Arab
/ˈær.əb/noun
A member of a Semitic people traditionally associated with the Arabian Peninsula; also relating to the Arabic language or Arab culture.
Did you know?The word’s earliest history is tangled in ancient Semitic and Near Eastern sources, and scholars still debate whether it began as a tribal label, a geographic term, or an outsider’s name for desert peoples.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Near East
Semitic
ʿarab / ʿarabi
“An early ethnonym or regional label for Arab peoples, attested in ancient inscriptions and texts.”
Ancient Hebrew
Hebrew
ʿarav / ʿaravi
“A related Semitic form used for people associated with the desert or the west, depending on context and interpretation.”
Classical Greek
Greek
Arábes
“A name for Arab peoples encountered by Greek writers.”
Classical Latin
Latin
Arabes
“The Arabs; the people of Arabia.”
Old French
French
Arabe
“An Arab person; Arabic in reference to language or culture.”
Modern English
English
Arab
“A member of an Arab people or relating to Arab culture and the Arabic language.”