Al-Azhar
/alˈʔaz.har/noun
A historic mosque and center of Islamic learning in Cairo, Egypt, also referring to its associated university.
Did you know?Al-Azhar’s name is traditionally connected by some historians with Fatimah al-Zahra, daughter of Muhammad, although the institution’s exact naming remains debated.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic
*z-h-r
“A reconstructed root associated with shining, brightness, or flowering”
Classical Arabic
Arabic
zahara (زَهَرَ)
“To shine, become bright, or bloom”
Classical Arabic
Arabic
azhar (أَزْهَر)
“Brighter, more radiant, or more flourishing; the masculine comparative form”
10th Century
Arabic
al-Azhar (الأزهر)
“The more radiant; the name given to the Cairo mosque founded around 970–972”
Medieval Arabic
Arabic
Jāmiʿ al-Azhar
“The Mosque of Al-Azhar, which developed into a major center of Islamic scholarship”
Modern English
English
Al-Azhar
“The Cairo mosque-university and its associated institution of learning”