حرباء

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Arabic

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حِرْبَاء
 حرباء on Arabic Wikipedia

Etymology

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  • From حَرْبَة (ḥarba, dart, javelin; weapon in a general sense) from the root ح ر ب (ḥ-r-b); likely a reference to the projectile-like tongue of a chameleon. Cognate with Akkadian 𒁇𒁯𒁯𒉡 (/⁠ḫurbabillu⁠/, chameleon) and Eblaite 𒄯𒁀𒌝 (ḫur.ba.um, chameleon).
  • Deriving from the root ح ر ب (ḥ-r-b) in the sense of "becoming enraged or to grow agitated", as the changing of color is used idiomatically to denote changes in states or moods in Semitic Languages.
  • Alternatively, philologist Georg Freytag lists it as from a Persian خربا (xorbâ) (> خوربان (xwarbân, sun-keeper)), giving the meaning “guardian of the sun”; perhaps related to Persian آفتاب‌پرست (âftâb-parast, chameleon, literally sun-worshiper).

Pronunciation

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Noun

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حِرْبَاء (ḥirbāʔm (plural حَرَابِيّ (ḥarābiyy))

  1. chameleon

Declension

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Synonyms

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References

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