Royal male sovereigns and other political leaders. The Arabic term malik, “king,” appears thirteen times in the Qurʾān (its plural form mulūk appears twice), and is derived from the root m-l-k, which connotes possession (q.v.), having power or dominion over someone or something (see power and impotence ), or capacity, the ability to obtain something. Other qurʾānic terms relevant to this subject include mulk, “dominion, power or kingdom,” and malakūt, “dominion or kingdom.” The former, which is attested many times in the Qurʾān, may be associated either with God …

A learned person who has engaged in advanced study and acquired knowledge, generally in a particular field. The term ¶ ʿālim, most commonly used to designate “scholar” in Islamic societies, appears in the Qurʾān only as a description of God, in the sense of “knowing.” The plural ʿālimūn is applied sometimes to God (cf. q 21:51, 81) and sometimes to human beings (cf. q 12:44; 29:43; 30:22), while the plural form ʿulamāʾ, which appears twice in the Qurʾān (cf. q 26:197; 35:28), refers only to human beings. The Qurʾān also denotes knowledgeable or learned human beings by a numb…