As regards the etymological root of the word in Semitic languages, the rarely used biblical Hebrew verb dahar designates the speedy movement of a horse and rider (Brown, 187; see also Muss-Arnolt, 1/243). The Arabic dictionaries refer to the use of the root d-h-r in the same context, giving definitions such as ‘falling down’ or ‘being thrown down’ (from a horse), as well as ‘attacking’ (Ibn Manẓūr, 1/1023–1025). Some early Arab lexicographers remark that the meaning of bad fortune in the root d-h-r is derived from the principal meaning of falling. The apparent negative connot…