Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition

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Marʿā
(9,855 words)

(a.), pasture. 1. In nomadic Arab life.

The word marʿā is used only twice in the Ḳurʾān, where it has the purpose of praising the divine power (LXXIX, 31, and LXXXVII,4). In ḥadīt̲h̲ there are also two uses of this substantive to be noted (cf. Wensinck, Concordance ); one of them touches incidentally on the problem of the exploitation of pastures, but ḥadīt̲h̲ is more explicit with reference to kalaʾ , dry and green forage. In fact, a tradition asserts that “the Muslims are united ( s̲h̲urakāʾ ) in three things: water, forage and fire”; it is the principle of the primitive collec…

Cite this page
Chelhod, J., Lambton, A.K.S. and Güriz, Adnan, “Marʿā”, in: Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition, Edited by: P. Bearman, Th. Bianquis, C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel, W.P. Heinrichs. Consulted online on 28 March 2024 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0675>
First published online: 2012
First print edition: ISBN: 9789004161214, 1960-2007



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