بصل

See also: تصل‎ and تضل‎

Arabic

بَصَل

Etymology

Akin to Hebrew בָּצָל‎ (bāṣā́l), Phoenician 𐤁𐤑𐤋‎ (bṣl), Aramaic בּוּצְלָא‎ (būṣlā), Classical Syriac ܒܶܨܠܳܐ‎ (beṣlā), Old South Arabian 𐩨𐩮𐩡‎ (bṣl), Mehri béṣál, Shehri béṣál, Soqotri biṣle. With a sound change it is also found in Akkadian 𒁉𒄑𒊒 (bisru, bišru; biṣru, “leek, a plant or bulb covered in a skin”), a variation influenced or conflated with Akkadian 𒁉𒄑𒀸 (biṣrum, “container, pouch, wrapping”), related also to Akkadian 𒁍𒊻𒍪𒊒𒌝 (buṣṣurum, “to tear apart, to peel”) specifically attested about garlic (a type of onion) and Akkadian 𒁉𒄑𒍪𒀸 (biṣṣūrum, “vulva, labia, folds of skin”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ba.sˤal/

Noun

بَصَل • (baṣal) m (collective, singulative بَصَلَة‎ f (baṣala))

1. onion(s)
2. bulb(s)

Declension

Declension of noun بَصَل (baṣal)

Collective	basic collective triptote
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	بَصَل baṣal	الْبَصَل‎ al-baṣal	بَصَل baṣal
Nominative	بَصَلٌ baṣalun	الْبَصَلُ‎ al-baṣalu	بَصَلُ baṣalu
Accusative	بَصَلًا‎ baṣalan	الْبَصَلَ‎ al-baṣala	بَصَلَ baṣala
Genitive	بَصَلٍ baṣalin	الْبَصَلِ‎ al-baṣali	بَصَلِ baṣali
Singulative	singulative triptote in ـَة (-a)
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	بَصَلَة‎ baṣala	الْبَصَلَة‎ al-baṣala	بَصَلَة‎ baṣalat
Nominative	بَصَلَةٌ‎ baṣalatun	الْبَصَلَةُ‎ al-baṣalatu	بَصَلَةُ‎ baṣalatu
Accusative	بَصَلَةً‎ baṣalatan	الْبَصَلَةَ‎ al-baṣalata	بَصَلَةَ‎ baṣalata
Genitive	بَصَلَةٍ‎ baṣalatin	الْبَصَلَةِ‎ al-baṣalati	بَصَلَةِ‎ baṣalati
Dual	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	بَصَلَتَيْن‎ baṣalatayn	الْبَصَلَتَيْن‎ al-baṣalatayn	بَصَلَتَيْ‎ baṣalatay
Nominative	بَصَلَتَانِ‎ baṣalatāni	الْبَصَلَتَانِ‎ al-baṣalatāni	بَصَلَتَا‎ baṣalatā
Accusative	بَصَلَتَيْنِ‎ baṣalatayni	الْبَصَلَتَيْنِ‎ al-baṣalatayni	بَصَلَتَيْ‎ baṣalatay
Genitive	بَصَلَتَيْنِ‎ baṣalatayni	الْبَصَلَتَيْنِ‎ al-baṣalatayni	بَصَلَتَيْ‎ baṣalatay
Paucal (3-10)	sound feminine paucal
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	بَصَلَات‎ baṣalāt	الْبَصَلَات‎ al-baṣalāt	بَصَلَات‎ baṣalāt
Nominative	بَصَلَاتٌ‎ baṣalātun	الْبَصَلَاتُ‎ al-baṣalātu	بَصَلَاتُ‎ baṣalātu
Accusative	بَصَلَاتٍ‎ baṣalātin	الْبَصَلَاتِ‎ al-baṣalāti	بَصَلَاتِ‎ baṣalāti
Genitive	بَصَلَاتٍ‎ baṣalātin	الْبَصَلَاتِ‎ al-baṣalāti	بَصَلَاتِ‎ baṣalāti

Derived terms

• بَصَل الذِئْب‎ (baṣal aḏ-ḏiʔb, “three-cornered leek, Allium triquetrum”)
• بَصَل الْبَرّ‎ (baṣal al-barr, “sea daffodil, Pancratium maritimum”)
• بَصَل الْخِنْزِير‎ (baṣal al-ḵinzīr, “sea onion, Drimia maritima”)
• بَصَل الْفَأْر‎ (baṣal al-faʔr, “sea onion, Drimia maritima”)
• بَصَل بَرَّانِيّ‎ (baṣal barrāniyy, “sea onion, Drimia maritima”)
• بَصَل حَارّ‎ (baṣal ḥārr, “sea onion, Drimia maritima”)
• بَصَل عَسْقَلانِيّ‎ (baṣal ʕasqalāniyy, “shallot, (Allium cepa var. aggregatum)”)
• بَصَل فِرْعَوْن‎ (baṣal firʕawn, “sea onion, Drimia maritima”)
• بَصَلِيّ‎ (baṣaliyy, “bulbar”)
• بُصَيْلَة‎ (buṣayla, “shallot, (Allium cepa var. aggregatum)”)

 

Descendants

• Maltese: basal
• → Afar: básal
• → Beja: basal
• → Bole: àlbasàr
• → Ge'ez: በጸል (bäṣäl), ቦጸል (boṣäl)
• → Hausa: àlbasā̀
  • → Nupe: àlùbása
  • → Yoruba: àlùbọ́sà, àlùbásà
    • → Gun: àlùbásà
    • → Krio: yabas
• → Igbo: yabasị
• → Jina: àlbasàr
• → Kanuri: albasar
• → Mabaan: bacan
• → Saho: basal
• → Sindhi: بصر‎ (basar)
• → Somali: basal
• → Tigre: በጸል (bäṣäl)

References

• “buṣṣuru”, in The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago (CAD), volume 2, B, Chicago: University of Chicago Oriental Institute, 1965, page 134
• “bisru–biṣṣūru”, in The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago (CAD), volume 2, B, Chicago: University of Chicago Oriental Institute, 1965, page 268
• Dillmann, August (1865) Lexicon linguae aethiopicae cum indice latino (in Latin), Leipzig: T. O. Weigel, column 545
• Dozy, Reinhart Pieter Anne (1881), “بصل”, in Supplément aux dictionnaires arabes (in French), volume 1, Leiden: E. J. Brill, page 92a
• Lane, Edward William (1863), “بصل”, in Arabic-English Lexicon, London: Williams & Norgate, pages 212–213
• Leslau, Wolf (1991) Comparative Dictionary of Geʿez (Classical Ethiopic), 2nd edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, →ISBN, page 111
• Leslau, Wolf (1938) Lexique Soqotri (sudarabique moderne) avec comparaisons et explications étymologiques (in French), Wiesbaden: Libraire C. Klincksieck, page 93
• Steingass, Francis Joseph (1884), “بصل”, in The Student's Arabic–English Dictionary‎^[1], London: W.H. Allen, page 127
• Wehr, Hans; Kropfitsch, Lorenz (1985), “بصل”, in Arabisches Wörterbuch für die Schriftsprache der Gegenwart (in German), 5th edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, published 2011, →ISBN, page 76

Ottoman Turkish

Etymology

Borrowed from Arabic بَصَل‎ (baṣal, “onion”).

Noun

بصل • (basal)

1. onion (Allium cepa)

   Synonym: صوغان‎ (soğan)

2. (botany) bulbous root

Descendants

• Turkish: basal

Further reading

• Çağbayır, Yaşar (2007), “basal1”, in Ötüken Türkçe Sözlük (in Turkish), volume 1, Istanbul: Ötüken Neşriyat, page 474
• Kélékian, Diran (1911), “بصل”, in Dictionnaire turc-français, Constantinople: Mihran, page 268
• Meninski, Franciszek à Mesgnien (1687), “Cepa”, in Complementum thesauri linguarum orientalium, seu onomasticum latino-turcico-arabico-persicum, simul idem index verborum lexici turcico-arabico-persici, quod latinâ, germanicâ, aliarumque linguarum adjectâ nomenclatione nuper in lucem editum, Vienna, column 169
• Redhouse, James W. (1890), “بصل”, in A Turkish and English Lexicon, Constantinople: A. H. Boyajian, page 368

South Levantine Arabic

Etymology

From Arabic بَصَل‎ (baṣal).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ba.sˤal/, [ˈbɑ.sˤɑl]

• Audio (Bethlehem)

  (file)

Noun

بصل • (baṣal) m (collective, singulative بصلة‎ f (baṣale))

1. (uncountable) onions