قسطاس

Arabic

Alternative forms

قِسْطَار (qisṭār), قُسْطَار (qusṭār), قَسْطَرِيّ (qasṭariyy), *سِقِسْطَار (*siqisṭār), سِقِنْطَار (siqinṭār), سِنِقْطَار (siniqṭār), سِقْطِرِيّ (siqṭiriyy)

Etymology

Via an Aramaic term retained in Classical Syriac ܣܓܘܣܛܪܐ (səgosṭārā) and other Syriac spellings from Ancient Greek ζυγοστάτης (zugostátēs, “weigher”), which also passed into Latin zygostatēs. For the stem ending in ـس (-s), maybe also denoting the occupation after ζυγοστασία (zugostasía), ζυγοστάτησις (zugostátēsis, “weighing”). Influenced by قِسْط (qisṭ, “share”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /qis.tˤaːs/, IPA^(key): /qus.tˤaːs/

Noun

قُسْطَاس or قِسْطَاس • (qusṭās or qisṭās) m (plural قَسَاطِيس (qasāṭīs))

(obsolete) weigher, moneychanger
Synonyms: وَزَّان (wazzān), صَرَّاف (ṣarrāf)

Usage notes

After antiquity, when the word was no more understood, occurrences such as in the Qurʾān were frequently interpreted as “balance, scales”, and reused as such in few book titles and technical texts – e.g. the 1121 work كِتَاب مِيزَان الْحِكْمَة (kitāb mīzān al-ḥikma) of Al-Ḵāzinīy, surely not abiding by living language – including the particular phrasing الْقِسْطَاس الْمُسْتَقِيم (al-qisṭās al-mustaqīm) from Q 26:182.

Declension

Declension of noun قُسْطَاس (qusṭās)‎; قِسْطَاس (qisṭās)

Singular	basic singular triptote
Singular	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	قُسْطَاس‎; قِسْطَاس qusṭās‎; qisṭās	الْقُسْطَاس‎; الْقِسْطَاس al-qusṭās‎; al-qisṭās	قُسْطَاس‎; قِسْطَاس qusṭās‎; qisṭās
Nominative	قُسْطَاسٌ‎; قِسْطَاسٌ qusṭāsun‎; qisṭāsun	الْقُسْطَاسُ‎; الْقِسْطَاسُ al-qusṭāsu‎; al-qisṭāsu	قُسْطَاسُ‎; قِسْطَاسُ qusṭāsu‎; qisṭāsu
Accusative	قُسْطَاسًا‎; قِسْطَاسًا qusṭāsan‎; qisṭāsan	الْقُسْطَاسَ‎; الْقِسْطَاسَ al-qusṭāsa‎; al-qisṭāsa	قُسْطَاسَ‎; قِسْطَاسَ qusṭāsa‎; qisṭāsa
Genitive	قُسْطَاسٍ‎; قِسْطَاسٍ qusṭāsin‎; qisṭāsin	الْقُسْطَاسِ‎; الْقِسْطَاسِ al-qusṭāsi‎; al-qisṭāsi	قُسْطَاسِ‎; قِسْطَاسِ qusṭāsi‎; qisṭāsi
Dual	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	قُسْطَاسَيْن‎; قِسْطَاسَيْن qusṭāsayn‎; qisṭāsayn	الْقُسْطَاسَيْن‎; الْقِسْطَاسَيْن al-qusṭāsayn‎; al-qisṭāsayn	قُسْطَاسَيْ‎; قِسْطَاسَيْ qusṭāsay‎; qisṭāsay
Nominative	قُسْطَاسَانِ‎; قِسْطَاسَانِ qusṭāsāni‎; qisṭāsāni	الْقُسْطَاسَانِ‎; الْقِسْطَاسَانِ al-qusṭāsāni‎; al-qisṭāsāni	قُسْطَاسَا‎; قِسْطَاسَا qusṭāsā‎; qisṭāsā
Accusative	قُسْطَاسَيْنِ‎; قِسْطَاسَيْنِ qusṭāsayni‎; qisṭāsayni	الْقُسْطَاسَيْنِ‎; الْقِسْطَاسَيْنِ al-qusṭāsayni‎; al-qisṭāsayni	قُسْطَاسَيْ‎; قِسْطَاسَيْ qusṭāsay‎; qisṭāsay
Genitive	قُسْطَاسَيْنِ‎; قِسْطَاسَيْنِ qusṭāsayni‎; qisṭāsayni	الْقُسْطَاسَيْنِ‎; الْقِسْطَاسَيْنِ al-qusṭāsayni‎; al-qisṭāsayni	قُسْطَاسَيْ‎; قِسْطَاسَيْ qusṭāsay‎; qisṭāsay
Plural	basic broken plural diptote
Plural	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	قَسَاطِيس qasāṭīs	الْقَسَاطِيس al-qasāṭīs	قَسَاطِيس qasāṭīs
Nominative	قَسَاطِيسُ qasāṭīsu	الْقَسَاطِيسُ al-qasāṭīsu	قَسَاطِيسُ qasāṭīsu
Accusative	قَسَاطِيسَ qasāṭīsa	الْقَسَاطِيسَ al-qasāṭīsa	قَسَاطِيسَ qasāṭīsa
Genitive	قَسَاطِيسَ qasāṭīsa	الْقَسَاطِيسِ al-qasāṭīsi	قَسَاطِيسِ qasāṭīsi

References

Shahîd, Irfan (2008) “Latin Loanwords”, in Versteegh, Kees, editor, Encyclopedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics, volume 3, Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 7 relates the derivation from Latin cōnstāns as “surrounded by questions”
Fraenkel, Siegmund (1886) Die aramäischen Fremdwörter im Arabischen (in German), Leiden: E. J. Brill, page 198 about قسطاس rejects Heinrich Leberecht Fleischer’s derivation from Latin cōnstāns as semantically implausible and not supported by any Aramaic form
Fraenkel, Siegmund (1886) Die aramäischen Fremdwörter im Arabischen (in German), Leiden: E. J. Brill, pages 279–280 about سقنطار, then connecting to Latin sēcrētārius
Fraenkel, Siegmund (1886) Die aramäischen Fremdwörter im Arabischen (in German), Leiden: E. J. Brill, page 187 about قسطار, then connecting to Latin quaestor
Fraenkel, Siegmund (1892) “قسطاس”, in Wiener Zeitschrift für die Kunde des Morgenlandes‎^[1] (in German), volume 6, number 3, pages 258–262 finally connecting all; but in lack of an Aramaic form for ـس (-s) makes a dubious Coptic origin insinuation, the kind of which we nowadays distance ourselves from, as for أُسْقُف (ʔusquf) and س ج ن (s-j-n).
Freytag, Georg (1833) “سِنِقْطَار”, in Lexicon arabico-latinum praesertim ex Djeuharii Firuzabadiique et aliorum Arabum operibus adhibitis Golii quoque et aliorum libris confectum‎^[2] (in Latin), volume 2, Halle: C. A. Schwetschke, page 366b
Růžička, Rudolf (1909) “Konsonantische Dissimilation in den semitischen Sprachen”, in Beiträge zur Assyriologie und semitischen Sprachwissenschaft‎^[3] (in German), volume VI, number 4, Leipzig · Baltimore: J.C. Hinrichs’sche Buchhandlung · The Johns Hopkins Press, page 6 connects سِقْطِرِيّ (siqṭiriyy) to Latin sēcrētārius, and Růžička, Rudolf (1909) “Konsonantische Dissimilation in den semitischen Sprachen”, in Beiträge zur Assyriologie und semitischen Sprachwissenschaft‎^[4] (in German), volume VI, number 4, Leipzig · Baltimore: J.C. Hinrichs’sche Buchhandlung · The Johns Hopkins Press, page 24 سِقِنْطَار (siqinṭār) and سِنِقْطَار (siniqṭār) to Latin sēcrētārius after Fraenkel which Fraenkel had already dismissed.
Meninski, Franciszek à Mesgnien (1680) “سنقطار”, in Thesaurus linguarum orientalium, Turcicae, Arabicae, Persicae, praecipuas earum opes à Turcis peculiariter usurpatas continens, nimirum Lexicon Turkico-Arabico-Persicum‎^[5], Vienna, column 2687
Wiedemann, Eilhard (1906) Beiträge zur Geschichte der Naturwissenschaften. VI. Zur Mechanik und Technik bei den Arabern (Sitzungsberichte der Physikalisch-medizinischen Sozietät; 38)‎^[6] (in German), Erlangen: Junge & Sohn, published 1907, page 8
“skwsṭr”, in The Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon Project, Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College, 1986–