English
alfaqui
Alfaqui comes from Arabic الفَقِيه ‘the theologian’, and goes back to فَقِهَ ‘to be wise’.
- Arabicc. 500–presentفَقِهَfaqiha‘to be wise’
- Arabic, derivedc. 500–presentالفَقِيهal-faqīh‘the theologian’
- Andalusian Arabicc. 800–1600same formal-faqíh
- Spanishc. 1500–presentalfaquí
- Englishearliest quotation 1632alfaqui
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Arabicc. 500–presentفَقِهَfaqiha‘to be wise’
- Arabic, derivedc. 500–presentالفَقِيهal-faqīh‘the theologian’
- Andalusian Arabicc. 800–1600same formal-faqíh
- Spanishc. 1500–presentalfaquí
- Englishearliest quotation 1632alfaqui
Earliest quotation: 1632, J. Morgan: “It was the Head of the Christians Alfaqui, or…”
Every English word from Arabic فَقِهَ
Today it means
noun An Islamic cleric, an expert in Islamic law and jurisprudence, especially in medieval and early modern Spain.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Arabic فَقِهَ / alfaqui