مكة

See also: مکہ, مکھ, مکه, and مكه

Arabic

Etymology

Of uncertain etymology. Variously explained as

  • From a similar name بَكَّة (bakka) appearing in the Quran
  • Possibly from Ge'ez ምኵራብ (məkʷrab, sanctuary, temple), doublet of مِحْرَاب (miḥrāb); compare Greek Μακοράβα (Makoráva).[1]

This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /mak.ka/

Proper noun

مَكَّة • (makkaf

  1. Mecca (a large city in Saudi Arabia)
    مَكَّة الْمُكَرَّمَةmakkat al-mukarramaMecca
    • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 48:24:
      وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِي كَفَّ أَيْدِيَهُمْ عَنْكُمْ وَأَيْدِيَكُمْ عَنْهُمْ بِبَطْنِ مَكَّةَ مِنْ بَعْدِ أَنْ أَظْفَرَكُمْ عَلَيْهِمْ وَكَانَ ٱللّٰهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرًا
      wa-huwa llaḏī kaffa ʔaydiyahum ʕankum wa-ʔaydiyakum ʕanhum bi-baṭni makkata min baʕdi ʔan ʔaẓfarakum ʕalayhim wa-kāna llāhu bi-mā taʕmalūna baṣīran
      And it is He who withheld their hands from you and your hands from them within [the area of] Makkah after He caused you to overcome them. And ever is Allah of what you do, Seeing.

Declension

Declension of noun مَكَّة (makka)
singular singular diptote in ـَة (-a)
indefinite definite construct
informal مَكَّة
makka
nominative مَكَّةُ
makkatu
accusative مَكَّةَ
makkata
genitive مَكَّةَ
makkata

Derived terms

  • أَهْلُ مَكَّةَ أَدْرَى بِشِعَابِهَا (ʔahlu makkata ʔadrā bišiʕābihā)

Descendants

  • Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܡܲܟܵܐ (Makkā)
  • Azerbaijani: Məkkə
  • Bashkir: Мәккә (Məkkə)
  • Bengali: মক্কা (Mokka)
  • English: Mecca
  • Malay: Mekah
  • Ottoman Turkish: مكه (Mekke)
  • Persian: مکه (Makke)
  • Swahili: Makka

References

  1. ^ Douglas Harper (2001–2025) “Mecca”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
  • Wehr, Hans (1979) “مكة”, in J. Milton Cowan, editor, A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic, 4th edition, Ithaca, NY: Spoken Language Services, →ISBN

Further reading