy)

   • c. 10th century CE, Ja'far al-Sadiq, Basa'ir ad-Darajat:

     ‏سَمِعْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ يَقُولُ: مَا لَهُمْ وَلَكُمْ وَمَا يُرِيدُونَ مِنْكُمْ وَمَا يَعِيبُونَكُمْ يَقُولُونَ ٱلرَّافِضَةَ نَعَمْ وَٱللَّهِ رَفَضْتُمُ ٱلْكَذِبَ وَٱتَّبَعْتُمُ ٱلْحَقَّ‎

     samiʿtu ʾabā ʿabdi l-lahi ʿalayhi s-salāmu yaqūlu: mā lahum walakum wamā yurīdūna minkum wamā yaʿībūnakum yaqūlūna r-rāfiḍata naʿam wal-lahi rafaḍtumu l-kaḏiba wattabaʿtumu l-ḥaqqa

     I heard Abu Abd Allah (i.e. Ja ʿfar as-Sadiq), peace be upon him, saying "What is with them and what is with you; and what are they seeking from you; and what are they trying to fault with by their saying 'rejectors'? Yes, by Allah, you have rejected falsehood and followed the truth."

Usage notes

• Used by some as a pejorative towards Shiites. Some Shiites use it as an honorific.

Declension

Declension of noun رَافِضِيّ (rāfiḍiyy)

Singular	basic singular triptote
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	رَافِضِي rāfiḍī	الرَّافِضِي‎ ar-rāfiḍī	رَافِضِي rāfiḍī
Nominative	رَافِضِيٌّ rāfiḍiyyun	الرَّافِضِيُّ‎ ar-rāfiḍiyyu	رَافِضِيُّ rāfiḍiyyu
Accusative	رَافِضِيًّا‎ rāfiḍiyyan	الرَّافِضِيَّ‎ ar-rāfiḍiyya	رَافِضِيَّ rāfiḍiyya
Genitive	رَافِضِيٍّ rāfiḍiyyin	الرَّافِضِيِّ‎ ar-rāfiḍiyyi	رَافِضِيِّ rāfiḍiyyi
Dual	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	رَافِضِيَّيْن‎ rāfiḍiyyayn	الرَّافِضِيَّيْن‎ ar-rāfiḍiyyayn	رَافِضِيَّيْ‎ rāfiḍiyyay
Nominative	رَافِضِيَّانِ‎ rāfiḍiyyāni	الرَّافِضِيَّانِ‎ ar-rāfiḍiyyāni	رَافِضِيَّا‎ rāfiḍiyyā
Accusative	رَافِضِيَّيْنِ‎ rāfiḍiyyayni	الرَّافِضِيَّيْنِ‎ ar-rāfiḍiyyayni	رَافِضِيَّيْ‎ rāfiḍiyyay
Genitive	رَافِضِيَّيْنِ‎ rāfiḍiyyayni	الرَّافِضِيَّيْنِ‎ ar-rāfiḍiyyayni	رَافِضِيَّيْ‎ rāfiḍiyyay
Plural	basic broken plural diptote‎; broken plural triptote in ـَة (-a)
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	رَوَافِض‎‎; رَافِضَة‎ rawāfiḍ‎; rāfiḍa	الرَّوَافِض‎‎; الرَّافِضَة‎ ar-rawāfiḍ‎; ar-rāfiḍa	رَوَافِض‎‎; رَافِضَة‎ rawāfiḍ‎; rāfiḍat
Nominative	رَوَافِضُ‎‎; رَافِضَةٌ‎ rawāfiḍu‎; rāfiḍatun	الرَّوَافِضُ‎‎; الرَّافِضَةُ‎ ar-rawāfiḍu‎; ar-rāfiḍatu	رَوَافِضُ‎‎; رَافِضَةُ‎ rawāfiḍu‎; rāfiḍatu
Accusative	رَوَافِضَ‎‎; رَافِضَةً‎ rawāfiḍa‎; rāfiḍatan	الرَّوَافِضَ‎‎; الرَّافِضَةَ‎ ar-rawāfiḍa‎; ar-rāfiḍata	رَوَافِضَ‎‎; رَافِضَةَ‎ rawāfiḍa‎; rāfiḍata
Genitive	رَوَافِضَ‎‎; رَافِضَةٍ‎ rawāfiḍa‎; rāfiḍatin	الرَّوَافِضِ‎‎; الرَّافِضَةِ‎ ar-rawāfiḍi‎; ar-rāfiḍati	رَوَافِضِ‎‎; رَافِضَةِ‎ rawāfiḍi‎; rāfiḍati

Descendants

• → English: Rafidhi