قريش

Various theories exist. One theory cites the Diminutive form of قِرْش (qirš, “shark, any large fish that eats smaller fish”); the name semantically is parallel to being the top dog, as sharks are apex predators at the top of their food chain. 9th-century scholar Hisham ibn al-Kalbi asserted that the name stemmed from تَقَرُّش (taqarruš, “coming together”) to denote the various tribes unified under Quraysh.

• IPA^(key): /qu.rajʃ/

قُرَيْش • (qurayš) f or m

1. Quraysh (Arabian tribe or tribal confederacy)
   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 106:1-3:

     لِإِيلَافِ قُرَيْشٍ إِيلَافِهِمْ رِحْلَةَ ٱلشِّتَاءِ وَٱلصَّيْفِ فَلْيَعْبُدُوا رَبَّ هَٰذَا ٱلْبَيْتِ […]

     li-ʔīlāfi qurayšin ʔīlāfihim riḥlata š-šitāʔi wa-ṣ-ṣayfi fa-l-yaʕbudū rabba hāḏā l-bayti […]

     For the accustomed security of the Quraysh - their accustomed security [in] the caravan of winter and summer - Let them worship the Lord of this House […]

2. The 106th sura (chapter) of the Qur'an.