whole of the pearl and can envision most of its parts. As a matter of
fact, more often, because of its transparency, the sight can travel from
one part of it to the other and can thus see both its faces. This is not so
with the spherical solids, as the sight can locate only a little of it, and, if
it is turned upside-down, the eye sees a new portion which it had not
gazed at before. Allah be the Helper!
Lexicographers and the Names and Characteristics of Pearls
There are several names for the pearl in Arabic, just as there are
many names for the lion. I will not discuss all of these, because in the
first place I am unable to do so, and, in the second, it would mean an unnecessary stretching of the theme.
Among its celebrated equivalents are: lu'lu, durrah, marjanah, nut fail,
tawmah, tawa'miyyah, latimiyyali, sadafiyah, safanah, jumanah, wanniyah, hayjmanah, kharidah, hawsah, tha'th'ah and al-khusl. According
to Khalil bin Ahmad it is called nutfah, as in brightness and transparency
it is like nutfah (drop of water).
Hail and the milk-drop are closer in appearance to the pearl than the
drop of water. It would be more appropriate to compare it with a drop
of the sperm fluid. But this similarity would be on account of its whiteness, not transparency, although while comparing the semen to the drop
of water, it is called nutfah and also ma'i mahin (useless water). It includes both men and women as regards connotation, but usually the
word nutfah is used for semen only.
A poet says about tawamiyyah:
Like a true pearl is she. On union she would cool the eyes and impart warmth to the bed.
The word, tawamiyyah, is associated with a coastal place, if the pronoun of ba ashartuha is a pronoun of the feminine gender, the meaning
would be that the sight of pearls is cooling, and, because of their exquisiteness, there will be no uneasiness if they are spread upon the bed. But if
the pronoun is meant to denote the woman with whom the pearl has
been compared, the implication would be that her sight is cooling to the
eye and union with her would make the bed warm.
Hirmazi explains the origin of the word, taw 'am for the pearl by
pointing out that this is the name of a village in 'Umman close to the
coast and the mountain situated on the road to Mafazah, there being a
distance of twenty farsangs between the two.
The word, latimiyyah, is associated with the word, latimah.78 This is
what has been said in the exegesis of the verses of Abu Dhu'yab.
Similarly, the word, sadafiyyah, is associated with sadaf, since the
word, latimiyyah, does not appear to be appropriate. Nabighah has used
