Renowned Syrian poet Nizar Qabani once penned the words, “My lover asks me: What is the difference between me and the sky? The difference, my love, is that when you laugh, I forget about the sky.”
All over the world, the sky is a metaphor for something greater than ourselves. Qabani creatively illustrates this through his words by playing with our collective notions of how grand, inescapable and limitless the sky is.
This week’s Arabic word of the week, samaa, which in all Arabic dialects means the sky, is a universal symbol of awe, inspiration, divinity, knowledge and so much more.
The word samaa is a noun, the plural of the word samawa, which means a portion of the sky. And so while samaa means all the portions of the sky together, or the whole sky, samawat is the plural of samaa, meaning skies.
Samaa is made up of four Arabic letters; seen, meem, alif and hamza. The root of samaa is the word sama, which means anything or anyone that is either physically high or tall in stature.
The official definition of samaa is a higher space that surrounds the Earth or the element that faces and surrounds the Earth.
Samaa also means any element or physical object that is high above something else or covers it. So, in some instances, especially in classical Arabic, samaa may not necessarily refer to the sky. It can mean the ceiling of a room or the roof of a house or the highest branch of a tree. The sky, however, is considered the highest of these elements.
In many religions and cultures, the sky carries many rich and powerful associations. A symbol of the divine, a connection to creation, a metaphor for the heavens.
In Islam specifically, samaa is mentioned many times in the Quran in different contexts. Most commonly it is referred to as a built element made up of seven layers that cover the Earth.
Other words derived from the same root of samaa are also associated with the concept of highness, in both positive and negative connotations.
For example, sama is a verb that refers to thinking of oneself as better or acting better than those around you. It is, to use an English phrase, someone who acts “high and mighty”.
Another example is soumu, which means someone whose social standing or emotional state is higher than others. It can refer to a member of a royal family or someone who has achieved great success in their field of work and has a great knowledge on a particular topic. Soumu doesn’t only have to be used in reference to people but, depending on the context, can describe any element that is considered greater than its surroundings.
The 2008 Egyptian film, Alwan El Sama El Sabaa (The Seven Colours of the Sky) starring the celebrated actress Laila Elwi, uses the metaphor of the sky as part of a sacred and spiritual journey.
The story follows characters from different walks of life, balancing the road between true love and material or sinful temptation to purify their hearts and spiritually travel through the seven layers of the sky.
-
Hob is the Arabic word for love, but can be used in many contexts -
The Arabic word helu translates, in English, to sweet -
Nashef is the Arabic word for dry, but has many connotations, depending on the context in which you use it -
The Arabic word hurriyeh translates to freedom in English -
The Arabic word tayeb can mean delicious or good, depending on the context -
The Arabic word mustaqbal is best expressed as future in English -
Waqaa, the Arabic word for fall, can signify a loss of power, stature, health or grace -
Hudood means borders in English -
The Arabic word rooh translates to spirit or soul in English -
The Arabic word ain means eye in English -
Waraq, the Arabic word of the week means paper in English -
Bahr, the Arabic for sea, has a poetic lilt -
Kareem means generous in English -
Bab means door in English -
Eid means holiday or festival -
Najm means star for the night sky and cosmos, but also has plenty of other meanings, including ambition or fame -
Alwan, the Arabic word for colours, has many shades of meaning -
Akel can refer to home-cooked meals, embezzlement, fire and rust -
Jamal is the Arabic word for beauty, be it literal or figurative -
Herfe translates to profession or craft -
Tabiaa translates to nature and can frame landscapes and portraits -
Sehha is the Arabic word for health -
Ijaza is Arabic for holiday and shines in summer but is not stress-free -
Aamal is the Arabic word for work -
Al dahr translates to time -
Qalb is a word for heart, with poetic roots -
Lugha in Arabic translates to language in English -
Insaan means human being -
Na'eeman is an idiomatic expression used when someone has had a shower or bath, a haircut or had their beard trimmed -
The Arabic word for life touches on eternity, death and accomplishment -
Qamar is the Arabic for moon -
The Arabic word for strength or power is quwwa -
Burj is Arabic for tower -
The Arabic word for sun is shams -
Sabr in English can translate to patience -
Hayba is the Arabic word for prestige -
The Arabic term al shay'e translates as 'the thing' in English -
The Arabic word for road is tareeq -
The Arabic word for read has mystical and scholarly connotations -
Istikan is the Arabic word for a type of tea cup -
The Arabic word hanan means affection in English -
The Arabic word atlal means ruins in English -
Kura is the Arabic word for ball, in all its forms -
Janaah in Arabic means wing in English -
The Arabic word sana translates to year in English -
Qasida is the Arabic for poem, not poetry -
Ameer, the Arabic word for prince, which influenced another English title -
Nakhla translates to palm tree in English -
Al samt is the Arabic for silence -
Kalimaat translates to words in English -
Markaz is Arabic for centre -
Beshara is the Arabic word for good news -
Bayt is the Arabic for house or home -
Fann is the Arabic word for art, and can be either a verb or an adjective -
Isim, which means name, is made up of three letters, alif, seen and meem -
Dunya is the Arabic word for world -
Nazaafah translates to cleanliness in English -
Many traditions revolve around drinking coffee, including weddings, funerals and business meetings -
Fajr is the Arabic word for dawn -
Maghrib is the Arabic word for sunset -
The Arabic language is filled with idioms, quotes and colloquial quips involving the mirror -
Raei is the Arabic word for opinion -
Wa'ed is a multifaceted word for 'promise', as well as a female name -
Qussa is the Arabic word for story -
Sadaaka is the Arabic word for friendship -
Akhbaar is the Arabic word for news -
Rasem is made up of the three Arabic letters Rah, Seen and Meem. While it can simply mean a drawing or a sketch it’s also a malleable word whose definition can change depending on context and dialect – particularly between colloquial and classical Arabic. -
As well as finishing a task, khatem denotes a deeper sense of finality -
Commonly translated to blessed, mubarak is used as a popular greeting on auspicious days -
The Arabic word for lighthouse is also a term that has become closely associated with Islam -
Siyaam, the Arabic word for fasting is also connected to silence -
Tawbah, the Arabic word for repentance, is also connected to Ramadan -
Safar, the Arabic Word for travel can also refer to sunny days, a brighter-blazing fire or exile. The National
