صوة

Arabic

Etymology

From the root ص و و (ṣ-w-w) or ص و ي (ṣ-w-y), meaning “to be rough or dry”, “to be rugged”, “rugged elevated ground”, stemming from the Bedouin practice of using rock outcroppings to determine bearings in deserts with sparse landmarks; cognate with Old South Arabian 𐩮𐩥𐩺 (ṣwy, “to signify, to indicate (direction)”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sˤuw.wa/

Noun

صُوّة • (ṣuwwa) f (plural صُوًى (ṣuwan) or أَصْواء (ʔaṣwāʔ))

1. an elevation of terrain marking an orographic transition, a foothill, barrow, mound
   • c. 700, أُميَّةُ بن أَبي عائِذٍ الهُذَليّ [Umayya ibn ʾabī ʿāʾiḏ (al-huḏalīy)], Dīwān Huḏalīyīn [Diwan Hodsailitarum / Hudsailian poems / Huḏaylitendiwan], page 201 verse 38 in Kosegarten’s edition:

     وَفِي غَمْرَةِ الْآلِ خِلْتُ الصُّوَى … عُرُوكًا عَلَى رَائِس يَقْسِمُونَا

     wafī ḡamrati l-ʔāli ḵiltu ṣ-ṣuwā … ʕurūkan ʕalā rāʔis yaqsimūnā

     In the overabundance of fogs I fancied the barrows … the mariners onto the valleyhead, dividing us

2. guidepost, marking sign, guiding sign

Declension

Declension of noun صُوّة (ṣuwwa)

Singular	singular triptote in ـَة (-a)
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	صُوّة ṣuwwa	الصُّوّة aṣ-ṣuwwa	صُوّة ṣuwwat
Nominative	صُوّةٌ ṣuwwatun	الصُّوّةُ aṣ-ṣuwwatu	صُوّةُ ṣuwwatu
Accusative	صُوّةً ṣuwwatan	الصُّوّةَ aṣ-ṣuwwata	صُوّةَ ṣuwwata
Genitive	صُوّةٍ ṣuwwatin	الصُّوّةِ aṣ-ṣuwwati	صُوّةِ ṣuwwati
Dual	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	صُوّتَيْن ṣuwwatayn	الصُّوّتَيْن aṣ-ṣuwwatayn	صُوّتَيْ ṣuwwatay
Nominative	صُوّتَانِ ṣuwwatāni	الصُّوّتَانِ aṣ-ṣuwwatāni	صُوّتَا ṣuwwatā
Accusative	صُوّتَيْنِ ṣuwwatayni	الصُّوّتَيْنِ aṣ-ṣuwwatayni	صُوّتَيْ ṣuwwatay
Genitive	صُوّتَيْنِ ṣuwwatayni	الصُّوّتَيْنِ aṣ-ṣuwwatayni	صُوّتَيْ ṣuwwatay
Plural	broken plural in ـًى (-an)‎; basic broken plural triptote
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	صُوَى‎; أَصْواء ṣuwā‎; ʔaṣwāʔ	الصُّوَى‎; الْأَصْواء aṣ-ṣuwā‎; al-ʔaṣwāʔ	صُوَى‎; أَصْواء ṣuwā‎; ʔaṣwāʔ
Nominative	صُوًى‎; أَصْواءٌ ṣuwan‎; ʔaṣwāʔun	الصُّوَى‎; الْأَصْواءُ aṣ-ṣuwā‎; al-ʔaṣwāʔu	صُوَى‎; أَصْواءُ ṣuwā‎; ʔaṣwāʔu
Accusative	صُوًى‎; أَصْواءً ṣuwan‎; ʔaṣwāʔan	الصُّوَى‎; الْأَصْواءَ aṣ-ṣuwā‎; al-ʔaṣwāʔa	صُوَى‎; أَصْواءَ ṣuwā‎; ʔaṣwāʔa
Genitive	صُوًى‎; أَصْواءٍ ṣuwan‎; ʔaṣwāʔin	الصُّوَى‎; الْأَصْواءِ aṣ-ṣuwā‎; al-ʔaṣwāʔi	صُوَى‎; أَصْواءِ ṣuwā‎; ʔaṣwāʔi

References

• Freytag, Georg (1833) “صوة”, in Lexicon arabico-latinum praesertim ex Djeuharii Firuzabadiique et aliorum Arabum operibus adhibitis Golii quoque et aliorum libris confectum‎^[1] (in Latin), volume 2, Halle: C. A. Schwetschke, pages 534–535
• Lane, Edward William (1863) “صوة”, in Arabic-English Lexicon‎^[2], London: Williams & Norgate, page 1738
• Steingass, Francis Joseph (1884) “صوة”, in The Student's Arabic–English Dictionary‎^[3], London: W.H. Allen, page 596
• Wehr, Hans with Kropfitsch, Lorenz (1985) “صوة”, in Arabisches Wörterbuch für die Schriftsprache der Gegenwart‎^[4] (in German), 5th edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, published 2011, →ISBN, page 731