Seerah
/ˈsiː.rə/noun
A biographical account of the life and character of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, especially the traditional prophetic biography.
Did you know?The Arabic root of seerah, س-ي-ر, is associated with moving, traveling, and proceeding, framing biography not merely as recorded events but as the path a person travels.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic
*s-y-r
“To go, travel, or proceed; a reconstructed Semitic root”
Classical Arabic
Arabic
sāra
“He went, traveled, or proceeded”
Classical Arabic
Arabic
sīra
“A way of proceeding, conduct, life course, or biography”
8th–9th Century
Arabic
al-sīra al-nabawiyya
“The prophetic life-story or biography of Muhammad”
19th–20th Century
English
seerah
“An English transliteration used for the traditional biography of Muhammad”