Al Jallad Et Al 2013 The Arabic Toponyms

Al-Jallad, Ahmad, Robert Daniel, and Omar al-Ghul. 2013.
The Arabic toponyms and oikonyms

in 17. In Ludwig Koenen, Maarit Kaimo, Jorma Kaimio, and Robert Daniel (eds.), The
Petra Papyri II. Amman: American Center of Oriental Research. p. 23-48.
THE ARABIC TOPONYMS AND OIKONYMS IN 17
Note on transliteration of Semitic words and symbols used in the following discussion
As throughout this volume, the Semitic words rendered in Greek in 17 are mostly transliterated from the
Greek, but when the underlying Semitic is considered, the Semitic is transliterated directly. The toponym αλ-
Αβλα, for example, is listed below under “al-Abla” and is referred to as such throughout most of this volume;
but the underlying Arabic word is transliterated al-cablā’. Modern Arabic place names are usually transliterated
strictly, but English approximations are sometimes used, especially for better known places. The following
symbols are used:
* An asterisk precedes reconstructed phonemes and forms of words from which the Petraean
equivalents are thought to have developed. Divergence from attested forms is usually minor.
[] Phonetic realizations are given in square brackets.
≈ and = When Greek transcriptions and underlying Semitic (usually Arabic) words are set in correspon-
dence, the former denotes likely equivalence, the latter certain equivalence.
1. Preliminary Remarks
The Greek text of 17 contains many toponyms and oikonyms of Semitic origin.1 There are eight oikonyms
(i.e., two-term phrases beginning with Baith, Darath and Elliath), a number large enough to suggest that they
were commonly used in the region. Since the brothers owned many more fields than dwellings, however, there
are considerably more rural toponyms, nearly fifty in 17. The only Petra papyrus that contains a comparable
number of Semitic toponyms is Inv. 98v, while some already published texts contain a few more.
Most of the Semitic material in 17 is of Arabic origin, adding to the body of evidence that points to Arabic as
widely spoken in the Petra area.2 In addition to its own phonetic and morphological peculiarities, it is characterized
by a significant number of certain or possible borrowings from Aramaic: see below on al-Bassa, Khaphphath
and Khaphphi, Kisba, al-Louza, Math (ultimately from Akkadian), Marbas, and al-Nasba. Only those that retain
Aramaic morphology can with certainty be identified as loans, and these suggest a situation of bilingualism where
Aramaic was spoken alongside Arabic. The Semitic material also includes a survival from an earlier Canaanite
stratum, al-Sarōth. It is noteworthy that none of the toponyms contains Greek or Latin elements, though they are
found in two of the oikonyms, namely the second terms of Baith al-Kellar and Elliath Aphthonis.
The identification of the underlying Arabic and Aramaic is challenged by two limitations. The first is the
inadequacy of the Greek alphabet in rendering Semitic consonantism. There are, therefore, often several
equally plausible ways of interpreting the underlying Semitic word that has been transcribed into Greek letters.
The second is that the pre-Islamic Arabic dialect of Petra is as good as unknown from other sources. Hence,
1. The present discussion supersedes the remarks on the material by Daniel, Inv. 10 and al-Ghul, Preliminary Notes. A fuller treatment
of the Arabic in the Petra papyri will appear in Vol. V.
2. It seems possible that the Arabic of other Petra papyri reflects a slightly different dialect, though this awaits further analysis.
24 THE PETRA PAPYRI II
Classical Arabic lexicons, which draw on dialects spoken much later and hundreds of miles away, although
they are indispensable for our investigation, must be used with caution and cannot limit interpretation. Other
factors must be taken into consideration. Among them are the evidence provided by pre-Islamic Arabian and
Aramaic epigraphy and by Semitic material transcribed in Greek inscriptions and papyri, certain or possible
correspondences in meaning between a Semitic word and a word occurring in the papyrus itself, and medieval
as well as modern evidence pertaining to the toponymy of the Near East.
The toponyms and oikonyms contain a number of Semitic personal names. They may be surveyed in Section 3
and are discussed in Section 5. The text contains a few other Semitic personal names that are not components
of toponyms or oikonyms: Ϲαλαμάνιοϲ (l. 65), Οουε[ (l. 65), Αλμαϲια (l. 66), Οὐαρθῶϲ (l. 70), Κορε[ (l. 73),
and possible Ϲαδαλα (l. 164). These are not discussed here, but in the main commentary.
2. Phonological Observations
The following surveys how the scribe of 17 represents Arabic phonemes in the Greek alphabet. In addition to
listing the conventions used by the scribe, instances of phonetic variation are discussed. Each Greek transcription
is accompanied by a reconstructed form of the Arabic in this document, which we term Petraean Arabic. As
will be discussed in detail in Vol. V, the dialect of Petra has much in common with the Arabic that can be
reconstructed from the Greek of the preconquest Nessana papyri and the epigraphy of the southern Levant and
shares many features with medieval and modern dialects of Arabic.
2.1. Arabic Vowels, Diphthongs, Alif maqṣūrah, Conditioned Vowel Changes and Syncope, Epenthesis
Vowels. Etymological *a retains its original quality [a], represented by alpha, in most positions, as in χαφφα =
kaffah “vaulted structure” and δαραθ = dārat “courtyard house.” An [e] allophone of *a, represented by epsilon,
is encountered in pretonic open syllables when not contiguous with a back consonant or following r, as in μεναμ
= menām “place of rest” from *manām and βερα ≈ berāḥ “open tract of land” from *barāḥ. A possible [o]
allophone, represented by omikron, is found in two cases, see Conditioned Vowel Changes and Syncope.
Etymological *i seems to have been realized as [e], represented with epsilon, in most positions, as in the
kinship designations Εβαδ = cEbād from *cibād and Κουαβελ = qowābel from *qawābil. Iota is used once in a
closed syllable, κιϲβα = qiṣbā “reed, dam, irrigation channel.”
Etymological *u was realized as [o] in most environments, usually represented by omikron, γοναιναθ =
gonaynāt “small orchards” from *gunaynāt and οραϊεμ = ḫorayyem “projecting part of a mountain” from
*ḫurayyim, but once with omega, ωκ ≈ coqq from *cuqq “bitter water” (on this, see Conditioned Vowel Changes
and Syncope). Its original quality [u], however, seems to have obtained in stressed closed syllables, where the
phoneme is represented by omikron-upsilon, ϲουλλαμ = sullam “step” and ϲουφλη = suflē “lower.”
Etymological *ā is always represented by alpha, as in αραμ = ārām “field markers” and Αϲαφιρ = cAṣāfīr
“the Usfurites,” indicating that its original quality [a] remained unchanged.
Etymological *ī in most cases retained its original [i] quality, as in ϲιρα = ṣīrah “animal enclosure” and
ραφιδα = rafīdah “given.” Epsilon seems to signify the reflex of *ī in one relatively clear case, μαζεκα ≈ maḍ
ēqah “narrow area,” which comes from an original *maḍīqah. The [e] quality of this vowel may have been
conditioned by the preceding emphatic consonant. A possible unconditioned instance of epsilon representing the
reflex of *ī might be found in καλεβ, but only if this word should be connected with Arabic qalīb “well.”
Etymological *ū is twice represented with the digraph omikron-upsilon, in λουζα = lūzā “almond tree” and
in the personal name Αλεβουϲ = Ġālebūs. In one clear case, the reflex of *ū is represented by omega, namely
in the place name μεφωρ ≈ meḥfōr “furrowed area” from *maḥfūr, and possibly also omikron in αρομ ≈ ’arōm,
if this word should be connected with Arabic ’arūm “stump.”
INTRODUCTION: THE ARABIC TOPONYMS AND OIKONYMS IN 17 25
Diphthongs. By late Antiquity, the historic Greek diphthong alpha-iota was pronounced as [e], as is evidenced
by its frequent interchange with epsilon. This interchange, however, is never encountered with the representation
of Arabic *i, which seems to have been realized as [e] in the dialect of Petra. On the other hand, both epsilon
and alpha-iota are used to represent reflexes of the Arabic diphthong *ay [aj], for example, in Οϲαινα and Οϲενα
for *Ḥusaynah. This one-sided distribution suggests that the reflex of Arabic *ay was not qualitatively identical
with the reflex of Arabic *i [e]. Depending on our assumptions about scribal practice at Petra, one or more of
the following may explain our observations:
(i) The scribe sometimes approximated the foreign Arabic sound [aj] with epsilon, and, at other times, he
parsed it as a sequence of the vowel [a] and the glide [j]. Iota is the normal method of representing Arabic [j],
see below, p. 27.
(ii) The Arabic diphthong was moving towards [e], perhaps settling at an intermediate stage, [ae]. This caused
the scribe to vacillate when transcribing words containing this sequence, sometimes equating it with epsilon
and other times parsing it at as a sequence of [a] and [j].
(iii) The scribe was sometimes transcribing a non-native pronunciation of Arabic in which the diphthong was
monophthongized. This could have resulted from reading a name such as Λαιλα with a Greek pronunciation,
producing [lela], which was subsequently written as Λελα, or simply from the diction of someone with little
Arabic. (We thank Antti Arjava for the latter two suggestions).
A reflex of the Arabic diphthong *aw is encountered once, in the word μοφαα, from *mawfacah “elevated
area.” The use of omikron could indicate that this sequence collapsed to [o:] or could equally be an attempt on
the part of the scribe to approximate the Arabic diphthong [au], which had no equivalent in Greek, if αυ was
also realized as [o] or [av] in the Greek spoken in Petra.3 However, that the same word occurs in Inv. 8 spelled
as μαυφαα and μουφαα would seem to suggest that the scribe was attempting to approximate an underlying
Arabic [au] rather than [o:].
Alif maqṣūrah. Leaving personal names aside, alif maqṣūrah is reflected only once in 17, i.e., ϲουφλη
“lower,” which corresponds with the synonymous Classical Arabic suflā. The representation of the final vowel
with eta suggests that the reflex of Arabic ‫ ﻯ‬in this dialect was [e] or, more likely, [e:]. While the final vowel
in the personal name Λελα is presumably a reflex of the alif maqṣūrah as well, its representation by alpha does
not necessarily contradict this observation since the phonology of personal names could be drawn from another
dialect closer to Classical Arabic in this respect. A phonological explanation is also possible and perhaps more
likely. The ā realization of a word ending in etymological *ay (alif maqṣūrah) may result from dissimilation, as
the name contains a diphthong in the preceding syllable; accordingly *Laylay shifts to Laylā.
Conditioned Vowel Changes and Syncope. a > o. There are two possible cases in which an unstressed a
shifted to [o], perhaps under the influence of a neighboring labial consonant: the kinship designation Κουαβελ
= Qowābel from *Qawābil, and αρομ, if ≈ carom “heaps of grain” from *caram.
a > e. As mentioned above, pretonic *a appears to have been raised to [e] when not contiguous with a back
consonant or following r. If we assume that the ultima was stressed in βενι, from *banī, then this process can
account for the change of a > e there as well. Arabic *a is raised in the same environment in the word λαϲελει
of Inv. 98, which perhaps reflects an underlying l-caselī, from al-casaliyy “that which pertains to honey, honey-
colored.” In the latter two cases, the shift of a to e can be interpreted as the result of pretonic raising or regressive
assimilation.
Emphatic coloring. It appears that some of the emphatic consonants, excluding ṣ but including r, lower adjacent
vowels. Stressed short *u was lowered to [o] following the pharyngeal cayn in ωκ ≈ coqq “bitter water,” while
its original quality [u] was preserved in identical nonemphatic environments, see al-Souphlē and al-Soullam.
3. Gignac, Phonology, 226, 234.

Likewise, long *ū in μεφωρ ≈ meḥfōr (<*maḥfūr) was lowered to [o:], likely under the influence of the r. The
same explanation can also account for the use of epsilon to represent the reflex of *ī in μαζεκα (<*maḍīqah),
which was lowered to [e:], probably under the influence of the adjacent ḍ. It is tempting to explain the spelling of
original *bi’r or *bīr as βερ and βηρ in the same way; however, there are two clear instances of *ī which do not
seem to be affected by r, namely αλ-Αϲαφιρ = al-cAṣāfīr “the Usfurites” and ϲιρα = ṣīrah “animal enclosure.”
Syncope. Unstressed short vowels in a penultimate open syllable appear to have been syncopated. A clear
example is the spelling αρβαθ = ḫarbat from *ḫaribat “a ruin,” the construct state of Classical Arabic ḫaribah.
Another possible example is αγιαθ ≈ ḥagyāt, from *ḥagayāt “pools of water.”
Epenthesis. Unlike Classical Arabic, word final consonant clusters were sometimes resolved by the insertion
of an epenthetic vowel, e.g., κεϲεβ = qeseb from *qisb,̣ and καλεβ ≈ qaleb perhaps from *qalb. Before r, the
epenthetic vowel was a, as in Αμαρ ≈ cAmar from *cAmr, and νααρ = nahar from *nahr. The consonant cluster
in ϲαργ βενι = sarg benī “saddle-shaped ridge of the sons…” might suggest that epenthesis was optional, at least
when nouns were in construct.
2.2. Arabic Consonants
Plain vs. Emphatic Consonants. A peculiarity of most pre-Islamic Grecized Arabic is the use of the Greek
fricatives θ and δ to represent the plain dentals *t and *d as well as the interdentals *θ and *ð; of Greek χ for
*k; and of the Greek stops τ and κ for the emphatic stops *ṭ and *q, respectively. While aspiration was not a
phonemic feature in Arabic, the emphatic consonants were consistently unaspirated as a consequence of
pharyngealization. For this reason, it would seem that they were equated with the unaspirated Greek stops.4 The
Arabic plain voiceless consonants, on the other hand, were probably aspirated, and were perhaps on this basis
equated with the Greek aspirates/fricatives.5 This may be summarized as follows:6
Plain Arabic *t [th] - *k [kh] - *d [d] = Fricative θ - χ - δ

Emphatic Arabic *ṭ [tˁ] - *q [q] = Unaspirated τ - κ
Arabic *ḍ. The emphatic lateral *ḍ appears to have been represented by zeta in the word μαζεκα. This is
uncommon, but can be paralleled by Greek renderings of Arabic names in P. Ness III 28.2 (572) Ζαμζαμα, from
Arabic ḍamḍamah, and P. Ness III 37.30 Ζαβεου from ḍabec “hyena.”7 The normal transcription of this sound
in the representation of Arabic names in pre-Islamic Greek epigraphy is sigma,8 as in the frequently occurring
name Ραϲαουαθοϲ = Raḍāwat.9 What this may suggest about the phonetic realization of this phoneme in the
Petraean dialect will be discussed in Vol. V.
Arabic *q. Arabic *q is in all but two cases represented with kappa, as in ωκ ≈ coqq “bitter water” and αλ-
Κουαβελ = al-Qowābel “the Qabelites.” Gamma seems to represent Arabic *q, however, in two toponyms. Both
can be explained without appealing to a sound change q > g. The first is Ογβανα, which, with the Greek ending
removed, may transcribe *cUqbah or *cUqbān, the name of a kinship group. The scribe seems to substitute
gamma for kappa before a consonant, as he always spells ἔκλημψιϲ as ἔγλημψιϲ, and has πάγτον for πάκτον in
l. 163 (cf. Gignac, Phonology, 77–80). The second case is αλ-Γαϲαγεϲ. If this word is indeed from the root qṣṣ,
then it would be the only instance in 17 of an Arabic q rendered unambiguously with gamma.
4. For a different interpretation of this phenomenon in Aramaic, see Altheim―Stiehl, Die Araber III, 39–58.
5. The Damascus Psalm Fragment is an important exception to this practice, but the scribe of that document employed a unique
transliteration system for which no other parallels have been found.
6. Since no interdentals occur in these toponyms, we have omitted them from the table below.
7. A rather common personal name, attested over eighty times in Safaitic inscriptions.
8. See Westenholz, Pre-Islamic Arabic Dialect of Syria, 394–95.
9. For Ραϲαουαθοϲ, see PAES IIIA, index, p. 462.
Arabic laryngeals and uvular fricatives. The Arabic laryngeals and uvular fricatives are not represented.
These consonants can sometimes be detected by the presence of a hiatus between two vowels, as in νααρ =
nahar. Otherwise their presence must simply be assumed. While occasionally one finds Arabic *ḫ and *ġ
transcribed with χ and γ in the rendition of Arabic names in Greek inscriptions from the southern Levant,10 the
scribe of this text does not indicate Arabic *ḫ in the word αρβαθ = ḫarbat.
Arabic *g. Etymological *g, which is realized as ǧ (as in “gentle”) in Classical Arabic, is consistently
represented by gamma. It is impossible to determine its phonetic realization in the Arabic of Petra (and in other
pre-Islamic Arabic) on the basis of Classical Arabic alone. Hence, the letter is represented by an etymologically
neutral g rather than Classical ǧ.
Arabic *w and *y. Arabic *w is represented by omikron-upsilon, as in the kinship designations αλ-Κουαβελ
= al-Qowābel and αλ-Αουαουερ ≈ al-Ḥawāwer, and the glide [j] seems to be represented by iota, as in αγιαθ =
ḥagyāt and ελλιαθ = celliyyāt, although the latter case can be interpreted as a sequence of i and a, where the glide
is not independently represented but emerges purely from the transition to the second vowel from the first.
The following table summarizes the representation of Arabic consonants:
Petra Arabic Petra Arabic

Greek Arabic glyph Greek Arabic glyph
realization realization
β ‫ﺏ‬ b μ ‫ﻡ‬ m
γ ‫)?( ﻕ ﺝ‬ g(?) ν ‫ﻥ‬ n
δ ‫ﺩ‬ d ρ ‫ﺭ‬ r
ζ ‫ﺯ ﺽ‬ ẓ(?), z ϲ ‫ﺹ ﺵ ﺱ‬ s, š, ṣ
θ ‫ﺕ‬ t τ ‫ﻁ‬ ṭ
ι ‫ﻱ‬ y φ ‫ﻑ‬ f
κ ‫ﻕ‬ q χ ‫ﻙ‬ k
λ ‫ﻝ‬ l ου ‫ﻭ‬ w
3. Typology of the Toponyms
Features of the land

αβλα ≈ cablā’ “land with white stones”
αρομ ≈ ’arōm “stump” (if = Classical Arabic ’arūm)
βαϲϲα = baṣṣah “waterlogged ground”
βερ / βηρ = ber / bēr “spring, well, cistern”
βερα ≈ berāḥ “wide tract of land”
γαϲαγεϲ ≈ gaṣāgeṣ, perhaps the plural of qaṣqaṣ “breast,” used metaphorically of a hill
καλεβ ≈ qaleb “choice part” or qalīb “well”
μαζεκα ≈ maḍēqah “narrow piece of land”
μεφωρ ≈ meḥfōr “furrowed area”
μοφαα ≈ mawfacah “elevated area”
νααρ = nahar “torrent, gully”
ϲαργ ≈ sarg “saddle” of a ridge or hill
ϲαρωθ ≈ ṣarrōt “narrow place”
ωκ ≈ coqq “bitter water”
10. Chi represents Arabic ḫ only rarely, cf., e.g., PAES IIIA, index, p. 464 s.nn. Χαιρανηϲ, Χαιροϲ.
Terms for plots of land, farms and farming

αραμ = ārām “field markers”
αρομ ≈ c arom “heaps of grain” (if = Classical Arabic c aram)
γανναθ = gannat “orchard”
γοναιναθ = gonaynāt “small orchards”
μαθ = māt “piece of land”
μαλ = māl “property”
μαρβαϲ = marbaṣ “threshing floor”
ναϲβα = naṣbah “farm, plantation”
ραφιδα = rafīdah “(land) given as a gift”
ϲαραμ = ṣarām “harvest”
ϲιρα = ṣīrah “enclosure for animals”
χαφφαθ/χαφφι = kaffat / kaffī “vaulted structure(s) (for storage),” or “flat piece(s) of land”
Personal names
Αλεβουϲ (f.) = Ġālebūs
Αμαρ (m.) ≈ cAmar
Γαρουαν (m.) = Garwān
Καρναι (m.) = Qarnai
Λελα (f.) = Laylā
Ορϲιατ, probably a personal name (m. or f.)
Οϲαινα/Οϲενα (f.) = Ḥosaynah
Φοϲεα (f.) = Foṣayyah
Names of social groups

Αλ Ϲαρουα ≈ Āl Sarwah “the clan (or similar) of Sarwah”
αλ-Αουαουερ ≈ al-Ḥawāwer “the Hawarites”
αλ-Αϲαφιρ = al- cAṣāfīr “the Usfurites”
Βενι [NN] = benī “sons,” followed by the (now lost) name of the eponymous ancestor of a tribe
αλ-Εβαδ = al-cEbād “the Abdites”
αλ-Κουαβελ = al-Qowābel “the Qabelites”
Ογβανα, an area, probably named after a tribe whose eponymous ancestor was a certain cUqba or cUqbān
Miscellaneous
αγλα ≈ ḥaglah “female partridge”
αρβαθ = ḫarbat “ruin(s)”
λουζα = lūzā “almond tree”
4. Greek Terms and Arabic Equivalents
The text of 17 sets the Greek and Arabic terms for houses and apartments in direct juxtaposition, making the
following equivalences self-evident: αὐλή = δαρα(θ), οἶκοϲ = βαιθ and ὑπερῷον = ελλια(θ). The same applies to
the Greek and Arabic words denoting a dry garden or orchard, ξηροκήπιον = γαννα(θ). When the meaning of
an Arabic word is the same as that of a Greek word used elsewhere in the text, the equivalence is less obvious
and can only be inferred. Two such links, ῥύαξ = νααρ and ἁλώνιον = μαρβαϲ, are close to certain, that of
ὁροθεϲίαι = αραμ likely, and that of θημοβολών = χαφφα(θ) possible. Though 17 does not contain the words
κελλάριοϲ or κελλάριον, the one or the other is implied by the loan κελλαρ. The following table summarizes
this information.
Greek Arabic Translation

ἁλώνιον μαρβαϲ / marbaṣ threshing floor
αὐλή δαρα(θ) / dārah courtyard house or house complex
θημοβολών χαφφα(θ) / kaffah grain depository
κελλάριοϲ or κελλάριον κελλαρ / kellar (a loan) cellarer or storage room
ξηροκήπιον γαννα(θ) / gannah dry garden or orchard
οἶκοϲ βαιθ / bayt first floor unit or house
ὁροθεϲίαι αραμ / ārām field markers
πω[μάριον ? γαννα(θ) / gannah orchard
ῥύαξ νααρ / nahar torrent or gully
ὑπερῷον ελλια(θ) / celliyyah second floor unit
5. The Individual Toponyms and Oikonyms
al-Abla
τόπου αλ-Αβλα ll. 80, 81, 146, 148, 151
αβλα ≈ cablā(’) “land with white stones” (Lane, 1942a; Groom, 31; Lisān XI 421).
al-Agiath
τό(πον) αλ-Αγιαθ l. 173
αλ-Αγιαθ: probably “the pools of water.”
αγιαθ ≈ ḥag(i)yāt. It is tempting to see in αγιαθ one of two synonymous and, at least in Classical Arabic,
homophonous roots ḥǧw and ḥǧy. Petraean Arabic αγιαθ probably renders ḥagyāt,11 which could be a plural of
ḥaǧāh “a pool of water, itself, such as is left by torrents” (Lane, 523c). The plural provided in Lane is h ̣aǧawāt,
but since the root ḥǧw has a by-form ḥǧy, plural ḥagayāt is certainly plausible.12 Since it appears that short
vowels are sometimes syncopated in the Arabic of Petra (see above, p. 26), αγιαθ = ḥagyāt is an expected reflex
of an earlier *ḥagayāt.
al-Agla
[τό(πον) ]α̣ θ αλ̣ -Αγ̣λα l. 18
αλ-Αγλα: probably “the female partridge” or possibly “the female calf.”
αγλα ≈ ḥaglah or perhaps caglah. The former, corresponding with Arabic ḥaǧlah “female partridge,” seems
likely, but the latter, which would be a variant pronunciation of ciǧlah “female calf,” is possible.
For ḥaǧlah “female partridge,” see Lane, 520c. The Hebrew cognate ḥāglâ (Koehler—Baumgartner I, 291)
occurs in the name of an ancient town near Jericho, Βηθαγλα/Beth Ḥagla, which in Greco-Roman times was
thought to have been the site of the Biblical “threshing floor of Atad,” where Joseph and others mourned over the
body of Jacob, although Gen. 50:10 locates it “beyond the Jordan.” For this identification, cf. Eusebius, Onom.
11. The ending is more likely to be the feminine plural -āt rather than the feminine singular -at since we do not expect representation of
the final -t of such a feminine substantive in status absolutus—to judge from the second terms in Math Osaina and Khaphphi Phosea.
For the same reason, we understand Gonainath as a plural rather than as a feminine singular.
12. On the confusion of w and y, see note 96 below.
8.17–20, Ἅλων Αταδ—νῦν καλεῖται Βηθαγλα,13 similarly a legend on the Madaba Map.14 The word ḥaǧlah is
found in the Jordanian place names Wādī al-Ḥaǧal and Maḫāḍat Ḥaǧlah (Jordan. OSN , 154).
For iǧlah “female calf,” see Lane, 1964b. This word is used in the Jordanian place name cAǧlūn.15 Papyri from
c
the J udaean Desert contain Semitic cognates in the second term (a dual) of the place name Maḥoz cEglatayn
and in the personal name Αγλα (var. Εγλα).16 Perhaps also related is the cEglâ that appears to be a Moabite place
name in the Hebrew Bible (Is. 15:5, Jer. 48:34).17 If αγλα reflects caglah, then the a in the first syllable could
indicate that the word was drawn from a Northwest Semitic language rather than Arabic.
al-Akhbar: see Baith al-Akhbar.
Al: probably a word signifying a kinship group (not to be confused with the article al-), see Mal Amar Al
Saroua.
Alebous: a personal name, see Elliath Alebous.
Amar: a personal name, see Mal Amar Al Saroua.
al-Aouaouer: see Khaphphath al-Aouaouer.
Aphthonis: a personal name, see Elliath Aphthonis.
Aram
τό(πον) Αραμ αλ-Αc̣α̣φιρ l. 90
τό(πον) Αραμ̣ | [ ll. 92–93 or Αραϊ[ ]|[18
τό(πον) Αραμ αλ-Βηρ ἤτοι Αρα̣ [μ c. 8 ] | [ c. 9 ]ηη̣ ϲ̣ ll. 88–89
τό(πον) Αραμ αλ-Κουαβελ ll. 8 and 165
αραμ: probably “land markers” or, more specifically, “field markers.”
αραμ = ārām, the plural of ’iram, to which Lane, 51b assigns the meaning “way-mark, pile of stones marking
land.” It is tempting to bring this into connection with the phrase πηχθεῖϲαι ὁροθεϲίαι, “fixed boundaries,”
repeatedly used in 17 (see above, p. 17). Accordingly, ’iram and its plural ārām would be the equivalent of
ὁροθεϲία, or synonymous ὅροϲ and ὅριον, and their plurals in the sense of “field marker(s).” Other explanations
of αραμ seem less likely.19
The same word might also occur in l. 162 τὰ ὑποκάτω Αρ̣ [, see comm. ad loc.
Aram al-Asaphir
τό(πον) Αραμ αλ-Αc̣α̣φιρ l. 90
Αραμ αλ-Αc̣α̣φιρ: probably “the field markers of the Usfurites.”
13. Eusebius adds: ὅπερ ἑρμηνεύεται τόποϲ κύκλου διὰ τὸ ἐκεῖ κοπτομένουϲ τὸν Ἰακὼβ κυκλοῦν, “which means ‘place of the circle’ since
those who mourned over Jacob formed a circle.” He ignores αγλα as “female partridge,” finding that another word, no doubt Aramaic
aglā “circle” (Sokoloff, JPA, 187), allowed for a connection with the mourning over the body of Jacob.
c
14. Alliata, Legends, 55, no. 19 Ἅλων Αταθ ἡ νῦν Βηθαγλα. Cf. TIR Iudaea Palaestina, 79; Schmitt, Siedlungen Palästinas, 98–99.
15. See al-Macani, Ortsnamen, no. 284 with further literature.
16. See Cotton—Greenfield, Babatha’s Patria, 126–27; P. Yadin II, pp. 8–9.
17. See P. Yadin II, pp. 8–9.
18. Αραϊ[]|[ or Αραϊ[ ]|[: so read (with diaeresis above iota) on the original ca. 1998 by M. Lehtinen and R. Daniel.
19. Earlier the team thought that αραμ might reflect ḥaram “precinct,” but this word is attested only in sacral senses (Lane, 554c–55a;
Hoftijzer―Jongeling, 405 s.v. ḥrm3). Consideration was also given to ḥarīm “place where is thrown the earth that has been dug out of
a well” (Lane, 556a), but the second alpha in αραμ hardly reflects the ī in ḥarīm.
For αραμ = ārām, see above.

αϲαφιρ = caṣāfīr, the plural of cuṣfūr “bird.” Probably al-cAṣāfīr in 17 is the name of a kinship group, for
αραμ “field markers” suggests that the second term refers to former owners of the land. The tribe, clan or family
called al-cAṣāfīr will have traced itself back to a man called cUṣfūr. Arabic frequently designates such groups, as
in the present case, by putting the name of the eponymous ancestor in the plural prefixed by the definite article.
Identically patterned designations of kinship groups apparently occur in the second terms of other toponyms
in 17, see Aram al-Kouabel, Darath al-Ebad and Kaphphath al-Aouaouer. Designations of this type, employing
the definite article αλ- = al-, should not be confused with those that use the substantive αλ = āl, though they are
identical in Greek transcription. The substantive means “clan, tribe, family” (Lane, 127a–b) and is followed by
the name of the kinship group’s eponymous ancestor in the singular, not the plural.20 For a likely instance of āl
in 17, see Mal Amar Al Saroua. The incomplete instances of βενι = benī (Classical banī) in 17 are yet another
type of tribal designation. The word means “sons” and in reference to kinship groups is followed by the singular
of the name of the eponymous ancestor, see below, Beni.
al-caṣāfīr as a common noun is considerably less likely in 17, even if Ber al-Asaphir (see below), should it
mean “the spring of the birds,” would resemble modern toponyms of the type cAin al-cAṣāfīr.21 However, Aram
al-Asaphir is far better understood as “the field markers of the Usfurites” than as “the field markers of the
birds,” and al-cAṣāfīr should have the same sense in both toponyms, especially since both places were located
in or close to the village of Serila.
Aram al-Bēr
τό(πον) Αραμ αλ-Βηρ ἤτοι Αρα̣ [μ c. 8 ] | [ c. 9 ]ηη̣ ϲ̣ ll. 88–89
Αραμ αλ-Βηρ: probably the “field markers of (a piece of land distinguished by) the spring (or well or
cistern).”
For αραμ, see above.
βηρ = bēr, a reflex probably of *bi’r or *bīr, both meaning “spring, well or cistern.”22 Probably βερ in Βερ
αλ-Αϲαφιρ is an orthographic variant of βηρ by the scribe of 17, who uses ε and η interchangeably elsewhere in
the text.23 For another possible meaning of βερ, see below, Ber al-Asaphir.
Aram al-Kouabel
τό(πον) Αραμ αλ-Κουαβελ ll. 8 and 165
Αραμ αλ-Κουαβελ: probably “the field markers of the Qabelites.”
For αραμ = ārām, see above. On αλ-Κουαβελ = al-Qowābel, the name of a kinship group, see below.
Arbath Garouan
Αρβαθ Γαρουαν τὸ̣ π̣ ω|[ ll. 107–108
Αρβαθ Γαρουαν probably means “the ruin(s) of Garwān.”
αρβαθ = ḫarbat, probably to be connected with ḫaribah “a ruin” (Lane, 716c).24 The form underlying αρβαθ,
20. The following examples may illustrate the difference. The substantive āl is followed by a singular of a personal name Qābil in the
Saudi Arabian tribal designation Āl Qābil “the tribe of Qābil” (Ğāsir, Mucğam II, 639), while the article precedes a plural of the same
name in the Jordanian designation al-Qablān “the Qabelites” (Oppenheim, Beduinen II, 199). The αλ-Κουαβελ = al-Qowābel in 17
(see below) is based on another plural of the name Qābil and likewise means “the Qabelites.”
21. See, e.g., Jordan. OSN, 51–52.
22. For βηρ equated with φρέαρ, cf. Hesych. B 168 βηρ· τὸ φρέαρ· Ϲύροι; Steph. Byz., Ethn. 167.8 Βηρυτόϲ, πόλιϲ Φοινίκηϲ, ἐκ μικρᾶϲ
μεγάλη, κτίϲμα Κρόνου. ἐκλήθη δὲ διὰ τὸ εὔυδρον· βηρ γὰρ τὸ φρέαρ παρ’ αὐτοῖϲ.
23. He writes βαθουργεθήν for βαθουργηθέν several times, and ἀϲτηγάϲτου for ἀϲτεγάϲτου twice; cf. Gignac, Phonology, 242–46.
24. Earlier we thought that αρβαθ might be ’arbāḍ, plural of rabaḍ “place to lie down,” used of a lodging for people or animals (Lane,
1012a–b), but in pre-Islamic Greek inscriptions and papyri of the Southern Levant, Arabic ḍ is reflected mostly by sigma or occasionally
zeta (see above, p. 26).
then, is either ḫarbat, the singular in construct state, or ḫarbāt, the sound plural of the same word (on the
syncope of the unstressed short i in both cases, see above, p. 26). Ḫirbat is an extremely common first term in
toponyms throughout the Near East today.25
Γαρουαν = Ǧarwān, corresponding to the personal name Ǧarwān, based on ǧrw “puppy.”26 It is a fairly
common personal name today and found in place names such as Ḫirbat Ǧarwān and Wādī al-Ǧarwān.27
The plot Arbath Garouan, though probably located among grainfields in the Ogbana area (see l. 104 comm.),
might have been an orchard since it is possibly followed by τὸ̣ π̣ ω|[μάριον “the orchard” in apposition. Another
orchard in Ogbana is suggested by the toponym Γαν[ναθ ] in l. 182, see below.
The name of the plot indicates that it was once owned by a certain Garwān. Presumably the ruins are those
of a house he once owned or of a structure of some sort that had existed there earlier still.
al-Arom
αλ-Αρομ l. 108
The toponym seems to mean “the heaps of grain” or “the stump.”
αρομ ≈ either c arom, corresponding to Classical c aram “heaps of grain” (Lane, 2025b), or ’arōm corresponding
to Classical ’arūm “stump of a tree” (Lane, 51b). The former would suit the grainfields in the Ogbana area
(where al-Arom was located). Some of the plots in Ogbana, however, may have been orchards (see above on
Arbath Garouan), and αλ-Αρομ as “the stump” would suit either grainfields or orchards.
al-Asaphir: the name of a kinship group, see Aram al-Asaphir, Ber al-Asaphir.
Baith
τὸν οἶκον τὸν καλού[με]|[νον Βαιθ c. 7 γαμιαῖον καὶ τὰ αὐτοῦ ξηροκ]ήπ[ε]ι̣α̣ ll. 47–48
[τὸν οἶκον Βαιθ c. 7 μετὰ τοῦ ἔνδοθ]εν αὐτοῦ κοι[τῶνοϲ] l. 49
τ̣[οῦ οἴκου Βαιθ αλ-Α]χ̣ βαρ l. 50
[τὸν οἶκον] | [Βαιθ c. 12 ]ε̣ [][][ο]υ μαγιρ̣ ε̣[ί]ου l. 51–52
οἴκου Βαιθ αλ-[]β[] l. 57
τοῦ οἴκου Βαιθ αλ-Α̣ χβ̣ [αρ] l. 113
τὸν οἶκον τὸν | καλούμενον Βαιθ αλ-Αχβαρ ἤτοι Βαιθ αλ-Κελλαρ ll. 126–27
[τ]ὸ̣ ν̣ οἶκον Βαιθ αλ-Μεναμ l. 129
τὸν οἶκον̣ Βαιθ αλ-Α̣ χβαρ l. 190
τὸ̣ κο̣ προθ̣ έ̣ϲ̣ιο̣ ̣ ν̣ τ̣ὸ [ὀ]πί[ϲω] τ̣οῦ κοιτῶνοϲ Βαιθ αλ-Αχβαρ l. 199
βαιθ = bayt.28 In 17 the word means “dwelling unit, room” (or occasionally “house”), corresponding with
Greek οἶκοϲ in the passages cited above. Both words stand in contrast to δαραθ and its Greek equivalent αὐλή,
which are used in 17 of a house complex (see Darath al-Ebad).
Baith al-Akhbar
τ̣[οῦ οἴκου Βαιθ αλ-Α]χ̣ βαρ l. 50, of a dwelling in Petra, as also in l. 127
οἴκου Βαιθ αλ-Α̣ χβ̣ [αρ] l. 113, of a dwelling in the village of Serila, as also in ll. 190 and 199
Βαιθ αλ-Αχβαρ: probably “the very large first floor unit” (when used of the dwelling inside a house complex
in Petra) but “the very large house” (when used of the dwelling outside a house complex in the village of
Serila).
25. See OEANE III, 294–95, s.v. Khirbeh.

26. See Zubayr, ’Asmā’ I, 310.
27. See Jordan. OSN, 34, 184.
28. On the t rendered by θ, see above, p. 26.
βαιθ = bayt, see above.

αχβαρ = ’akbar. The Petra papyri, in conformity with the conventions of transcribing the pre-Islamic Arabic
of southern Palestine into Greek, use chi to represent Arabic kāf and not ḥā’ (see above, p. 26). This restricts
the second term to the adjective ’akbar.29 The form is the elative, which can have the force of the comparative
or the superlative or, as probably in the present case, be used absolutely (“very large”). An original bayt al-
’akbar probably does not refer to the house of a family elder or chief, as the team once thought,30 since ’akbar
is not attested as a substantive (Lane, 2587a). The phrase, rather than consisting of a construct chain, is a noun
followed by an adjective. The article that is normally expected also before the noun would be absent, but this
phenomenon can be paralleled, for example, by ’arḍ al-muqaddisah “holy land” and ṭabīcah al-’insāniyyah
“human nature” in Middle Arabic,31 and sū’ əl-caṭī’ “the old market” in modern Damascene Arabic.32 The bayt
al-’akbar as “the very large first floor unit/house” may be compared to the designation of the house complex in
Serila as “the large (μεγάλη) courtyard house (αὐλή) with watchtower” (ll. [32], 117, 194).
Baith al-Kellar
τὸν οἶκον τὸν | καλούμενον Βαιθ αλ-Αχβαρ ἤτοι Βαιθ αλ-Κελλαρ ll. 126–27
Βαιθ αλ-Κελλαρ: “the room/house of the cellarius” or “of (i.e., distinguished by) the storage room.”
κελλαρ = kellar, a loan from cellarius/κελλάριοϲ or cellarium/κελλάριον.33 It is noteworthy that the Bayt
al-Kellar had its own κέλλα, l. 129, the only instance of the word in 17. On κέλλα, see above, p. 11.
Baith al-Menam
[τ]ὸ̣ ν̣ οἶκον Βαιθ αλ-Μεναμ l. 129
Βαιθ αλ-Μεναμ: Arabic “the room/house of sleep.”
μεναμ = menām, a reflex of *manām, a verbal noun of nwm “to sleep” (Lane, 3040a). The homophonous
locative noun manām “place of sleep”34 would make the sense of this oikonym redundant: “the room/house of
the place for sleep.” If the Baith al-Menam was a separate structure in the house complex that once belonged to
Valens, son of Romanos, it will have served as its main sleeping quarters.
al-Bassa
τό(πον) αλ-Βαϲϲα l. 162
βαϲϲα ≈ baṣṣah, probably from the Semitic root bṣṣ. The word should probably be connected with Aramaic
bāṣā, which, like its Hebrew cognate biṣṣâ, means “waterlogged ground.”35 No match for βαϲϲα as close as these
can be found in the Arabic dictionaries. An Arabic derivation, nevertheless, should not be ruled out, since the
Arabic root bṣṣ, the basic meaning of which is “to shine, glisten” (Lane, 209c–10a), gave rise to words pertaining
to the glistening of verdure such as the first terms of baṣṣaṣa al-šaǧar “the budding of leaves on a tree” and
’abaṣṣat al-’ardu “the first sprouting of plants on a land” (Lisān, s.v.). Possibly αλ-Βαϲϲα of 17 is identical with
the verdant area that today is called al-Baṣṣah in Wadi Musa (see below, pp. 49–50). It is watered by a spring,
and the ground in the vicinity of that spring is waterlogged today, which suits the first of the interpretations of
29. Hence we now consider a connection with Semitic ḥbr “comrade” unlikely.
30. Koenen, Carbonized Archive, 188; al-Ghul, Preliminary Notes, 161.
31. See Blau, Grammar of Christian Arabic, 365.
32. On the historical background of this construction, see Pat-El, Semitic Definite Article, and the bibliography there.
33. For the Palestinian Aramaic loan qlryn, see Sokoloff, JPA, 495–96; cf. Schall, Fremdwörter im Syrischen, 104.
34. As in manām, a word for the traditional Bedouin tent for sleeping; see Dalman, Arbeit und Sitte VI, 16, 22, 44.
35. For both, see Koehler—Baumgartner I, 147.
the name given above. Another, larger area called al-Baṣṣah is located west of Amman, between Wādī al-Sīr
and Irāq al-’Amīr. It too is very verdant and well watered. Its name is thought to mean “moist place,”36 which
seems to reflect the same understanding of the word.
Beni [NN]
τό(πον) Ϲ̣ αργ Βενι [] l. 184
βεν[]ο̣ υ l. 167
βενι = benī, Classical banī “sons,” also in Inv. 98v Μαθ Βενι [. In these toponyms, the word forms a part of
tribal designations, “the sons of NN (the eponymous ancestor).” Cf. postconquest P. Ness. III 60–67 (Arabic-
Greek bilinguals), 92 and 93, where the Greek word is abbreviated, as in 60.12 β(ανι) Ϲααδ β(εν) Μαλεχ “the
sons of Sacd ibn Mālik.” For other ways that the Arabic of 17 designates kinship groups, see Aram al-Asaphir.
For the personal name that might have followed in l. 184, see Sarg Beni.
Ber al-Asaphir
τ]ο̣ ῦ̣ τό(που) Βερ [α]λ̣ -Α̣ c̣α̣φιρ l. 177
Βερ [α]λ̣ -Α̣ c̣α̣φιρ: probably “the spring (or well or cistern) of the Usfurites,” see Aram al-Asaphir.
βερ ≈ bēr “spring, well or cistern,” since βερ is probably an orthographic variant of βηρ, see above on Aram
al-Bēr. On αλ-Αϲαφιρ as the name of a kinship group, see Aram al-Asaphir.
al-Bera
τό(πον) αλ-Βερα Μαλ Χαφφα[]|[]α̣ ρ̣ l. 94–95
τό(πον) αλ-Βερ̣ α καὶ | [ c. 7 ] αλ-Ϲαρωθ ll. 104–5
τό(πον) ` Ϲ̣ α̣ λ̣ϲ̣α̣λ̣ ´ αλ-Βερα l. 168
α]λ-Βε[ρα fr. 55 (likely)
βερα ≈ berāḥ, Classical barāḥ, which denotes a tract of land. According to the sources cited by Lane, 182a,
such a tract was characterized as being devoid of crops or trees. Since βερα occurs in passages that probably all
deal with grainfields, the term might have distinguished open grainfields from tree-bearing areas nearby.
Since 17 uses βηρ (and probably also βερ) for Arabic ber/bēr, meaning “spring, well or cistern” (see above,
Aram al-Ber), we are less inclined than we once were to regard βερα as the rare feminine by-form bīrah or as
a borrowing from the Aramaic cognate bīr accompanied by the suffixed Aramaic article -ā. A connection with
Aramaic bīrā “the fortress” would be possible,37 but we do not expect a fortress here.
al-Bera Mal Khaphpha[—]ar

τό(πον) αλ-Βερα Μαλ Χαφφα[ ]|[]α̣ ρ̣ ll. 94–95
αλ-Βερα Μαλ Χαφφα[]|[]α̣ ρ̣: probably “the tract of land belonging to Khaffa[—.” Earlier we divided
the first three elements as αλ-Βερ Αμ αλ-Χαφφα and understood this as “the well that is the mother of (i.e.,
located at) the flat piece of land.”38 While this agrees with a standard pattern in the current toponymy of the
region,39 the articulation now proposed not only rids us of the phonological problem of αμ postulated for Arabic
36. See al-Macani, Ortnsamen, 75–76.

37. See A. Lemaire and H. Lozachmeur, “Bīrāh/Bīrtā en Araméen,” Syria 64 (1987) 262–66. Cf. P. Cair. Zen. I 59003.13 ἐν βίρται τῆϲ
Ἀμμανίτιδοϲ; P. Euphrates I 2.2 βειρθα Ὀκβάνων (see below on Ogbana).
38. Daniel, Inv. 10, 335–36, reporting that locals understand Ber Am al-Khaffat as “the well that is the mother of (i.e., that distinguishes)
the flat piece of land,” and suggesting that it might be the place called Ǧuwairat ’Umm al-Ḫafā in Wadi Musa since that pit (ǧuwaira)
is a well that might be the ber of Ber Am al-Khaffat and since Am al-Khaffat sounds like ’Umm al-Ḫafā.
39. Cf. Jordan. OSN, 382 for Bīr ’Umm al- cAmad “the well that is the mother of the columns” (i.e., the columns remaining at this ancient
site); 383–84 for similarly patterned Bīr ’Umm al-Fūs, Bīr ’Umm al-Ḫunfūs, Bīr ’Umm al-Qulaib; and 396 for Bīr ’Umm al-Ṭarāf ī and
Bīr ’Umm al-Zalat.
’umm “mother,”40 but also has the advantage that the first two terms can be paralleled in other toponyms in 17.
These are βερα ≈ berāḥ “open tract” (see al-Bera) and μαλ = māl “property” (see Mal). More problematic is
incomplete Χαφφα[. What is preserved resembles Χαφφαθ (see below), which seems to mean “vaulted structure
(presumably for storage)” or “flat piece of land.” But if Χαφφα[θ is restored in l. 94, the toponym would indicate
that the tract of land (βερα ≈ berāḥ) belongs (μαλ/māl) to such a structure or to a piece of flat land. Since this
seems difficult in itself and μαλ is usually followed by a personal name, it could be that Χαφφα[ is rather a
component of a personal name. As is discussed in greater detail in the commentary, ll. 94–95 cannot be read
and restored as Χαφφα[θ αλ-Αουαου]ε̣ρ̣ to agree with the name of the plot in ll. 184–85.
Darath al-Ebad
ἐν Δαραθ αλ-Εβαδ ll. 28, 110–11
ἐν α̣ ὐ̣λῇ κ̣ [αλο]υ̣ μένῃ Δαραθ αλ-Εβαδ l. 192
Δαραθ αλ-Εβαδ: “the courtyard house of the cAbdites.”
δαραθ = dārat, the construct state of dārah (Lane, 931a–b). As opposed to βαιθ = bayt “room or house,”
the terms dār and dārah (masculine and feminine forms of the same word) are used of a courtyard house or a
complex of buildings surrounded by a wall. Line 192 equates this dārah with Greek αὐλή.41
εβαδ = cebād, Classical cibād, the broken plural of cabd “slave” or “servant.” Here plural cIbād is probably the
name of a kinship group that traced itself back to a man called cAbd (see above on Aram al-Asaphir).42
al-Ebad: probably the name of a family or tribe, see Darath al-Ebad.
Elliath
τὸ ὑ[περῷον] | Ελλια̣ θ Αλεβουϲ ll. 194–95
τὸ̣ ἐν Δα|ρ̣ αθ̣ [α]λ-Εβαδ ὑπερῷον καλούμενον Ελλια ̣θ Αφθονιϲ ll. 110–11
[τ]ὸ ὑπερῷον τὸ καλούμ[ενον Ελλιαθ] | Καρναι ll. 201–2
ελλιαθ = celliyyat, Classical cilliyyat, construct of cilliyyah “upper-story quarters” (Lane, 2125a). In all three
passages, ὑπερῷον corresponds with this Arabic word just as it is used to translate the Hebrew cognate călīyyâ
in the Septuagint.43 On ὑπερῷον, see above, pp. 21–22.
Elliath Alebous
τὸ ὑ[περῷον] | Ελλια̣ θ Αλεβουϲ ll. 194–95
Ελλια̣ θ Αλεβουϲ: cElliyyat Ġālebūs means “the upper-story dwelling of Alebous.”
ελλιαθ = celliyyat, see above.
Αλεβουϲ ≈ Ġālebūs, probably a woman’s name based on the man’s name Αλεβοϲ.44 The latter, which probably
40. Although ’amm is a current pronunciation of ’umm “mother” in some modern Levantine dialects, there is no evidence for the shift of
short u to short a in Greco-Arabic documents (including 17 and Inv. 98v). They suggest rather that the Greek transcription of ’umm
should begin with an o-class vowel. Accordingly, the word is rendered ουμ and ομμου in women’s names structured “mother of NN”
(so-called kunya names, cf. EI2 V, 395–96) such as Ουμ Αυατ (PAES IIIA 48) and Ομμου NN several times in postconquest P. Lond.
IV 1447 (see P. Lond. IV, index, p. 562) and in CPR XXII 34.25, 29.
41. On αὐλή as “courtyard house” and its correspondence with Arabic dārah as well as its Aramaic cognate, see above, p. 2, and Daniel,
Architectural Orientation, pp. 10–22. For αὐλή = dār in papyri of the early Islamic period, as in P. Lond. IV 1362.1 (710), see Morelli,
Legname, palazzi e moschee, 183–85.
42. We are less inclined than we once were to regard cibād as having the religious sense of “servants (of God),” see Daniel, Inv. 10, 338;
al-Ghul, Names, 70.
43. See Hatch—Redpath, Concordance II, 1411b.
44. The team earlier thought that the name might be αλ-Εβουϲ, but this seems less likely now. Although personal names are commonly
formed from the root cbs “austere, severe,” the personal name cEbūs (with or without the article) is unattested. Since, however, the root
gave rise to cabūs “lion,” an animal that commonly figures in pre-Islamic onomastics, the possibility that αλ-Εβουϲ is a personal name
meaning “the lion” cannot be excluded with certainty.
Grecizes Arabic Ġālib “victor, conqueror,” is well attested in the Levant.45 To its stem will have been added
-οῦϲ instead of -οϲ. This originally feminine ending, at home especially in Asia Minor,46 typically terminates
the names of women in this region; cf. 1 and 18 Ϲτεφανοῦϲ, Inv. 6a Θααιοῦϲ,47 and Inscr. Pal. Tert. 1a, index,
428–33, s.nn. Ἀβδοῦϲ, Ζεβινθοῦ (probably for Ζεβινθοῦϲ), Μαρθοῦϲ, Οὐαρδοῦϲ and Οὐβοδοῦϲ. The same
ending occasionally is found in masculine proper names, in Egypt quite commonly so,48 but no certain instance
of a man’s name in -οῦϲ has, to our knowledge, turned up so far in southern Palestine.49
Elliath Aphthonis
τὸ̣ ἐν Δα|ρ̣ αθ̣ [α]λ-Εβαδ ὑπερῷον καλούμενον Ελλια̣ θ Αφθονιϲ ll. 110–11
Ελλια̣ θ Αφθονιϲ: “the upper-story dwelling of Aphthonis.”
On ελλιαθ = celliyyat, see above. Αφθονιϲ, here undeclined, is the well-attested personal name Ἀφθό-
νιοϲ.50
Elliath Karnai
[τ]ὸ ὑπερῷον τὸ καλούμ[ενον Ελλιαθ] | Καρναι: “the upper-story dwelling of Karnai.”
On ελλιαθ = celliyyat, see above.
Καρναι: probably from Semitic qrn “horn.” It is probably a personal name consisting of an adjectival form
of a place name based on that word. The outstanding example is Cyrene, from which are derived the personal
names Καρνᾶϲ, Καρνεάδαϲ and Κάρνειοϲ.51 Possibly Καρναι is an Arabic equivalent of one of these names, in
which case Karnai, or one of his ancestors, stemmed from Cyrene. It is also possible that the name reflects that
of a town closer to Petra such as Karnaim east of Lake Tiberias52 or Karnaia northeast of Jerusalem.53
Gannath
τὸ ξ[ηρ]ο̣ κ ήπιον τὸ λεγόμενον Γαν|ναθ αλ-Ϲ̣ αλα̣ [] ll. 198–99
τό(πον) Γαν[ναθ ] l. 182 (restoration likely)
γανναθ = gannat, the construct of gannah, Classical ǧannah “orchard, tree-garden, garden” (Lane, 463a–b).
The Aramaic cognate gnh (Hoftijzer—Jongeling I, 227; Sokoloff, JPA, 133) in construct state is transcribed
identically in the Greek papyri from the Judaean Desert, which use it in the names of palm groves identified by
the names of persons (presumably former owners); cf. P. Yadin I 21.9–11 γανναθ Φερωρα καὶ γανναθ Νικαρκοϲ
καὶ τρίτη λεγομένη τοῦ Μολχαίου.54 There are many occurrences of the same word in the Hebrew, Aramaic and
Nabataean-Aramaic papyri from the Judaean Desert.55 The Semitic word entered Greek as spoken in Cyprus;
cf. Etym. Magn. 223.45–48 γάνοϲ—ὑπὸ δὲ Κυπρίων παράδειϲοϲ.56 In 17, the word almost certainly refers not
to vegetable gardens, but to plots of land on which trees were cultivated. On the term ξηροκήπιον, see above,
pp. 15–16. The diminutive plural of the word is also found in 17, see al-Gonainath.
45. For its occurrence in inscriptions from Ghor al-Safi (Byzantine Zoora) and the Hauran, see Inscr. Pal. Tert. 1b, 50 with comm.
46. See H. Solin, “Varia Onomastica,” ZPE 28 (1978) 78–81; Threatte, Grammar II, 6.
47. On this Θααιοῦϲ, see Daniel, Inv. 10, 339.
48. See Gignac, Morphology, 60–61; Mayser, Grammatik I.2, 34–35.
49. The only possibility might be in Inscr. Pal. Tert. 1a, 96.1–2 Κυρίλλουϲ Αἰνίου ὑποδιάκονοϲ, if Κυρίλλουϲ is nominative for genitive,
see comm. ad loc. In spite of the editors’ remarks, however, ὑποδιάκονοϲ need not be regarded as an error for ὑποδιακόνου since third
declension διάκων is acceptable in later Greek, see Gignac, Morphology, 101; LSJ, Rev. Suppl., s.v.; Lampe, PGL, s.v.
50. On -ιοϲ > -ιϲ, see Gignac, Morphology, 25–29.
51. On personal names based on the name of the city Cyrene, see L. Robert, REG 80 (1967) 31–39 (= Op. Min. Sel. VI, 71–79).
52. See O. L. Redditt in Anchor Bible Dictionary I, s.v.; E. Kutsch in Kleiner Pauly III, 125.
53. Eusebius, Onom. 112.6; TIR Iudaea·Palaestina, p. 101, s.v.
54. Cf. also P. Naḥal Ḥever 62 b 6 Γανν]α̣ θ χβαϲα, c–m 10–11 Γανναθ οραθ ̣; 64 a 8 and b 27 Γανναθ Αϲαδαια; 64 b 31–32 Γανναθ
Αββα̣ ιδαια.
55. See P. Yadin II, indices, pp. 395, 399 and 405.
56. Cf. also Hesych. Γ 150 γάνοϲ· παράδειϲοϲ, and see Masson, Emprunts sémitiques, 74.
Gan[nath ]
τό(πον) Γαν[ναθ ] l. 182
Γαν[ναθ ]: “the orchard of NN.”
γαν[ναθ = gannat, see above. Though not restored in the edited text, no other Semitic word of which the
first syllable is gan- seems to suit the first term of a toponym. Another orchard in Ogbana is suggested by the
possible restoration τὸ̣ π̣ ω|[μάριον in ll. 107–108, see above on Arbath Garouan.
]: two or three Greek letters are missing. A short personal name is expected, and there are many possibilties,
as may be illustrated by just a few that begin with alpha: Αβδ, Αγ, Αδ, Αδι, Αμ and Αυϲ. These are the spellings
that one would expect on the basis of the Grecized Arabic personal names Αβδοϲ, Αγοϲ, Αδ(δ)οϲ, Αδιοϲ, Αμ(μ)οϲ
and Αυϲοϲ in pre-Islamic inscriptions from southern Syria.57 Some of them occur, without the Greek endings,
in the Nessana papyri, namely Αβδ, Αδη and Αδι.58 Cf. 37 11 Ϲαργ Αδι[ (see comm.), where the personal name
Αδι might be complete before the break.
Gannath al-Sala[]
τὸ ξ[ηρ]ο̣ κ ήπιον τὸ λεγόμενον Γαν|ναθ αλ-Ϲ̣ αλα̣ [] ll. 198–99
Γανναθ αλ-Ϲαλα[]: the “orchard of al-Sala[ ].”
γανναθ = gannat, see above. In αλ-Ϲ̣ αλα̣ [], one broad letter or two smaller ones are missing. The papyri from
the Judaean desert (see above, p. 36 with n. 54) suggest that this is a personal name. Among many possibilities,
one might consider αλ-Ϲ̣ αλα̣ [μ].59
Garouan: a personal name, see Arbath Garouan.
al-Gasages
τό(πον) αλ-Γαϲαγεϲ l. 185
γαϲαγεϲ: since none of the combinations of Arabic g and a sibilant yield a meaning that suits a toponym, a
connection with the root qṣṣ may be considered, though this would be the only unambiguous instance of Arabic
q transcribed with gamma in 17 (on Ογβανα, see below). The noun pattern would suggest that it is the plural of
Arabic qaṣqaṣ “the breast of anything” (Lane, 2527b).60 The medieval lexicographers qualified this as referring
specifically to the sternum, but the sense might well be broader. The use of “breast” as a metaphor for hills is not
uncommon in toponomy. Tall Ṣadr al-ʿArūs in the Golan, for example, means “the mound (called) the breast of
the bride.”
Another possibility is that γαϲαγεϲ is a reflex of an older Semitic word that did not make its way into the
works of the medieval Arabic lexicographers. In Classical Ethiopic, a language closely related to Arabic, the
nearly identical word g waṣāg wəṣ, which means “rugged or rough (road),” is attested, while in Tigre, a modern
Ethio-Semitic language, the same word means “hill, bank of earth.”61 Given the close correspondence in form
and the suitability of the meanings, it may be the case that the Arabic cognate of this word is found here.
al-Gonainath
τό(πον) []αμαθ αλ-Γοναιναθ ἰούγερα τρία | μικρῷ πρόϲ, ὄντα ἐν τό(πῳ) αλ̣ [ c. 6 ]α̣ θ ll. 160–61
57. See PAES IIIA, index, 455–56 s.nn.

58. See P. Ness. III, index, 333–34 s.nn.
59. As in names such as Ϲαλαμοϲ and Ϲαλεμοϲ, see Sartre, Bostra, 236. It seems less likely that Γανναθ αλ-Ϲ̣ αλα̣ [μ] means “the garden
of peace” as members of the team once thought (see Koenen, Carbonized Archive, 188).
60. Earlier we thought that the word might mean “harvest” since the root qṣṣ has the basic meaning “to cut,” whence words for the shearing
of wool (Lane, 2527a), but the sense “harvest” is not attested in the dictionaries for the various forms of this root.
61. See Leslau, Comparative Dictionary, 206.
[]αμαθ: one or two letters are missing. This is probably a feminine in the construct state like the first terms
in the nominal phrases that begin with γανναθ, δαραθ, ελλιαθ and χαφφαθ.
γοναιναθ = gonaynāt, the diminutive plural of gannah “garden, orchard,” see Gannath al-Sala[]. The singular
*gonaynat is unlikely, see above on al-Agiath with n. 11. Although the plot mentioned in l. 160 must have been a
grainfield near the village of Serila, the second term of the toponym []αμαθ αλ-Γοναιναθ suggests that orchards
were located nearby.
αλ̣ [ c. 6 ]α̣ θ: this is the name of an area in which was located the plot []amath al-Gonainath. The restoration
αλ̣ - [Γοναιν]α̣ θ would suit the space perfectly and a renaming of a part of an area similar to that of the whole
is possible. However, this is no more than a possibility, and countless other Arabic words of appropriate length
form plurals in -αθ / -āt (see ll. 160–62 comm.).
Kaleb al-Mephōr
[τό(πον) Καλεβ αλ-Μεφωρ (?) τὸ βαθουργεθὴν (l. -ηθὲν) διὰ αὐ]τ̣οῦ Ἱερίου l. 84
τό(πον) Κ̣ α̣ λ̣εβ α̣ λ-Μεφωρ l. 152
καλεβ αλ-Μεφωρ: perhaps “the best part (or center) of (the area called) al-Mephōr” or “the well of (the area
called) al-Mephōr.”
καλεβ ≈ kaleb, a reflex of qalb “heart,” but in the extended sense of “best, choice part, center” (Lane, 3554a).
If this is correct, a vowel resolves the consonant cluster (see above, p. 26). One might also consider whether the
word renders qalīb “well” (Lane, 2554c–55a), which has parallels in modern Jordanian toponymy.62 The epsilon,
however, is more likely to represent the reflex of *i [e] than of ī in an unemphatic environment.
μεφωρ = meḥfōr, a reflex of maḥfūr, the passive participle of ḥafara “to dig, furrow” (Lane, 601b). Here
αλ-Μεφωρ is presumably the name of the area of which the καλεβ is the center or best part. There would be a
correspondence with the toponym ha-ḥapīr in P. Yadin II 44.9, 11, which likewise consists of an article followed
by the passive participle of the synonymous Aramaic cognate ḥpr (Hoftijzer—Jongeling, 396; Sokoloff, JPA,
212). Places called “the furrowed” might have received their names owing to the erosion caused by torrents
(Lane, 600a–b). One might also consider the sense “the tilled,” which would seem to be a natural extension of
the sense of the verb, though it is not listed in the dictionaries. If this should be the meaning of μεφωρ in 17,
there might be a connection with the deep tilling that was needed to prepare new vineyards.63 Since ḥafara is
used of the digging of a well, one might consider whether καλεβ αλ-μεφωρ means “the dug well.”64 For maḥfūr
in the toponymy of modern Jordan, cf. Jordan. OSN, 348 Qāc Sīb ’Umm Maḥfūr and 391 Wādī Dumayṯah ’Umm
Maḥfūr. It seems less likely that in this toponym, al-maḥfūr should be understood as a common noun.
Karnai: probably a personal name, see Elliath Karnai.
al-Kellar: see Baith al-Kellar.
al-Keseb: see Kisba
Khaphphath and Khaphphi

τό(πον) Χαφφαθ αλ-Αουα|ουερ ll. 184–85
τὸ ὑπο[κάτω] | Χ̣ αφφαθ̣ Μ̣α̣ θ̣ Λελα ll. 142–43
62. For southern Jordanian Qalīb al-Mirṣid, see Musil, The Northern Heǧâz, 68–69. This word’s plural (qulbān) and diminutive (qulaib)
are found in the place names Qulbān Banī Murra (Jordan. OSN, 82), Wādī Qulaib and ’Umm al-Qulaib (idem, 291 and 395).
63. If the restoration of Καλεβ αλ-Μεφωρ in l. 84 is correct, then that plot is under a contract for deep tilling (see above, pp. 2–4 on
βαθουργῶ).
64. If this is correct, then the article was omitted before the first substantive (see above on Baith al-Akhbar).
τό(πουϲ) Χ̣ α̣ φφι Φοϲεα̣ κ̣ αὶ Χαφφι αλ-Χοου̣ [ l. 87

τό(πον) Χαφφι αλ-Ογομ l. 180
χαφφαθ possibly in τό(πον) αλ-Βερα Μαλ Χαφφα[]|[]α̣ ρ̣ ll. 94–95
χαφφα(θ) and χαφφι = kaffa(t) and kaffī. These must be two forms of the same substantive. They correspond
not with an Arabic morphological pattern, but with Official Aramaic kph and its plural in the construct state
kpy, vocalized in Syriac as kappā and kappī.65 While the origin of the word seems certain, its precise meaning
in 17 is not immediately clear. Aramaic kph denotes an “arch, vaulted room/niche, vault” (Hoftijzer—Jongeling,
529), as in bilingual CIS II 3912, in which Palmyrene Aramaic kph corresponds with καμάρα and refers to
a niche or vaulted room of a temple.66 Although a word for a place of worship possibly figures in the name
of the village of Serila (see below), the often-repeated χαφφα(θ) and χαφφι in the agrarian toponyms under
consideration are unlikely to refer to sacral structures. Consideration might be given instead to normal houses
constructed with arches or perhaps to vaulted cisterns.67 However, such commonly occurring objects should be
referred to with easily recognizable Semitic words.68 Since probably all of the passages cited above deal with
grainfields,69 the word might be used of a structure connected with cultivation of grain. Another word for such
an agricultural facility used in 17’s names for grainfields is the term μαρβαϲ = marbaṣ, likewise a loan from
Aramaic, meaning “threshing floor” and thus apparently the equivalent of ἁλώνιον in 17. Since the text always
mentions the ἁλώνιον in conjunction with a θημοβολών “depository for grain or chaff” (see above, p. 10), it
could be that χαφφα and its Aramaic parent correspond with θημοβολών. If this is correct, the structure might
have had the shape of a vault, since Aramaic kph and equivalent καμάρα suggest that curvature characterized
its construction.70 Tempting as this suggestion might seem at first sight, the θημοβολών is mentioned in 17
exclusively as an appurtenance of a threshing floor (ἁλώνιον) and only three times, whereas the terms χαφφα(θ)/
χαφφι occur independently of threshing floors and in greater numbers.
The same word seems to survive in the modern toponym Kaffat al-Ḥawāwir, the name of an agriculture area
today in Wadi Musa (see below, p. 50). That kaffah is a flat piece of land with a slight depression in it. Hence,
residents of the town explain kaffah as a form of Arabic kaff “palm” (of the hand), a word that is cognate with
Aramaic kp.71 If the preceding suggestion that χαφφα/kph refers to an agricultural storage structure is on the
right track, then we are dealing with a folk etymology of a no longer understood word. On the other hand,
the popular explanation might be correct. Just as μαρβαϲ reflects Aramaic marbaṣ with its ancient meaning
unchanged, χαφφα, as locals now understand the word, might reflect Aramaic kph denoting a flat piece of land
described as having the shape of the palm of the hand. The plural χαφφι might refer to several such gentle dips
on a single plot or to a group of plots that each had that shape. Whether χαφφα refers to an agricultural structure
or describes a feature of the land, it seems that a new meaning must be assigned to the underlying Aramaic
word.
65. For kappah and kappē, see Beyer, Aramäische Texte, 609 (we thank Holger Gzella for this reference). Arabic, which has no /p/, realized
that Aramaic phoneme as /f/. Cf. Arabic ḥfr = Aramaic ḥpr mentioned above in connection with Kaleb al-Mephōr. Greek, when it
responds to Aramaic /p/ directly, can represent it with pi or phi, as in Καπαρναουμ / Καφερναουμ for Kaper Nahum, and Φαριϲαῖοϲ
for Perisaia (Bauer—Danker, Lexicon, s.vv.).
66. The Greek (but not the Aramaic) part of this inscription is republished as OGIS 631.
67. On the use of stone arches and vaulting in the construction of houses, cisterns and other structures in Palestine during the Greco-Roman
and Byzantine periods and later, see Hirschfeld, Palestinian Dwelling, 125–33, 239–43.
68. If the reference were to a house, 17 offers the terms βαιθ = bayt and δαρα = dārah, while a cistern might be called a βηρ = bēr.
69. The plots in ll. 87 and 94 were certainly grainfields in the village of Serila, those in ll. 180 and 184 probably grainfields in the area
called Ogbana.
70. Presumably these structures were made of stone or mud bricks but less substantial sheds made of wood or wicker cannot be ruled out.
For vaulted structures made of wicker or reeds in Egypt, see Husson, OIKIA, 127 with fig. 21 on p. 125.
71. For kaff signifying the palm of the hand, see Lane, 3001b. The Arabic explanation offered by residents of Wadi Musa was accepted by
Daniel, Inv. 10, 333–34, referring also to kaffah, cited by Lane, loc. cit., as variant of kiffah “scale of a balance.” The explanation was
also accepted by al-Ghul (Preliminary Notes, 160), suggesting that χαφφι might be a dual of kaff, but the dual that one would expect
of feminine χαφφα would probably be χαφφαθαι, χαφφαθι or similar.
Khaphphath al-Aouaouer
τό(πον) Χαφφαθ αλ-Αουα|ουερ ll. 184–85
Χαφφαθ αλ-Αουαουερ: probably “the storage structure or piece of flat land of the Hawarites.”
χαφφαθ: see Khaphphath and Khaphphi.
Αουαουερ ≈ ḥawāwer, a reflex of *ḥawāwir, a form that may be posited as a plural of ḥwr “white,” though
the Arabic dictionaries list other forms. The plural suggests that we may be dealing with a designation of a
tribe, clan or family that traced itself back to a certain Ḥawār, a name that is probably reflected by Αυαροϲ in
pre-Islamic inscriptions from nothern Jordan.72 It could also be that ḥawāwer designates a people from a certain
area, the name of which is based on the same root. The Nabataean city Hawara/Αὔαρα at the site of the modern
town of Humayma might come into question,73 as would Ḥūrawā, which may have been the name of the ancient
town at the site of modern-day Tannūr north of Petra.74
It is possible that the place that the papyrus calls Khaphphath al-Aouaouer is identical with a shelf on a terrace
close to the modern town of Wadi Musa that today is called Kaffat al-Ḥawāwir. See below, p. 50.
Khaphphath Math Lela: see Math Lela
Khaphphi al-Khooe[
τό(πουϲ) Χ̣ α̣ φφι Φοϲεα̣ κ̣ αὶ Χαφφι αλ-Χοοε̣ [ l. 87
χαφφι: see Khaphphath and Khaphphi.
Χοοε̣ [: it is pointless to speculate about the meaning of this incomplete word.
Khaphphi al-Ogom
τό(πον) Χαφφι αλ-Ογομ l. 180
χαφφι: see Khaphphath and Khaphphi.
αλ-ογομ ≈ al-’ogom. This word, here part of a rural toponym in the Ogbana area, recalls the name of the
village Ogoma in 29 28 (κώμηϲ Ὀγόμων without pertinent context). If the topos and the village were located
close to each other, then the village Ogoma might have been located in Ogbana. In fact, the toponym might
mean “the khaphphi of (i.e., at the village called) Ogom.” If it is mere coincidence that the village and the topos
appear to have had identical names, then ογομ will have been used frequently in the toponymy of the region.
Petraean ’ogom probably corresponds with the Classical Arabic substantive ’uǧum. The grammatical number
of this form is ambivalent. As a singular, it means “fortress” or “square, roofed house” (Lane, 26a), a sense
that would be appropriate for a village. It can also be one of the plurals of ’aǧamah and would probably denote
“thickets” (Lane, 26b). This meaning would suit a rural toponym as well as a village named after it.
Khaphphi Phosea
τό(πουϲ) Χ̣ α̣ φφι Φοϲεα̣ κ̣ αὶ Χαφφι αλ-Χοοε̣ [ l. 87
Χαφφι Φοϲεα: probably “the storage structures (or flat pieces of land) of Fusayyah.”
χαφφι: see Khaphphath and Khaphphi. Φοϲεα is the Arabic feminine name Fuṣayyah, also reflected in
Φοϲεαθη in IGLS XIII 9260. Personal names in Nabataean and Ancient North Arabian inscriptions are based on
the same root.75
72. For Αυαροϲ, cf. IGLS XXI.5 234 (= PAES IIIA 338) from Umm al-Jimāl and SEG XXXII 1555 from Qaṣr el-Ḥallabat. For that name
equated with Ḥawār, see Wuthnow, Menschennamen, 28, 140.
73. On Hawara/Αὔαρα/Ḥumayma, see OEANE III, 121–22; Bowersock, Roman Arabia, 173–74.
74. See Healey, Religion of the Nabataeans, 61 with further references.
75. See al-Khraysheh, Personennamen, 153 Pṣyw; Negev, Personal Names, no. 971; Harding, Index, 468.
al-Khooe[: see Khaphphi al-Khooe[.
Kisba and Keseb

τό(που) Κιϲβ̣ α̣ ἐϲϲωτέρ(ου) l. 78
τό(πον) αλ-Κεϲεβ l. 166
In addition, Κεϲεβ is likely in fr. 169 τό(πον) Κεϲε[ and possible in ll. 96–97 αλ-|[ c. 6 ]β, while Inv. 98v
has τό(ποϲ) Κειϲβα. The first term of Καϲβ ελ-Ϲαειβ in Inv. 98v is not necessarily the same word.76
The word κιϲβα = qiṣbā as well as κεϲεβ = qeṣeb may be based on the Semitic root qṣb, which has the basic
meaning “to cut.” In Arabic, it gave rise to words meaning “reed,” “dam” and “irrigation channel” (Lane,
2528–30; Groom, 227–28). The forms of these words given in the dictionaries, however, do not correspond
exactly with either κιϲβα or κεϲεβ. Whatever specific meaning(s) come into question here, it seems clear that
we are dealing with Aramaic and Arabic forms of the same word, for κιϲβα appears to end with the Aramaic
suffixed article, when it is considered together with αλ-κεϲεβ, which has the Arabic article at the beginning.
Related to these words is the second term in the modern Jordanian toponyms Talcat al-Qiṣb and cUrqūb al-Qiṣb
(Jordan. OSN, 290).
al-Kouabel
τό(πον) Αραμ αλ-Κουαβελ ll. 8, 165
λοιπῶν τό(πων) Μαρβαϲ αλ-Κουαβελ καὶ αλ-|[ c. 6 ]β ̣ ll. 96–97
αλ-Κουαβελ = al-Qowābel. The substantive is probably to be interpreted as al-Qawābil “the Qabelites,” the
name of a family or tribe consisting of the article and a plural of the personal name Qābil.77
Lela: the woman’s name Layla, see Math Lela.
al-Louza: see Math al-Louza.
Madar
] Μαδαρ κα[ or ] Μαδαρ Κα[ l. 22
μαδαρ = madar. The Arabic word means “clay, mud” and, like madarah, it can also signify a settlement of
mud brick houses (Lane, 2698c). There might be a connection with the gorge now called Wādī Madar in Wadi
Musa and identical with Wādī al-Madarah mentioned in a thirteenth-century source (see below, p. 50).
Mal
τό(πον) αλ-Βερα Μαλ Χαφφα[]|[]α̣ ρ̣ l. 94–95
τό(πον) Μαλ Ορϲιατ l. 174
τό(πον) Μαλ Αμ̣ αρ Αλ Ϲ̣ αρουα̣ ἤτο[ι] α̣ λ-Μ̣ο̣ φαα̣ l. 175
μαλ = māl, an Aramaic and Arabic word meaning “property, estate” (Hoftijzer—Jongeling II, 603 mwl3;
Lane, 3026a). In 17, it is usually followed by a personal name. It is the most common first term of two-term
toponyms in the Petra papyri. To the three instances cited above (and a possible fourth in l. 109, see comm. ad
loc.) can be added about ten more in hitherto published texts (see Index vi) and at least another seven in Inv. 98v.
Cf. also P. Ness. III 82.4 Μαλ αλ-Κανι and 11 Μαλ Ζημαρχε.
76. καϲβ might rather be a reflex of Arabic qaḍb “any tree of which the branches grow long and lank” (Lane, 2538b). For sigma used to
transcribe Arabic ḍ in pre-Islamic inscriptions of Jordan and Syria, see above, p. 26.
77. For designations of kinship groups consisting of al- and a plural of a personal name, see above on Aram al-Asaphir, with n. 20 for other
names of kinship groups based on the name Qābil. For the personal name itself, see Zubayr, ’Asmā’ IV, 2153; Harding, Index, 475 s.n.
qbl.
Mal Amar Al Saroua

τό(πον) Μαλ Αμ̣ αρ Αλ Ϲ̣ αρουα̣̣ l. 175
Μαλ Αμαρ Αλ Ϲαρουα: probably “the property of cAmar of the family of Sarwah.”78
For μαλ = māl, see the preceding entry.
Αμαρ ≈ cAmar, a reflex of cAmr, with an epenthetic a (see above, p. 26). Though other possibilities (e.g.,
Safaitic ’ḥmr = ’aḥmar or ’’mr = ’a’mar) cannot be ruled out with complete certainty, cAmr is one of the most
common Arabic names in the pre-Islamic Levant, attested, e.g., in Nabataean79 and Grecized Αμροϲ in Nessana,
Tannur and the Hauran.80
αλ ≈ āl “family, clan, tribe” (rather than the definite article al-). For this and other types of designations of
kinship groups, see above on Aram al-Asaphir.
Ϲαρουα ≈ Sarwah, probably a variant of the Arabic personal name Srw (Harding, Index, 316). The Greek
spelling might reflect *sarwah “generosity,” a verbal noun from saruwa “to be generous.”81 Such verbal nouns
are common in Arabic onomastics.82
Mal Orsiat
τό(πον) Μαλ Ορϲιατ l. 174
Μαλ Ορϲιατ: “the property of Orsiat.”
For μαλ = māl, see above. For Ορϲιατ, no obvious Semitic correspondence can be suggested. There might
be a connection with Grecized Semitic personal names such as Ουρϲοϲ, Αρϲα, Ορεϲοϲ, Ορηϲοϲ, Ορϲανοϲ, etc.
(see Wuthnow, Menschennamen, 143).
Marbas
τό(πον) Μαρβαϲ [ l. 18
τό(πων) Μαρβαϲ αλ-Κουαβελ καὶ αλ-|[ c. 6 ]β̣ ll. 96–97
μαρβαϲ = marbaṣ “threshing floor,” a loan from Aramaic. The word also occurs in Inv. 98v τό(ποϲ) Μαρβαϲ
αλ̣ -Εβ[. Around Wadi Musa today, the word marbaṣ is used of a threshing floor made of earth mixed with
straw and pebbles that has become hard after being wetted by sprinkling, then flattened and allowed to dry. This
agrees with Dalman’s observation, about a century ago, that rabaṣ in Palestinian Arabic refers to the wetting of
the ground to make such a threshing floor.83 This sense is not from the Arabic rabaṣa, to which Lane assigns
the meaning “to look for, expect,”84 but it suits perfectly the Aramaic cognate rbṣ “to sprinkle” (Sokoloff, JPA,
515; Hoftijzer—Jongeling, 1058). It is no accident, then, that μαρβαϲ “threshing floor” figures in names of the
grainfields.85 There can be no doubt that 17 treats μαρβαϲ and ἁλώνιον, the Greek word for “threshing floor”
(see above, p. 1), as equivalents. For another loan from Aramaic that is possibly related to cultivation of grain,
see Khaphpha(th) and Khaphphi.
Math
Μαθ αλ-Λουζα l. 185
Μαθ Λελα ll. 121, 140, 143
Μαθ Οϲαινα / Οϲενα ll. 98, 162, 170
78. Earlier the team understood al-Sarwa as a nickname.

79. See Negev, Personal Names, no. 916; al-Khraysheh, Personennamen, 144–45, s.n. camrw.
80. See Inscr. Pal. Tert. 1a, 1.4 comm.
81. *sarwah from saruwa would be analogous to katrah “plenty” formed from katura “to be plentiful” (Lane, 2593a).
82. For examples close in time and place to 17, cf. P. Ness. III 38.3 Αλδαεϲ (ultimately from ḫald-, the verbal noun of ḫalada “to persist
or remain,” Lane, 784a) and 35.4 Ϲαδοϲ (from sacd, the verbal noun of sacida “to be or become prosperous,” Lane, 1361a).
83. Dalman, Arbeit und Sitte III, 69–72.
84. Lane, 1011b, listing no form that corresponds with the noun marbaṣ.
85. The toponyms in ll. 18 and 97–97 pertain to plots for grain. The same should apply to τό(ποϲ) Μαρβαϲ αλ̣ -Εβ[ in Inv. 98v.
μαθ = māt, apparently “(tract of) land.” The word seems to come from Aramaic māt, the construct state of
mātā,86 which in turn is from Akkadian mātu.87 The former means “city, inhabited area,” the latter “large tract
of land.” There is no reference to māt in the standard dictionaries of Arabic, but the word is still in use. Today
around Kerak, three different areas are each called māt + personal name, e.g. Māt Salīm. Locals no longer
understand māt and have folk-etymologized it as “place of death.”88
Math Lela
τῆϲ ἀμπέλου τό(που) Μαθ Λελα l. 121
τό(πον) Μαθ Λελα l. 140
τὸ ὑπο[κάτω] | Χ̣ αφφα̣ θ Μ̣α̣ θ̣ Λελα ll. 142–43
Μαθ Λελα: “the land of Laylā.”
For μαθ = māt, see above. Λελα is the well-known feminine name Laylā. Classical Islamic sources refer it
back to pre-Islamic times.89
Math al-Louza
τὰ ὑ̣ [ποκ]άτω Μαθ αλ-Λουζα l. 185
Μαθ αλ-Λουζα: probably “the land of the almond tree.” Μ̣αθ Λουϲε in Inv. 98v looks like a variant spelling
of the same toponym, but probably does not refer to the same place.
For μαθ = māt, see above.
λουζα = Arabic lawzah (Lane, 2861a–b) or Aramaic lūzā (Sokoloff, JPA, 279), both meaning “almond tree” or
“almond.” If the word in this toponym is a loan from Aramaic, then it is in emphatic state and the Arabic article
has been added redundantly. For Λουζα as the name of a town between Jerusalem and Nablus, cf. Eusebius,
Onom. 40.20–22, and Madaba Map, Legend no. 48 (Alliata, Legends, 68). As here, al-Lawzah is the second
term in several modern Jordanian place names.90
Math Osaina
τό(πον) Μαθ Οϲαινα l. 98
τό(πον) [Μαθ Ο]ϲεν̣α l. 162
τ̣ὰ̣ ὑ̣ ποκάτω Μαθ Οϲενα l. 170
Μαθ Οϲαινα / Οϲενα: “the land of Ḥosaynah.”
For μαθ = māt, see above. Οϲαινα/Οϲενα = Ḥosaynah can be interpreted as the diminutive of the name Ḥusn
“beauty,” similar to the popular masculine name Ḥusayn, the diminutive of Ḥasan.91 One could also take it as
a diminutive of the feminine name Ḥusnā, the feminine elative of the root ḥsn, meaning “most beautiful”.92
al-Mazeka
τόπου αλ̣ -Μαζεκα̣ l. 155
μαζεκα = maḍēqah: perhaps a reflex of *maḍīqah, from the root ḍyq (Lane, 1815a–16c), which gave rise to
meanings such as “narrow, strait.” For the representation of Arabic ḍ with zeta, see above, p. 26. While the form
maḍīqah is not attested in Classical Arabic dictionaries, we may have the feminine equivalent of masculine
86. Hoftijzer―Jongeling II, 706–7 s.v. smt1; Levy III, 294; Payne Smith, 311.
87. CAD X 1.414–21.
88. Further details on māt will appear in an article planned by O. al-Ghul.
89. See Zubayr, ’Asmā’ II, 1508–9.
90. Jordan. OSN, 229 cAin al-Lawza, Ḫirbat al-Lawzah, Wādī al-Lawzah; 309 Ruǧm al-Lawzah. Also a small area 7 km northeast of Petra
is called ’Umm al-Lawzah.
91. For Ḥosaynah, see Zubayr, ’Asmā’ I, 426, for Ḥasan, Sartre, Bostra, 227–28.
92. In this case, the ā realization of the word final alif maqṣūrah would be explained in the same way as laylā, see above, p. 25.
maḍīq, which signifies a narrow piece of land (Lane, 1816b).93 The toponym might refer to narrow plot of land or
to a plot of land located on and named after a narrow feature in the landscape, e.g., a narrow terrace. Likewise
αλ-Ϲαρωθ, discussed below, might be based on a word meaning “narrowness.” It seems less likely that μαζεκα
reflects an unattested Arabic word based on the root czq, though it gave rise to other words pertaining to the
tilling of land (Lane, 2035c–36a).94
Menam: see Baith al-Menam.
al-Mephōr: see Kaleb al-Mephōr.
al-Mophaa
τό(πον) Μαλ Αμ̣ αρ Αλ-Ϲ̣ αρουα ἤτο[ι] α̣ λ-Μοφαα̣ l. 175
αλ-μοφαα ≈ al-mawfacah, probably “the elevated area, the top of a hill.”95 Inv. 8 has αλ-Μαυφαα and αλ-
Μουφαα, which are probably variant spellings of the same toponym. It is probably a noun of place (pattern:
maf calah) from the root wf c. Although this root is attested independently in the classical dictionaries with
reference to things elevated, it seems to be a by-form of the better attested yf c which refers to the higher part of
a place or mountain (see Lisān, s.v.).96 The form mayfac is attested with this sense in the dictionaries and seems
to underlie the name of the ancient town at modern-day Umm al-Rasas, to the southeast of Madaba, called
Κάϲτρον Μεφαα in mosaic inscriptions and Μηφααθ by Eusebius.97
al-Naar
τό(πον) αλ-Νααρ τὸ ὑπο[κάτω] | Χ̣ αφφα̣ θ Μ̣α̣ θ̣ Λελα—βορρ[ᾶ] ῥ̣ [ύα]ξ ll. 142–43
αλ-Νααρ: “the torrent, gully.”
νααρ = nahr, a by-form of nahar “river, rivulet” (Lane, 2857c–58a). The same word occurs Inv. 98v Νααρ̣
εγ[. In the Petra papyri, it should have the specific sense of “torrent” (in the rainy season) or “gully” (in the dry
season). The reference can be to the main torrent/gully of a wādī or (more likely) to one of its numerous larger
and smaller tributaries. The same meaning has been suggested for the Aramaic cognate in P. Yadin II 7, ll. 8 and
9, which mention a nhr as a boundary of two different palm groves.98 The plot αλ-Νααρ in 17 will have been
named after the ῥύαξ that is its northern boundary or after an area which in turn was named after that torrent.
More generally, it may be supposed that in the mountainous terrain of southern Palestine, Aramaic nhr and
Arabic nah(a)r were the equivalents of Greek ῥύαξ. A modern Palestinian village 14 km northeast of Acre was
called al-Nahr, and the diminutive of nahr occurs in the Jordanian place name Wādī al-Nuhayr (Jordan. OSN,
276). In order to avoid the impression that we are dealing with perennially flowing torrents, the word ῥύαξ is
translated as “gully” in this volume.
93. Arabic nouns of place follow two patterns, maf c al and maf c alah, with no apparent semantic difference; see Wright, Grammar, §225.
94. Although μαζεκα would phonetically be close to mac āziqah “hoes, plows,” we hesitate to posit an ellipsis of a substantive in a phrase
meaning “(the land of) the plows,” i.e., “plowed land.” On the other hand, while elliptical (’arḍ) mac zūqah “tilled (earth)” would
conform with normal idiom (Lane, 2036a), it is not likely that this long Arabic ū would be rendered by the epsilon in μαζεκα. Also less
likely for semantic reasons is a connection with Arabic ma’ziq, which signifies a narrow place in which people fight, or a place of war
(Lane 53c).
95. Earlier we considered whether μοφαα might reflect Arabic maf cāh “(land) full of snakes,” but it is hard to justify the spelling of an
underlying [a] in the first syllable with Greek αυ, ου and ο, which point rather to a diphthong. Furthermore, Arabic cāh in the second
syllable would more likely be represented with a single alpha.
96. On the interchange of w and y in roots, see Macdonald, Ancient North Arabian, 501. This interchange was also reported by the Arab
grammarians; see Rabin, West Arabian, 201.
97. For Κάϲτρον Μεφαα, see SEG XXXVII 1552–1616 intr., also XLII 1491; for Μηφααθ, Eusebius, Onom. 128.21. Cf. Notitia Dignitatum
36.19 Mefa.
98. See Cotton―Greenfield, Babatha’s Patria, 132 with n. 4.
al-Nasba
τό(πον) αλ-Ναϲβα l. 154
αλ-ναϲβα = al-naṣbah, probably a loan from Aramaic. The meaning is likely to be “the plantation” or “the
tree” or “the sapling.” The Semitic root nṣb has a basic sense of “set up, fix.” Classical Arabic naṣbah, though
it would provide an exact correspondence with ναϲβα, will not do in its attested sense of “laying a plot, snare”
(Lane, 2800b). We are rather probably dealing with an Aramaic cognate, since ναϲβαθα in Inv. 98v is in the
Aramaic emphatic state. Accordingly, αλ-ναϲβα in 17 is an Arabicized form of the same word. It might have
the same meaning as Aramaic nṣbh “plantation.”99 A related meaning may be considered in view of the use of
naṣbah today to denote a small tree or sapling. The sense, current in colloquial Palestinian and Jordanian Arabic,
is not listed in the classical dictionaries. The word might likewise be a survival from Aramaic.
Ogbana
ἐν Ὀγβάνοιϲ ll. [18], 104, 180
The nominative is probably Ογβανα, since neuter plural -α is the most common ending of Grecized Semitic
place names.100 The same name occurs in βειρθα Οκβανων in P. Euphrates I 2.2 (3rd c.), understood by the
editors as “the fortress of the (tribe) Okbanoi,”101 comparing the personal names Ocbanes and Occbanas in the
Dura papyri.102 Perhaps there were several tribes named after an ancestor called cUqbān or (see below) cUqbah.
In either case, the spelling in 17 with a gamma instead of the expected kappa for Semitic q is probably to be
explained on the Greek side, namely by kappa often written for gamma before consonants (see above, p. 26).
If Ογβανα was named after a tribe, and if its eponymous ancestor was a certain cUqbah,103 this opens up
an interesting possibility. The chronicle of Nuwayrī mentions that princes of the tribe Banī cUqbah attended
on Sultan Baybars as he passed by Shōbak on his journey to Petra in the year 1276.104 Just possibly these Banī
c
Uqbah are the ancestors of the homonymous tribe that is on record for southern Palestine in the early twentieth
century and whom Bedouins around Petra recall still today.105 If Ogbana was named after this same tribe,106
then the Banī cUqbah had already lived there for a long time. This would be in keeping with Oppenheim’s
remark that the Banī cUqbah were a subtribe of the Ǧuḏām, and that the latter were already present in southern
Palestine in pre-Islamic times, perhaps as early as the third century A.D.107 The tribe Ǧuḏām may be attested in
postconquest P. Ness. III 93.49 Γουδ̣ αμ.
In view of the above, one may ask whether the tribal designation which forms part of the name of the plot
Ϲ̣ αργ Βενι [, located in Ogbana, was possibly Ϲ̣ αργ Βενι [Ογβα or [Ογβαν. See below on Sarg Beni.
Just possibly, Ogbana was located high in the hills above present-day Wadi Musa. See below, p. 49.
al-Ogom: see Khaphphi al-Ogom.
99. Cf. Hoftijzer—Jongeling, 751; Sokoloff, JPA, 358 s.vv. nṣb “to plant,” nṣbh “power of reproduction.”
100. Cf., e.g., Ἄμμαθα, Ζαδακάθα and Ἀρίνδηλα, all in Third Palestine, and see Schmitt, Siedlungen Palästinas, 14–15. See also below on
Serila.
101. For Aramaic βειρθα as “fortress,” see above under al-Bera.
102. Cf. also Harding, Index, 426 s.n. cqbn. For the same name on an Aramaic ostracon from Egypt, see S. Honigman, BASP 40 (2003)
112.
103. The name is known since the early seventh century, see EI2 X, 789 s.n. cUqba b. Nāfic.
104. See Zayadine, Caravan Routes, 170–73.
105. Elderly Bedouins near Wadi Musa and Udruh, interviewed in the 1990s, recall that in the generation of their parents and grandparents,
legal disputes were submitted to the arbitration of the elders of Banī cUqbah, which required a journey of several days. Oppenheim
reported the same earlier (Beduinen II, 335): “Vor Zeiten müssen die Benī cOḳba ein sehr durchgebildetes Rechtsleben besessen haben.
Gewisse von ihnen entwickelte Rechtsnormen haben weit über ihr Siedlungsgebiet hinaus Ansehen erlangt—In Südpalästina liegt das
Amt des Richters für eherechtliche Streitigkeiten und Ehrenkränkungen in Händen von Benī cOḳba, und im Sinai heißt ein solcher
schlichthin cOḳbī, gleichviel welchem Stamme er angehören mag.” See also el-Barghuthi, Judicial Courts, 39, 46 and 61.
106. To Ογβα/Οκβα might have been added the Greek ending -(α)νόϲ or perhaps Latin -(ā)nus to form a possessive adjective.
107. See Oppenheim, Beduinen II, 333–35.
al-Ōk
τό(πον) αλ-Ωκ l. 163
αλ-Ωκ: probably “the bitter water.”
ωκ ≈ coqq. This probably corresponds with Classical Arabic cuqq “bitter water” (Lane, 2096b). It seems
considerably less likely that one should articulate Αλωκ and connect this with Arabic c ālūk, a small Saharo-
Arabian shrub (Helianthemum sancti–antonii or lippii), on which is based the name of the village al-cᾹlūk north
of Amman.108 For this to be so, one would expect the definite article, i.e. αλ-Αλωκ, as in αλ-Λουζα “the almond
tree” (see above), and Arabic k would normally be reflected with Greek χ.
al-Oraiem
τό(πον) αλ-Οραϊεμ ll. 105, 182
αλ-Οραϊεμ = al-ḫorayyem, probably a diminutive of ḫarm “projecting part of a mountain” or “bed drenched
by a torrent” (Lane, 730c). This same word is found in the modern place names Ǧabal al-Ḫurayyim and Wādī
al-Ḫurayyim (Jordan. OSN, 223).
Orsiat: probably a personal name, see Mal Orsiat.
Osaina/Osena: a feminine name, see Math Osaina.
Phosea: a feminine name, see Khaphphi Phosea.
al-Raphida
[τό(πον) αλ-Ρα]φιδα l. 75
τό(πον) αλ-Ραφιδ[α l. 158
ραφιδα ≈ rafīdah. The root is probably rfd, which has a primary meaning “to gift” (Lane, 1119a). The form
is probably a reflex of the feminine passive participle rafīdah “given” (with ellipsis of ’arḍ “land”). It possibly
refers to a property transferred by a deed of gift, perhaps like the plot described in 17 as δωρεαϲτικόϲ (see
ll. 156–57 comm.). Similar to αλ-Ραφιδα is al-Rafīd, the name of a village in northern Jordan109 as well as of
a high plateau of arable land four kilometers north of Wadi Musa. Cf. Jordan. OSN, 298 Ḫirbat al-Rafīd and
Rafīdiyyah.
al-Sala[ ]: see Gannath al-Sala[ ].
Salsal
τό(πον) ` Ϲ̣ α̣ λ̣ϲ̣α̣λ̣ ´ αλ-Βερα l. 168
ϲ ̣α ̣λ ̣ϲ ̣α ̣λ is only one of several very tentative readings that the team considered (see comm.). If it is correct,
then the first word of this two-term toponym might be identical with Salsal, the name of a place with a source
of water in the northern Arabian Peninsula, known from ibn Hišām’s biography of Mohammed, al-Sīrah IV,
623 (reference supplied by Petra Sijpesteijn). The meaning of salsal is “sweet, cool water” (Lane, 1397c).
Consideration might also be given to ṣalṣāl “clay” (Lane, 1711b). The two-term toponym of the papyrus, then,
might mean “the fresh water at al-Bera” or “the clay earth at al-Bera.” On the second term, see al-Bera.
108. On al- cᾹlūk, see R . L . Gordon―E.A. Knauf, ADAJ 31 (1987) 289–98, no. 42.
109. A village above a steep valley north of Irbid, see Mittmann, Beiträge, 21.
al-Saram
τοῦ τόπου αλ-Ϲ̣ αραμ l. 186
ϲαραμ = ṣarām. Probably a reflex of Arabic ṣarām “harvesting.” Although the medieval lexicographers
define this noun as “the cutting off of the fruit of the palm tree,” the verb ṣarama “to cut” can also refer to the
harvesting of grain.110 The latter sense suits the fact that αλ-Ϲαραμ occurs in a section of the text that deals
with grainfields. For Ϲεραμ designating a grain-producing area near Nessana that is probably identical with the
Byzantine site known as Ras S ̣eram or Tell el-S ̣eram, see P. Ness. III 82.10 with comm.
Sarg Beni [NN]

τό(πον) Ϲ̣ αργ Βενι [ l. 184
Ϲ̣ αργ Βενι [: probably “the ridge of (the tribe) Beni [NN].”
ϲαργ ≈ sarg. The word also occurs in 37 11 τό(ποϲ) Ϲαργ Αδι[ (see comm.),111 while 23 and 24 spell it
variously—Ϲεργ Νοφφ(α), Ϲεργ Λαφφα, Ϲοργ Λοφφα—in reference to one and the same place. The word
reflects either Arabic sarǧ “saddle” (Lane, 1343c) or šarǧ “watering hole” (Lane, 1529b–c). The former is more
likely, for the word sarǧ is now used of the saddle-shaped contour of the ridge of a hill near the modern village
of Wadi Musa (see below, p. 50) and in other Jordanian toponyms.112
βενι = benī “sons,” here part of tribal designation, see above on Beni.
Βενι []: just possibly Βενι [Ογβα or [Ογβαν, since this topos was located in Ogbana, an area perhaps
named after a tribe called Banī cUqba or Banī cUqbān (see above on Ogbana).
al-Sarōth
τό(πον) αλ-Βερ ̣α καὶ | [ c. 7 ] αλ-Ϲαρωθ l. 104–5
ϲαρωθ = ṣarōt. Inv. 98v has τό(ποϲ) Δαβαρ Ϲαροθ ̣. Although the article in αλ-Ϲαρωθ is Arabic, the termination
-ωθ/-οθ points to an earlier linguistic stratum, the Canaanite feminine plural ending -ōt. The word should
probably be connected with Hebrew ṣārôt, the plural of ṣārâ “narrowness” (Koehler—Baumgartner III, 1053).113
The toponym al-Mazeka (see above) might likewise be based on a word denoting narrowness. Similar to ϲαρωθ
is the name of the northern Jordanian town Ṣarrūt, located north of Amman.114
Saroua: probably a personal name, see Mal Amar Al Saroua.
Serila
τῆϲ αὐτῆϲ κώμηϲ Ϲερίλων ll. [27], 110, 189–90
ἐν κώμῃ Ϲερίλοιϲ ll. 68, 140
Ϲεριλα: the place name Cεριλ (with the Greek ending removed)115 is to our knowledge unparalleled in the
toponymy of the Near East. If the word consists of two components, the second may well be the divine name
’il, so common in Semitic toponyms and personal names. The first might be ṣryḥ. This word, presumably a
loan from Arabic ḍarīḥ, is commonly used in Nabataean Aramaic of a chamber having a religious function
(Hoftijzer—Jongeling, 975). A connection with Arabic ṣarḥ “lofty building” (Lane, 1675b) is also possible. In
either case, the resulting sense would be analogous, for example, to Bethel “the house of El.”
110. See Lane, 1684b for the noun, 1683b for the verb.
111. Or Ϲαργ Αδι with the personal name Αδι complete before the break, see above on Gan[nath ] in l. 182.
112. E.g., Ǧabal ’Abū Sarǧ, Ḫuzūq al-Sarǧ, Ra’s Sarǧ, Talat Surūǧ (plural) and ’Umm Sarǧ (Jordan. OSN 17, 224, 328, 356 and 393).
113. Earlier, the team considered a connection with Hebrew ṣûrôt “rocks” (Koehler—Baumgartner III, 1016–17), but alpha would not be
used to represent û.
114. See al-Macani, Ortsnamen, 167 no. 312, recognizing the Canaanite ending, but proposing a different etymology.
115. It is most likely the neuter plural -α, see above p. 45 with n. 100.
Since several toponyms in 17 can be paralleled by place names in Wadi Musa (see below, pp. 49–50), the
village of Serila might have been located in that valley, perhaps not far from the ancient town el-Ǧī (= Γαῖα) at
the center of the modern village of Wadi Musa.116
al-Sira
τόπου αλ-Ϲιρα ll. [45], 122, 123
αλ-Ϲιρα: “the enclosure for animals.” This agricultural facility in Serila probably had a structure on it.
ϲιρα = ṣīrah, an enclosure for sheep, goats and cattle, which, according to Lane, 1754c, was constructed out
of stone and wood or branches of trees. The word figures in many place names in Jordan today; cf., e.g., Jordan.
OSN, 136 al-Ṣīra and 393 Wādī / Ḫirbat ’Umm Ṣiyar (plural of ṣīrah), Ṭārat ’Umm Ṣīra. A small area now called
al-Ṣīrah is located in the al-Qurna district of Wadi Musa, see below, p. 50.
al-Soullam
τό(πον) αλ-C̣ ο̣ υλλαμ l. 103
αλ-C̣ ο̣ υλλαμ: probably “the terrace.”
ϲουλλαμ = sullam. Lane, 1416b renders the word as “step, stair,” but in the context of the terrace agriculture
of the region, the specific meaning of the word should rather be “step, shelf” (of a terrace). The same should
apply to the toponym Sullam in P. Yadin II 44.9, 12 and 46.3 (translated “ladder” in the edition, p. 49). The
plural of sullam is found in several modern place names.117
al-Souphlē
τό(πον) []ακ αλ-Ϲουφλη l. 91
[]ακ cannot be restored and its meaning remains completely open.
ϲουφλη = suflē, which in the dialect of Petra (see above, p. 25) apparently corresponded with the Classical
Arabic feminine elative suflā “lower” (Lane, 1375a). Cf. the modern place name ʿAin al-Suflā “the lower spring”
(Jordan. OSN, 353). The Arabic elative can have a comparative or superlative force. The former is suggested by the
Greek comparative adjectives in l. 78 τό(που) Κιϲβ̣ α̣ ἐϲϲωτέρ(ου), fr. 144 ἀ]νώτερ̣ ο̣[ν (probably topographical),
and P. Ness. III 24.9 ἐν τόπῳ καλουμένῳ αλ-Αγραδ ἐνγυτέρῳ. That the underlying Arabic form is the positive
adjective sufliyy is less likely, not only for this reason, but also because we would expect the final -iyy to be
rendered with iota rather than eta.
A. M. AL-JALLAD, R. W. DANIEL, and O. Al-Ghul
116. For el-Ǧī / Γαῖα (Eusebius, Onom. 62.18 Γαῖα πόλιϲ τῇ Πέτρᾳ παρακειμένη), see Healey, Religion of the Nabataeans, 89–90.
117. Cf. Jordan. OSN, 323 Ḫirbat al-Salālim, Wādī al-Salālim and Ẓahrat al-Salālim.

Al Jallad Et Al 2013 The Arabic Toponyms

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Al-Jallad, Ahmad, Robert Daniel, and Omar al-Ghul. 2013.

The Arabic toponyms and oikonyms

THE ARABIC TOPONYMS AND OIKONYMS IN 17

[] Phonetic realizations are given in square brackets.

3. Gignac, Phonology, 226, 234.

2.2. Arabic Consonants

Plain Arabic *t [th] - *k [kh] - *d [d] = Fricative θ - χ - δ

The following table summarizes the representation of Arabic consonants:

Petra Arabic Petra Arabic

3. Typology of the Toponyms

Features of the land

Terms for plots of land, farms and farming

Names of social groups

4. Greek Terms and Arabic Equivalents

Greek Arabic Translation

5. The Individual Toponyms and Oikonyms

al-Akhbar: see Baith al-Akhbar.

Alebous: a personal name, see Elliath Alebous.

Amar: a personal name, see Mal Amar Al Saroua.

al-Aouaouer: see Khaphphath al-Aouaouer.

Aphthonis: a personal name, see Elliath Aphthonis.

For αραμ = ārām, see above.

25. See OEANE III, 294–95, s.v. Khirbeh.

βαιθ = bayt, see above.

al-Bera Mal Khaphpha[—]ar

36. See al-Macani, Ortnsamen, 75–76.

al-Ebad: probably the name of a family or tribe, see Darath al-Ebad.

Garouan: a personal name, see Arbath Garouan.

57. See PAES IIIA, index, 455–56 s.nn.

Karnai: probably a personal name, see Elliath Karnai.

al-Kellar: see Baith al-Kellar.

al-Keseb: see Kisba

Khaphphath and Khaphphi

τό(πουϲ) Χ̣ α̣ φφι Φοϲεα̣ κ̣ αὶ Χαφφι αλ-Χοου̣ [ l. 87

Khaphphath Math Lela: see Math Lela

al-Khooe[: see Khaphphi al-Khooe[.

Kisba and Keseb

Lela: the woman’s name Layla, see Math Lela.

al-Louza: see Math al-Louza.

Mal Amar Al Saroua

78. Earlier the team understood al-Sarwa as a nickname.

Menam: see Baith al-Menam.

al-Mephōr: see Kaleb al-Mephōr.

al-Ogom: see Khaphphi al-Ogom.

Orsiat: probably a personal name, see Mal Orsiat.

Osaina/Osena: a feminine name, see Math Osaina.

Phosea: a feminine name, see Khaphphi Phosea.

al-Sala[ ]: see Gannath al-Sala[ ].

Sarg Beni [NN]

Saroua: probably a personal name, see Mal Amar Al Saroua.

A. M. AL-JALLAD, R. W. DANIEL, and O. Al-Ghul

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Plain Arabic t [th] - k [kh] - *d [d] = Fricative θ - χ - δ