Dabbah
/ˈdæb.ə/noun
In Islamic eschatology, the Dabbah is a creature that will emerge from the earth as a sign of the approaching Day of Judgment.
Did you know?The term appears in Qur’an 27:82, where the Dabbah is described as a creature from the earth that will speak to humanity before the final judgment.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic
*d-b-b
“To move slowly, creep, or crawl; a reconstructed root associated with crawling creatures”
Classical Arabic
Arabic
دَبَّ (dabba)
“He moved slowly, crept, or crawled”
Classical Arabic
Arabic
دَابَّة (dābbah)
“A moving creature, animal, or beast”
7th Century
Qur’anic Arabic
دَابَّةُ الْأَرْض (dābbatu l-arḍ)
“The creature of the earth, a sign associated with the approaching judgment”
Medieval Islamic Tradition
Arabic
الدابة (ad-Dābbah)
“The eschatological creature interpreted in commentaries and prophetic traditions”
Modern English
English
Dabbah
“An English transliteration for the Islamic end-times creature, often called the Beast of the Earth”