"fatwa" not listed in Oxford English Dictionary

Cohen, Gerald Leonard gcohen at MST.EDU
Tue Sep 18 16:29:15 UTC 2012


In OED3 one finds "fetwa" but not "fatwa." A bit of revising is in order here, since not everyone would think of looking under "fetwa." For easy access I present the OED entry below.

Gerald Cohen

[OED3]:

FETWA, n.

Pronunciation:  /ˈfɛtwə/
Forms:  16–18 fetfa, 17 fetva, 18 fethwa, fetwa.
Etymology:  < Arabic fetwa (pronounced by the Turks fetfa ), < fatā , in 4th conj. to instruct by a legal decision (present participle muftī mufti n.1).

    A decision given (usually in writing) by a Mufti or other Muslim juridical authority.

1625   S. Purchas Pilgrimes II. ix. 1608   Fetfa's that is, Declarations, or Iudgements of the Muftee.
1704   J. Trapp Abra-Mulév. i. 2000   In less than half an hour, The black deposing Fetfa will be sign'd.
1803   F. W. Blagdon Paris as it Was II. lxviii. 334   A fetfa or diploma of the Grand Signior.
1836   E. W. Lane Acct. Manners & Customs Mod. Egyptians I. iv. 134   The Na′ib..desires the plaintiff to procure a fet′wa (or judicial decision) from the Moof′tee.
1882   Times 5 Apr. 9/4   The fetwa from the great Mahomedan Academy will be awaited with curiosity.

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org



More information about the Ads-l mailing list