محراب

Arabic

Etymology

Borrowed from Old South Arabian 𐩣𐩢𐩧𐩨‎ (mḥrb) attested several times for a certain architectural feature of a palace or court, and for a “part of a temple where 𐩩𐩢𐩧𐩨‎ (tḥrb) oracles are obtained”, compare 𐩩𐩢𐩧𐩨𐩩‎ (tḥrbt, “votive relief”), 𐩩𐩢𐩧𐩨‎ (tḥrb, “to obtain a vision or an oracle”), 𐩢𐩧𐩨‎ (ḥrb, “to obtain an oracle”). Possibly also related to Old South Arabian 𐩣𐩫𐩧𐩨‎ (mkrb, “sanctuary, temple”), Ge'ez ምኵራብ (məkʷrab, “sanctuary, temple”), Old South Arabian 𐩫𐩧𐩨‎ (krb, “to carry out instructions”), Old South Arabian 𐩫𐩧𐩨‎ (krb, “to bless”) = Arabic بَرَّكَ‎ (barraka, “to bless”), Akkadian 𒅗𒊏𒁍 (/karābu/, “to pray”), Hebrew כְּרוּב‎ (kerūḇ, “cherub”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /miħ.raːb/

Noun

مِحْرَاب • (miḥrāb) m (plural مَحَارِيب‎ (maḥārīb))

a high sitting place, private chamber to which people of high standing go to retreat, closet, mirador
- 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 34:13:
  ‏يَعْمَلُونَ لَهُ مَا يَشَاءُ مِنْ مَحَارِيبَ وَتَمَاثِيلَ وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ وَقُدُورٍ رَاسِيَاتٍ‎
  yaʿmalūna lahu mā yašāʾu min maḥārība watamāṯīla wajifānin kāljawābi waqudūrin rāsiyātin
  They made for him what he willed, of closets, bowls, effigies, and standing kettles.
- 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 19:11:
  ‏فَخَرَجَ عَلَى قَوْمِهِ مِنَ ٱلْمِحْرَابِ فَأَوْحَى إِلَيْهِمْ أَنْ سَبِّحُوا بُكْرَةً وَعَشِيًّا‎
  faḵaraja ʿalā qawmihi mina l-miḥrābi faʾawḥā ʾilayhim ʾan sabbiḥū bukratan waʿašiyyan
  And he went out from the chamber to his people and made signs that they shall praise in the morning and evening.
a niche—originally opposed to a mirador—serving as a place of prayer in the praying direction, mihrab
- 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 3:37:
  ‏كُلَّمَا دَخَلَ عَلَيْهَا زَكَرِيَّا الْمِحْرَابَ وَجَدَ عِنْدَهَا رِزْقًا‎
  kullamā daḵala ʿalayhā zakariyyā l-miḥrāba wajada ʿindahā rizqan
  Whenever Zacharias entered upon her in the miḥrāb he encountered her with provisions.
- 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 3:39:
  ‏فَنَادَتْهُ ٱلْمَلَائِكَةُ وَهُوَ قَائِمٌ يُصَلِّي فِي ٱلْمِحْرَابِ‎
  fanādathu l-malāʾikatu wahuwa qāʾimun yuṣallī fī l-miḥrābi
  So the angels called him while prayed standing in the miḥrāb.

Declension

Declension of noun مِحْرَاب (miḥrāb)

Singular	basic singular triptote
Singular	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	مِحْرَاب miḥrāb	الْمِحْرَاب‎ al-miḥrāb	مِحْرَاب miḥrāb
Nominative	مِحْرَابٌ miḥrābun	الْمِحْرَابُ‎ al-miḥrābu	مِحْرَابُ miḥrābu
Accusative	مِحْرَابًا‎ miḥrāban	الْمِحْرَابَ‎ al-miḥrāba	مِحْرَابَ miḥrāba
Genitive	مِحْرَابٍ miḥrābin	الْمِحْرَابِ‎ al-miḥrābi	مِحْرَابِ miḥrābi
Dual	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	مِحْرَابَيْن‎ miḥrābayn	الْمِحْرَابَيْن‎ al-miḥrābayn	مِحْرَابَيْ‎ miḥrābay
Nominative	مِحْرَابَانِ‎ miḥrābāni	الْمِحْرَابَانِ‎ al-miḥrābāni	مِحْرَابَا‎ miḥrābā
Accusative	مِحْرَابَيْنِ‎ miḥrābayni	الْمِحْرَابَيْنِ‎ al-miḥrābayni	مِحْرَابَيْ‎ miḥrābay
Genitive	مِحْرَابَيْنِ‎ miḥrābayni	الْمِحْرَابَيْنِ‎ al-miḥrābayni	مِحْرَابَيْ‎ miḥrābay
Plural	basic broken plural diptote
Plural	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	مَحَارِيب‎ maḥārīb	الْمَحَارِيب‎ al-maḥārīb	مَحَارِيب‎ maḥārīb
Nominative	مَحَارِيبُ‎ maḥārību	الْمَحَارِيبُ‎ al-maḥārību	مَحَارِيبُ‎ maḥārību
Accusative	مَحَارِيبَ‎ maḥārība	الْمَحَارِيبَ‎ al-maḥārība	مَحَارِيبَ‎ maḥārība
Genitive	مَحَارِيبَ‎ maḥārība	الْمَحَارِيبِ‎ al-maḥārībi	مَحَارِيبِ‎ maḥārībi

Descendants

→ Azerbaijani: mehrab
→ Middle Armenian: մէհրապ (mēhrap), մեհրաբ (mehrab), մահրապ (mahrap)
→ Persian: محراب‎ (mehrâb)

References

Dillmann, August (1865), “ምኵራብ”, in Lexicon linguae aethiopicae cum indice latino (in Latin), Leipzig: T. O. Weigel, column 836
Fraenkel, Siegmund (1886) Die aramäischen Fremdwörter im Arabischen (in German), Leiden: E. J. Brill, page 274
Lane, Edward William (1863), “محراب”, in Arabic-English Lexicon, London: Williams & Norgate, page 541
Leslau, Wolf (1991) Comparative Dictionary of Geʿez (Classical Ethiopic), 2nd edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, →ISBN, page 341
Nöldeke, Theodor (1910) Neue Beiträge zur semitischen Sprachwissenschaft‎ (in German), Straßburg: Karl J. Trübner, page 52
Praetorius, Franz (1907), “Äthiopische Etymologien”, in Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft‎ (in German), volume 61, page 621
Rhodokanakis, Nikolaus (1905), “Mschatta II. Kunstwissenschaftliche Untersuchung von Josef Strzygowski (Sonderabdruck aus dem Jahrbuch der königl. preußischen Kunstsammlungen 1904, Heft IV, pag. 225–373, 12 Tafeln und 119 Phototypen). G. Grote, Berlin”, in Wiener Zeitschrift für die Kunde des Morgenlandes‎ (in German), volume 19, pages 296 seqq.
Rhodokanakis, Nikolaus (1911), “Zur semitischen Sprachwissenschaft”, in Wiener Zeitschrift für die Kunde des Morgenlandes‎ (in German), volume 25, pages 71–80
Schwally, Friedrich (1901), “Zur ältesten Baugeschichte der Moschee des ʿamr in Alt-Kairo”, in Straßburger Festschrift zur XLVI. Versammlung deutscher Philologen und Schulmänner, , herausgegeben von der philosophischen Fakultät der Kaiser Wilhelms-Universität‎, Karl. J. Trübner, page 110
Shapira, Dan D. Y. (2009), “Irano-Arabica: contamination and popular etymology. Notes on the Persian and Arabic lexicons (with references to Aramaic, Hebrew and Turkic)”, in Христианский Восток – Новая Серия, volume 5 (XI), Moscow: Издательство Российской Академии Наук и Государственного Эрмитажа, page 174
Wehr, Hans; Kropfitsch, Lorenz (1985), “محراب”, in Arabisches Wörterbuch für die Schriftsprache der Gegenwart (in German), 5th edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, published 2011, →ISBN, page 242
Wellhausen, Julius (1897) Reste arabischen Heidentumes‎ (in German), Berlin: Georg Reimer, page 232
Söller on the German Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^de

Persian

Etymology

From Arabic مِحْرَاب‎ (miḥrāb).

Noun

محراب • (mehrâb) (plural محراب‌ها‎ (mehrâb-hâ))

mihrab

Urdu

Etymology

Borrowed from Persian ‎ (mehrâb), from Arabic مِحْرَاب‎ (miḥrāb).

Pronunciation

(Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /meːɦ.ɾɑːb/, /mɪɦ.ɾɑːb/, [mɛɦ.ɾɑːb]

Noun

محراب • (mehrāb or mihrāb) f (Hindi spelling मेहराब or मिहराब‎)

(Islam) mihrab

Declension

Declension of محراب
	singular	plural
direct	محراب‎ (mehrāb)	محرابیں‎ (mehrābẽ)
oblique	محراب‎ (mehrāb)	محرابوں‎ (mehrābõ)
vocative	محراب‎ (mehrāb)	محرابو‎ (mehrābo)