Name Patterns from Ibn
al-Bannāʼ
by Basil Dragonstrike
On this page I have gathered all the different patterns of
name elements found in the diary of Ibn al-Bannāʼ; first I'll cover
some of those patterns, each time using a full name from the book.
Since there are more than fifty different patterns found in this
book, I will discuss only some, and then give a chart (without
examples) of all the patterns.
A quick review: Arabic names are composed of four (five actually)
different types of name elements. The first name element is the kunya,
a name using Abū or Umm usually followed by the ism of the eldest
son. Next is the ism, the personal name (SCAers should note
that this is the only type of name element that corresponds to a
"primary name"). Next comes the nasab, using "ibn" or "bint"
to denote the father (rarely the mother) of the person; this can
extend to a number of generations, and sometimes generations are
skipped (i.e., the nasab is not that of the father, but of the
grandfather, great-grandfather, etc.). Sometimes, other terms are
used, to indicate one is the son-of-the-daughter, the brother, etc.
of a specified person; the only such case in this book is Ṣibt ibn
Jauzi, "the son-of-the-daughter of the son of Jauzi" (this formation
is not in the list below) . The fourth type of name element is the
laqab/nisba, or as I call it, the byname; this is a description of
the person. Descriptions can be based on appearance, occupation,
tribe, etc. The fifth type, which, when present, comes first, is
what is called a "honorific"; there is more information on this
below.
Now, obviously, the simplest name formation is calling someone by
just his/her ism. An example straight from the book is Jaʻfar. Among
women there's ʻĀʼisha. Slightly more complicated is calling someone
by his/her ism followed by a byname: examples are Hilāl al-Ḥaffār,
or among women Badr al-Dujā. There's also an ism followed by a
nasab, such as Muḥammad b. Sīrīn; a bit more complex is an ism
followed by a nasab that's based on the father's kunya, such as the
well-known ‘Alī b. Abī Ṭālib. Or the nasab can be based on a byname,
as with ‘Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb, the second caliph. Of course, there's
an ism followed by by a nasab and then a byname, for example ‘Abd
al-Qādir b. Muḥammad an-Nu‘aim (note the theophoric ism). Naturally,
the nasab can be stretched to multiple generations, and more than
one byname can be added; one of the more extreme examples of this is
the woman, Karīma bint Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Ḥātim al-Marwazīya, with
an ism, three generations of nasab, and a byname.
Another simple formation, and the one most often used by Ibn
al-Bannāʼ, is a kunya by itself; I'll mention only Abū Raqba out of
all the possible examples. A bit more complex is a kunya and an ism,
like Abū Naṣr Muḥammad. There's also a kunya followed by a byname,
such as Abū Manṣūr al-Khaiyāṭ, or followed by a nasab, such as Abū
Ṭālib b. Ghailān. Then, obviously, there's the kunya plus ism plus
nasab plus byname, such as Abū Sa‘īd al-Ḥasan b. Muḥammad al-Kutubī;
this can be considered something of a classic formation. Here too,
the nasab can be extended to more generations, and multiple bynames
used.
Then, there are people known only by their nasab, such as Ibn
Khamīs; Ibn Bannāʼ (another example) does not refer to anyone by
nothing more than a multi-generation nasab. There is the use of a
nasab based on a kunya, such as Ibn Abī Mūsā, or a nasab based on a
byname, like Ibn al-Maṭbakhī. A nasab may be followed by a byname,
as in Ibn Khaṭṭāb al-Jassār.
Some people in the diary are referred to by a byname alone, such as
al-Khiraqī, two bynames, like al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī, or even three,
as in al-Jazarī al-Faqīh al-Ḥanbalī.
Some people in this book are called by what are known as
"honorifics"; that is, name elements usually of the form "______
al-Dīn"; though "_____ al-Daula," "______ al-Mulūk," and "______
al-Mulk" are also found. While such names are not allowed in the
SCA, for the sake of completeness I will give examples of all those
formations I found. Simplest is an honorific on its own, such as
Ḑiyā’ al-Dīn. We find an honorific plus a byname, ‘Imad al-Dīn
al-Iṣfahānī, but the next simplest is Tāj al-Mulūk Hazārasb b.
Bankīr b. ‘Iyāḑ, which is an honorific, an ism, and two nasabs.
Let's move on to the chart of all patterns, including the ones
discussed above. (Please note: the only formations found in women's
names in this work are Ism, Ism + Byname, and Ism + Nasab + Nasab +
Byname.):
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to Introduction
Honorific
Honorific + Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Nasab
Honorific + Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Byname
Honorific + Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Byname +Byname + Byname
Honorific + Ism + Nasab + Nasab
Honorific + Byname
Kunya
Kunya + Honorific + Ism + Nasab + Byname
Kunya + Ism
Kunya + Ism + Nasab
Kunya + Ism + Nasab based on an Honorific
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Nasab
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Nasab based on a Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Nasab + Nasab + Nasab based on a Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Nasab + Nasab + Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Nasab + Nasab + Byname + Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Nasab + Nasab based on a Byname + Byname +
Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab based on a Kunya + Nasab + Nasab + Byname +
Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Nasab + Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Nasab + Byname + Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Nasab + Byname + Byname + Byname + Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab based on a Kunya + Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab based on a Byname + Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Byname + Byname
Kunya + Ism + Nasab + Byname + Byname + Byname
Kunya + Ism + Byname
Kunya + Nasab
Kunya + Nasab based on a Kunya
Kunya + Nasab based on a Byname
Kunya + Nasab + Nasab
Kunya + Nasab + Byname
Kunya + Nasab based on a Kunya + Byname
Kunya + Nasab based on a Byname + Byname
Kunya + Byname
Kunya + Byname + Byname
Ism
Ism + Nasab
Ism + Nasab based on a Kunya
Ism + Nasab based on a Byname
Ism + Nasab + Nasab + Nasab
Ism + Nasab + Nasab + Nasab + Byname
Ism + Nasab + Nasab + Byname
Ism + Nasab + Byname
Ism + Byname
Nasab
Nasab based on a Kunya
Nasab based on a Byname
Nasab + Byname
Nasab based on a Kunya + Byname
Nasab based on a Byname + Byname
Byname
Byname + Byname
Byname + Byname + Byname
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