إبل

See also: أبل, أتل, and اتل

Arabic

Etymology

The root ء ب ل (ʔ b l) else but contains terms plausibly denominative from this word for camels; the animal name, as well as the raincloud-name reminiscing وَبْل (wabl, “heavy-dropped rain”), must be connected to Proto-Semitic *wabal- (“to carry, to bear”) also of restricted Arabic use in the root formula و ب ل (w b l), with glottal stop as أُهْبَة (ʔuhba, “gear, accoutrement”). In Classical Syriac one finds ܐܒܠܬܐ (ʾabbāltā, ʾebbaltā, ʾebbāltā, “a herd or caravan of camels”), accounting for its vocalism probably a separate derivation of this sense, whereas the Arabic unusual measure of إِبِل (ʔibil) is inflated by a prop vowel^[1] from an original pattern as in animal names like عِجْل (ʕijl) and حِسْل (ḥisl).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ʔi.bil/

Noun

إِبِل • (ʔibil) f (collective, plural آبَال (ʔābāl))

(collective) camels
- a. 965, اَلْمُتَنَبِّي [al-mutanabbī], “لَا خَيْلَ عِنْدَكَ تُهْدِيهَا وَلَا مَالُ [lā ḵayla ʕindaka tuhdīhā walā mālu]”, in عَبْد الرَّحْمٰن اَلْبُرْقُوقِيّ [ʕabd ar-raḥmān al-burqūqiyy], شَرْح دِيوَان اَلْمُتَنَبِّي [šarḥ dīwān al-mutanabbī], part 3, Beirut, Lebanon: دَار اَلْكِتَاب اَلْعَرَبِيّ [dār al-kitāb al-ʕarabiyy], published 1980, page 402:
  تَجْرِي النُّفُوسُ حَوَالَيْهِ مُخَلَّطَةً / مِنْهَا عُدَاةٌ وَأَغْنَامٌ وَآبَالُ
  tajrī n-nufūsu ḥawālayhi muḵallaṭatan / minhā ʕudātun waʔaḡnāmun waʔābālu
  (please add an English translation of this quotation)
(collective, obsolete) rain clouds
- 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 88:17-19:
  أَفَلَا يَنْظُرُونَ إِلَى ٱلْإِبِلِ كَيْفَ خُلِقَتْ
  وَإِلَى ٱلسَّمَآءِ كَيْفَ رُفِعَتْ
  وَإِلَى ٱلْجِبَالِ كَيْفَ نُصِبَتْ
  ʔafalā yanẓurūna ʔilā l-ʔibili kayfa ḵuliqat
  waʔilā s-samaʔāʔi kayfa rufiʕat
  waʔilā l-jibāli kayfa nuṣibat
  Then do they not look unto the rainy clouds^[2] – how they are created? And the sky, how it has been raised? And the mountains how they have been set up?

Declension

Declension of noun **إِبِل** (ʔibil)
singular	basic singular triptote
singular	indefinite	definite	construct
informal	إِبِل ʔibil	الْإِبِل al-ʔibil	إِبِل ʔibil
nominative	إِبِلٌ ʔibilun	الْإِبِلُ al-ʔibilu	إِبِلُ ʔibilu
accusative	إِبِلًا ʔibilan	الْإِبِلَ al-ʔibila	إِبِلَ ʔibila
genitive	إِبِلٍ ʔibilin	الْإِبِلِ al-ʔibili	إِبِلِ ʔibili
dual	indefinite	definite	construct
informal	إِبِلَيْن ʔibilayn	الْإِبِلَيْن al-ʔibilayn	إِبِلَيْ ʔibilay
nominative	إِبِلَانِ ʔibilāni	الْإِبِلَانِ al-ʔibilāni	إِبِلَا ʔibilā
accusative	إِبِلَيْنِ ʔibilayni	الْإِبِلَيْنِ al-ʔibilayni	إِبِلَيْ ʔibilay
genitive	إِبِلَيْنِ ʔibilayni	الْإِبِلَيْنِ al-ʔibilayni	إِبِلَيْ ʔibilay
plural	basic broken plural triptote
plural	indefinite	definite	construct
informal	آبَال ʔābāl	الْآبَال al-ʔābāl	آبَال ʔābāl
nominative	آبَالٌ ʔābālun	الْآبَالُ al-ʔābālu	آبَالُ ʔābālu
accusative	آبَالًا ʔābālan	الْآبَالَ al-ʔābāla	آبَالَ ʔābāla
genitive	آبَالٍ ʔābālin	الْآبَالِ al-ʔābāli	آبَالِ ʔābāli

Descendants

→ Akkadian: 𒄿𒁉𒇻 (i-bi-lu /⁠ibilu⁠/)^[3]

References

^ Voigt, Rainer (2009) “Semitic Languages”, in Versteegh, Kees, editor, Encyclopedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics, volume 4, Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 174
^ Drissner, Gerald (2023 October 27) “Camels or rain clouds? The intriguing word إبل in the Qur’an”, in Arabic for Nerds‎^[1]
^ Forbes, Robert James (1993) Studies in ancient technology, 3rd edition, volume II, Leiden: E. J. Brill, →ISBN, page 209

[1] Voigt, Rainer (2009) “Semitic Languages”, in Versteegh, Kees, editor, Encyclopedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics, volume 4, Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 174

[2] Drissner, Gerald (2023 October 27) “Camels or rain clouds? The intriguing word إبل in the Qur’an”, in Arabic for Nerds‎^[1]

[3] Forbes, Robert James (1993) Studies in ancient technology, 3rd edition, volume II, Leiden: E. J. Brill, →ISBN, page 209

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