قفيز

Arabic

Etymology

From Aramaic קְפִיזָא / ܩܦܝܙܐ (qəp̄īzā). It is a dry measure the oldest attestation of which is Demotic kpḏ (“a standard measure of 100 ml, applicable to dry and liquid content”), later Coptic ϭⲁⲡⲉⲓϫⲉ (capeiče), and it is to be identified with Middle Persian [Book Pahlavi needed] (kpyc /⁠kabīz⁠/), Classical Persian کویز (kawīz), کویژ (kawīž), Kurdish, , Ancient Greek καπίθη (kapíthē) (in Xenophon’s Anabasis), dialectal Modern Greek καπίθιον (kapíthion), Parthian [script needed] (kpyš), Sogdian [script needed] (kpc), Bactrian καβσο (kabso), καβιζο (kabizo), Khwarezmian [script needed] (kpcyk), Old Armenian կապիճ (kapič), Mush Armenian կապեճ (kapeč), Hamshen Armenian կապճակ (kapčak), կապիծ (kapic), Old Georgian კაპიჭი (ḳaṗič̣i), კაბიწი (ḳabic̣i), Laz კაპიწი (ǩap̌iǯi), Ossetian къабиц (k’abic), къӕбиц (k’æbic), Classical Mandaic [script needed] (qabīṣā), Turkish gebiç, kapis, kebiç, kepiç, kepinç, kepis, gabiz, kepiz․

For speculated origin, compare Akkadian 𒆏𒁍 (/⁠kappu⁠/, “originally meaning “hand” from Proto-Semitic *kapp-, cupped hands; a bowl, a small serving container”), possibly with a later Iranian language suffix or from a yet to be attested addition of 𒅖 (/⁠-iš⁠/, “to be -like”), rendering a literal meaning “to be hand-like, to be like cupped hands”. Alternatively related to Urartian 𒅗𒉿 (ka-pi /⁠kapi⁠/, “a grain measure”), both it and the Akkadian being of no little frequency, or even Proto-Indo-European *keh₂p- (“fassen”) or *(s)kep- (“to work with a sharp instrument”).

Noun

قَفِيز • (qafīz) m (plural أَقْفِزَة (ʔaqfiza) or قُفْزَان (qufzān))

1. (obsolete) a dry measure
   1. (medieval Iraq)
      1. (al-Kūfa, Bağdād) about 60 litres
      2. (al-Baṣra, Wāṣiṭ) about 30 litres
   2. (medieval Palestine) about 152 litres
   3. (medieval Tunisia) varying between about 170–200 litres
   4. (Morocco until 1923, Algeria until 1843, Tunisia until 1895) 528.4 litres

Declension

Declension of noun قَفِيز (qafīz)

Singular	basic singular triptote
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	قَفِيز qafīz	الْقَفِيز al-qafīz	قَفِيز qafīz
Nominative	قَفِيزٌ qafīzun	الْقَفِيزُ al-qafīzu	قَفِيزُ qafīzu
Accusative	قَفِيزًا qafīzan	الْقَفِيزَ al-qafīza	قَفِيزَ qafīza
Genitive	قَفِيزٍ qafīzin	الْقَفِيزِ al-qafīzi	قَفِيزِ qafīzi
Dual	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	قَفِيزَيْن qafīzayn	الْقَفِيزَيْن al-qafīzayn	قَفِيزَيْ qafīzay
Nominative	قَفِيزَانِ qafīzāni	الْقَفِيزَانِ al-qafīzāni	قَفِيزَا qafīzā
Accusative	قَفِيزَيْنِ qafīzayni	الْقَفِيزَيْنِ al-qafīzayni	قَفِيزَيْ qafīzay
Genitive	قَفِيزَيْنِ qafīzayni	الْقَفِيزَيْنِ al-qafīzayni	قَفِيزَيْ qafīzay
Plural	broken plural triptote in ـَة (-a)‎; basic broken plural triptote
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	أَقْفِزَة‎; قُفْزَان ʔaqfiza‎; qufzān	الْأَقْفِزَة‎; الْقُفْزَان al-ʔaqfiza‎; al-qufzān	أَقْفِزَة‎; قُفْزَان ʔaqfizat‎; qufzān
Nominative	أَقْفِزَةٌ‎; قُفْزَانٌ ʔaqfizatun‎; qufzānun	الْأَقْفِزَةُ‎; الْقُفْزَانُ al-ʔaqfizatu‎; al-qufzānu	أَقْفِزَةُ‎; قُفْزَانُ ʔaqfizatu‎; qufzānu
Accusative	أَقْفِزَةً‎; قُفْزَانًا ʔaqfizatan‎; qufzānan	الْأَقْفِزَةَ‎; الْقُفْزَانَ al-ʔaqfizata‎; al-qufzāna	أَقْفِزَةَ‎; قُفْزَانَ ʔaqfizata‎; qufzāna
Genitive	أَقْفِزَةٍ‎; قُفْزَانٍ ʔaqfizatin‎; qufzānin	الْأَقْفِزَةِ‎; الْقُفْزَانِ al-ʔaqfizati‎; al-qufzāni	أَقْفِزَةِ‎; قُفْزَانِ ʔaqfizati‎; qufzāni

Descendants

• → Catalan: cafís
• → English: qafiz
• → Italian: cafiso
• → Medieval Latin: cafisium
• → Old Leonese: cafiz
  • Asturian: cafiz
  • Leonese: caffiz
• → Persian: قفیز (qafîz), کفیز (kafîz)
• → Old Galician-Portuguese: cafiz
  • → Portuguese: cacifo
• → Sicilian: cafisu
• → Old Spanish: cafiz
  • Spanish: cahiz

References

• “qpyz”, in The Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon Project, Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College, 1986–
• Ačaṙean, Hračʻeay (1973) “կապիճ”, in Hayerēn armatakan baṙaran [Armenian Etymological Dictionary] (in Armenian), 2nd edition, a reprint of the original 1926–1935 seven-volume edition, volume II, Yerevan: University Press, page 525ab
• Ciancaglini, Claudia A. (2008) Iranian loanwords in Syriac (Beiträge zur Iranistik; 28), Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, page 250
• Corriente, F. (1997) A Dictionary of Andalusi Arabic (Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 1 The Near and Middle East; 29)‎^[1], Leiden, New York, Köln: Brill, →ISBN, →LCCN, page 436
• Corriente, Federico (2008) “cafís”, in Dictionary of Arabic and Allied Loanwords. Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Galician and Kindred Dialects (Handbook of Oriental Studies; 97), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 240
• Dankoff, Robert (1995) Armenian Loanwords in Turkish (Turcologica; 21), Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, page 75
• Dozy, Reinhart Pieter Anne (1881) “قفيز”, in Supplément aux dictionnaires arabes‎^[2] (in French), volume 2, Leiden: E. J. Brill, page 383
• Edelʹman, D. I. (2011) Etimologičeskij slovarʹ iranskix jazykov [Etymological Dictionary of Iranian Languages] (in Russian), volume IV, Moscow: Vostochnaya Literatura, page 227
• Freytag, Georg (1835) “قفيز”, in Lexicon arabico-latinum praesertim ex Djeuharii Firuzabadiique et aliorum Arabum operibus adhibitis Golii quoque et aliorum libris confectum‎^[3] (in Latin), volume 3, Halle: C. A. Schwetschke, page 480
• Ritner, Robert Kriech (1996) “The Earliest Attestation of the kpḏ-Measure”, in Studies in Honor of William Kelly Simpson, volume 2, Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, →ISBN, pages 683–688
• Schmitt, Rüdiger (2007) “Brust, M.: Die indischen und iranischen Lehnwörter im Griechischen”, in Kratylos‎^[4], volume 52, page 82
• Wehr, Hans with Kropfitsch, Lorenz (1985) “قفيز”, in Arabisches Wörterbuch für die Schriftsprache der Gegenwart‎^[5] (in German), 5th edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, published 2011, →ISBN, page 1047