ʿĀd

Etymology

There is a possibility that the tribal name ʿĀd represents a misinterpretation of a common noun: the expression min al-ʿād is today understood to mean "since the time of ʿĀd", but ʿād might originally have been a common noun meaning 'antiquity', which was reinterpreted as a proper noun, inspiring of the tribe 'Ad in Islamic conception.

Sources

The banū ʿĀd are mentioned in some pre-Islamic Arabic poetry, including the work attributed to Ṭarafa and in the Mufaḍḍaliyyāt, and in material recorded by [iIbn Hisham|ibn Hishām]]; in this material they are understood as "an ancient nation that had perished".

The banū ʿĀd are mentioned twenty-four times in the Quran. According to the Quran, the ʿĀd built monuments and strongholds at every high point and their fate is evident from the remains of their dwellings. In Andrew Rippin's summary,the tribe of ʿĀd is frequently mentioned alongside Thamūd and Noah, as in Q 9:70. A prosperous group living after the time of Noah (Q 7:69), the ʿĀd built great buildings (Q 26:128) associated with the aḥqāf (Q 46:21), understood as the "sand dunes" and identified by tradition as a place in the south of Arabia ... Hūd and other prophets were sent to the people of ʿĀd but they rejected him; they were then destroyed by a violent wind (Q 41:16, 46:24, 51:41, 54:19, 69:6) that lasted for a week and left only their buildings standing. The remnant of the tribe who survived, were the followers of Hūd (Q 7:72, 11:58).

History and location

Recently, a secure identification has been made between Iram and a region in northern Arabia and Wadi Rum in the desert of southern Jordan. The place, in combination with the place-names found attested to by inscriptions from the region, are compatible with the al-ʾaḥqāf, "winding tracts" description of 'Ad in 46:21. Subsequently, it was also shown that three pre-Islamic Arabian inscriptions (two in Hismaic, one in Safaitic) mention the tribe of 'Ad in the same area. Therefore, it is now widely accepted that both Iram and 'Ad belonged to the Wadi Rum area of the southern Jordan.

In Islam

According to Islamic tradition, the tribes of Hud and 'Ad are both linked to an eponymous, legendary king named ʽAd, but modern scholarship has discarded the idea of such a king. ʿĀd came from the northeast of Arabia, more exactly Iraq, and was the progenitor of the Adites, as well as the son of Uz (), who was the son of Aram (), who was the son of Shem, the son of Noah (). Therefore, Noah () is said to be Ad's great-great-grandfather. After Ad's death, his sons Shadid and Shedad reigned in succession over the Adites. ʿĀd then became a collective term for all those descended from Ad.

References

Sources

References

1. (1987). "[[Encyclopaedia of Islam#1st edition, EI1". [[Brill Publishers.
2. (January 2003). "[[The New Encyclopedia of Islam]]". [[Rowman Altamira]].
3. Buhl, F.. "ʿĀd".
4. Rippin, Andrew. "ʿĀd".
5. {{qref. 26. 128
6. {{qref. 29. 38. 46. 25
7. Robert Schick, ''Archaeology and the Quran'', [[Encyclopaedia of the Qur'an]].
8. Buhl, F.. "ʿĀd".
9. Al Makin, "[https://central.bac-lac.gc.ca/.item?id=TC-QMM-29837&op=pdf&app=Library&oclc_number=898043524 Modern Exegesis on Historical Narratives of the Qurʾān: The Case of ʿAd and Thamūd According to Sayyid Quṭb in his Fi Ẓilāl al-Qurʾān]" (unpublish MA thesis, McGill University, 1999), pp. 10-11.
10. (1987). "[[Encyclopaedia of Islam#1st edition, EI1". Brill.
11. Tottoli, Roberto. "ʿĀd". Brill.