Kaf
/kɑːf/noun
The name of the Arabic letter ك, and sometimes a variant spelling of the Hebrew letter kaph.
Did you know?The Arabic letter kaf is historically related to the Hebrew kaph, whose name also means “palm of the hand,” likely reflecting an early sign’s shape.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic
*kapp-
“Palm of the hand”
1st millennium BCE
Phoenician
𐤊 kaph
“Letter name associated with the palm or hand”
Biblical Hebrew
Hebrew
כַּף kaf/kaph
“Palm of the hand; name of the letter כ”
Classical Arabic
Arabic
كَاف kāf
“Name of the letter ك”
19th Century
English
kaf
“An English transliteration for the Arabic letter kāf”