مال

Arabic

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /maː.li/

Adverb

مَالِ • (māli)

Obsolete spelling of مَا لِ (mā li).
- 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 61:2-3:
  فَمَالِ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟...
  famāli llaḏīna kafarū...
  So what is with those who disbelieve...

Etymology 2

Probably a univerbation of مَا (mā, “what”) + ل (l-, “to; belonging to”), as in مَا لِي (mā lī, “what belongs to me”). The root م و ل (m-w-l) then developed denominally. While this may seem like popular etymology, similar univerbations do exist in Arabic; compare particularly the dialectal verb جَاب (jāb). Compare also Classical Syriac ܡܵܠܵܐ (mālā, “property, wealth”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /maːl/
Audio: (file)

Noun

مَال • (māl) m (plural أَمْوَال (ʔamwāl))

Declension

Declension of noun مَال (māl)

Singular	basic singular triptote
Singular	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	مَال māl	الْمَال al-māl	مَال māl
Nominative	مَالٌ mālun	الْمَالُ al-mālu	مَالُ mālu
Accusative	مَالًا mālan	الْمَالَ al-māla	مَالَ māla
Genitive	مَالٍ mālin	الْمَالِ al-māli	مَالِ māli
Dual	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	مَالَيْن mālayn	الْمَالَيْن al-mālayn	مَالَيْ mālay
Nominative	مَالَانِ mālāni	الْمَالَانِ al-mālāni	مَالَا mālā
Accusative	مَالَيْنِ mālayni	الْمَالَيْنِ al-mālayni	مَالَيْ mālay
Genitive	مَالَيْنِ mālayni	الْمَالَيْنِ al-mālayni	مَالَيْ mālay
Plural	basic broken plural triptote
Plural	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	أَمْوَال ʔamwāl	الْأَمْوَال al-ʔamwāl	أَمْوَال ʔamwāl
Nominative	أَمْوَالٌ ʔamwālun	الْأَمْوَالُ al-ʔamwālu	أَمْوَالُ ʔamwālu
Accusative	أَمْوَالًا ʔamwālan	الْأَمْوَالَ al-ʔamwāla	أَمْوَالَ ʔamwāla
Genitive	أَمْوَالٍ ʔamwālin	الْأَمْوَالِ al-ʔamwāli	أَمْوَالِ ʔamwāli

Descendants

→ Azerbaijani: mal
→ Bashkir: мал (mal)
→ Bengali: মাল (mal)
→ Crimean Tatar: mal
→ French: mala
→ Kazakh: мал (mal)
→ Kyrgyz: мал (mal)
→ Northern Kurdish: mal
→ Maltese: miel
→ Mongolian: мал (mal)
→ Old Armenian: մալ (mal)
- Middle Armenian: մալ (mal)
  - Armenian: մալ (mal)
→ Nogai: мал (mal)
→ Persian: مال (mâl)
- → Assamese: মাল (mal)
- → Hindustani:
  Hindi: माल (māl)
  Urdu: مال (māl)
- → Sindhi: 𑋗𑋠𑋚𑋣 (mālu)
→ Swahili: mali
- → Ila: madi
- → Northern Ndebele: imali
- → Rwanda-Rundi: imari
- → Shona: mari
- → Tswana: madi
- → Xhosa: imali
- → Zulu: imali
  - → English: mali
→ Tatar: мал (mal)
- → Georgian: მალი (mali)
- → Middle Armenian: մալ (mal)
→ Tofa: мал
→ Turkish: mal
- → Albanian: mall
→ Tuvan: мал (mal)
→ Uzbek: mol
→ Yakut: мал (mal)

References

Bauer, Hans (1935) “Etymologica I”, in Zeitschrift für Semitistik und verwandte Gebiete (in German), volume 10, page 1
Freytag, Georg (1837) “مال”, in Lexicon arabico-latinum praesertim ex Djeuharii Firuzabadiique et aliorum Arabum operibus adhibitis Golii quoque et aliorum libris confectum‎^[2] (in Latin), volume 4, Halle: C. A. Schwetschke, page 221
Kazimirski, Albin de Biberstein (1860) “مال”, in Dictionnaire arabe-français contenant toutes les racines de la langue arabe, leurs dérivés, tant dans l’idiome vulgaire que dans l’idiome littéral, ainsi que les dialectes d’Alger et de Maroc‎^[3] (in French), volume 2, Paris: Maisonneuve et C^ie, page 1168
Steingass, Francis Joseph (1884) “مال”, in The Student's Arabic–English Dictionary‎^[4], London: W.H. Allen, page 983
Wehr, Hans with Kropfitsch, Lorenz (1985) “مال”, in Arabisches Wörterbuch für die Schriftsprache der Gegenwart‎^[5] (in German), 5th edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, published 2011, →ISBN, page 1233

Etymology 3

Root
م ي ل (m y l)
8 terms

Verb

مَالَ • (māla) I (non-past يَمِيلُ (yamīlu), verbal noun مَيْل (mayl) or مَيَلَان (mayalān) or مَيْلُولَة (maylūla) or تَمْيَال (tamyāl) or مَمَال (mamāl) or مَمِيل (mamīl))

to bend, bend down [with إِلَى (ʔilā) ‘to someone/something’ or عَلَى (ʕalā) ‘over someone/something’]
to bow down, to turn [with إِلَى (ʔilā) ‘to someone’]
to bend, to incline, to slope
to incline, to be favorably disposed [with إِلَى (ʔilā) ‘towards someone/something’]
to sympathize [with إِلَى (ʔilā) ‘with someone/something’]
to side [with مَعَ (maʕa) ‘with someone/something’]
to lean, to be inclined [with عَلَى (ʕalā) ‘against someone/something’]
to have an antipathy [with عَلَى (ʕalā) ‘against someone/something’]
to revolt, to rebel [with عَلَى (ʕalā) ‘against someone/something’]
to take or drag along [with بِ (bi) ‘someone/something’ and إِلَى (ʔilā) ‘somewhere’]

Conjugation

Conjugation of مَالَ (I, hollow, a ~ i, impersonal passive, verbal nouns مَيْل, مَيَلَان, مَيْلُولَة, تَمْيَال, مَمَال, مَمِيل)

active voice الْفِعْل الْمَعْلُوم
verbal noun الْمَصْدَر					مَيْل, مَيَلَان, مَيْلُولَة, تَمْيَال, مَمَال, مَمِيل mayl, mayalān, maylūla, tamyāl, mamāl, mamīl
active participle اِسْم الْفَاعِل					مَائِل māʔil
passive participle اِسْم الْمَفْعُول					مَمِيل mamīl
		singular الْمُفْرَد			dual الْمُثَنَّى		plural الْجَمْع
		1^st person الْمُتَكَلِّم	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب	1^st person الْمُتَكَلِّم	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب
past (perfect) indicative الْمَاضِي	m	مِلْتُ miltu	مِلْتَ milta	مَالَ māla	مِلْتُمَا miltumā	مَالَا mālā	مِلْنَا milnā	مِلْتُمْ miltum	مَالُوا mālū
past (perfect) indicative الْمَاضِي	f	مِلْتُ miltu	مِلْتِ milti	مَالَتْ mālat	مِلْتُمَا miltumā	مَالَتَا mālatā	مِلْنَا milnā	مِلْتُنَّ miltunna	مِلْنَ milna
non-past (imperfect) indicative الْمُضَارِع الْمَرْفُوع	m	أَمِيلُ ʔamīlu	تَمِيلُ tamīlu	يَمِيلُ yamīlu	تَمِيلَانِ tamīlāni	يَمِيلَانِ yamīlāni	نَمِيلُ namīlu	تَمِيلُونَ tamīlūna	يَمِيلُونَ yamīlūna
non-past (imperfect) indicative الْمُضَارِع الْمَرْفُوع	f	أَمِيلُ ʔamīlu	تَمِيلِينَ tamīlīna	تَمِيلُ tamīlu	تَمِيلَانِ tamīlāni	تَمِيلَانِ tamīlāni	نَمِيلُ namīlu	تَمِلْنَ tamilna	يَمِلْنَ yamilna
subjunctive الْمُضَارِع الْمَنْصُوب	m	أَمِيلَ ʔamīla	تَمِيلَ tamīla	يَمِيلَ yamīla	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	يَمِيلَا yamīlā	نَمِيلَ namīla	تَمِيلُوا tamīlū	يَمِيلُوا yamīlū
subjunctive الْمُضَارِع الْمَنْصُوب	f	أَمِيلَ ʔamīla	تَمِيلِي tamīlī	تَمِيلَ tamīla	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	نَمِيلَ namīla	تَمِلْنَ tamilna	يَمِلْنَ yamilna
jussive الْمُضَارِع الْمَجْزُوم	m	أَمِلْ ʔamil	تَمِلْ tamil	يَمِلْ yamil	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	يَمِيلَا yamīlā	نَمِلْ namil	تَمِيلُوا tamīlū	يَمِيلُوا yamīlū
jussive الْمُضَارِع الْمَجْزُوم	f	أَمِلْ ʔamil	تَمِيلِي tamīlī	تَمِلْ tamil	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	نَمِلْ namil	تَمِلْنَ tamilna	يَمِلْنَ yamilna
imperative الْأَمْر	m		مِلْ mil		مِيلَا mīlā			مِيلُوا mīlū
imperative الْأَمْر	f		مِيلِي mīlī		مِيلَا mīlā			مِلْنَ milna
passive voice الْفِعْل الْمَجْهُول
		singular الْمُفْرَد			dual الْمُثَنَّى		plural الْجَمْع
		1^st person الْمُتَكَلِّم	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب	1^st person الْمُتَكَلِّم	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب
past (perfect) indicative الْمَاضِي	m	—	—	مِيلَ mīla	—	—	—	—	—
past (perfect) indicative الْمَاضِي	f	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
non-past (imperfect) indicative الْمُضَارِع الْمَرْفُوع	m	—	—	يُمَالُ yumālu	—	—	—	—	—
non-past (imperfect) indicative الْمُضَارِع الْمَرْفُوع	f	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
subjunctive الْمُضَارِع الْمَنْصُوب	m	—	—	يُمَالَ yumāla	—	—	—	—	—
subjunctive الْمُضَارِع الْمَنْصُوب	f	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
jussive الْمُضَارِع الْمَجْزُوم	m	—	—	يُمَلْ yumal	—	—	—	—	—
jussive الْمُضَارِع الْمَجْزُوم	f	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Verb

مَالَ • (māla) I (non-past يَمِيلُ (yamīlu), verbal noun مُيُول (muyūl))

to prepare to set (of the sun)
to come to an end (of the day or night)

Conjugation

Conjugation of مَالَ (I, hollow, a ~ i, full passive, verbal noun مُيُول)

active voice الْفِعْل الْمَعْلُوم
verbal noun الْمَصْدَر					مُيُول muyūl
active participle اِسْم الْفَاعِل					مَائِل māʔil
passive participle اِسْم الْمَفْعُول					مَمِيل mamīl
		singular الْمُفْرَد			dual الْمُثَنَّى		plural الْجَمْع
		1^st person الْمُتَكَلِّم	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب	1^st person الْمُتَكَلِّم	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب
past (perfect) indicative الْمَاضِي	m	مِلْتُ miltu	مِلْتَ milta	مَالَ māla	مِلْتُمَا miltumā	مَالَا mālā	مِلْنَا milnā	مِلْتُمْ miltum	مَالُوا mālū
past (perfect) indicative الْمَاضِي	f	مِلْتُ miltu	مِلْتِ milti	مَالَتْ mālat	مِلْتُمَا miltumā	مَالَتَا mālatā	مِلْنَا milnā	مِلْتُنَّ miltunna	مِلْنَ milna
non-past (imperfect) indicative الْمُضَارِع الْمَرْفُوع	m	أَمِيلُ ʔamīlu	تَمِيلُ tamīlu	يَمِيلُ yamīlu	تَمِيلَانِ tamīlāni	يَمِيلَانِ yamīlāni	نَمِيلُ namīlu	تَمِيلُونَ tamīlūna	يَمِيلُونَ yamīlūna
non-past (imperfect) indicative الْمُضَارِع الْمَرْفُوع	f	أَمِيلُ ʔamīlu	تَمِيلِينَ tamīlīna	تَمِيلُ tamīlu	تَمِيلَانِ tamīlāni	تَمِيلَانِ tamīlāni	نَمِيلُ namīlu	تَمِلْنَ tamilna	يَمِلْنَ yamilna
subjunctive الْمُضَارِع الْمَنْصُوب	m	أَمِيلَ ʔamīla	تَمِيلَ tamīla	يَمِيلَ yamīla	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	يَمِيلَا yamīlā	نَمِيلَ namīla	تَمِيلُوا tamīlū	يَمِيلُوا yamīlū
subjunctive الْمُضَارِع الْمَنْصُوب	f	أَمِيلَ ʔamīla	تَمِيلِي tamīlī	تَمِيلَ tamīla	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	نَمِيلَ namīla	تَمِلْنَ tamilna	يَمِلْنَ yamilna
jussive الْمُضَارِع الْمَجْزُوم	m	أَمِلْ ʔamil	تَمِلْ tamil	يَمِلْ yamil	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	يَمِيلَا yamīlā	نَمِلْ namil	تَمِيلُوا tamīlū	يَمِيلُوا yamīlū
jussive الْمُضَارِع الْمَجْزُوم	f	أَمِلْ ʔamil	تَمِيلِي tamīlī	تَمِلْ tamil	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	تَمِيلَا tamīlā	نَمِلْ namil	تَمِلْنَ tamilna	يَمِلْنَ yamilna
imperative الْأَمْر	m		مِلْ mil		مِيلَا mīlā			مِيلُوا mīlū
imperative الْأَمْر	f		مِيلِي mīlī		مِيلَا mīlā			مِلْنَ milna
passive voice الْفِعْل الْمَجْهُول
		singular الْمُفْرَد			dual الْمُثَنَّى		plural الْجَمْع
		1^st person الْمُتَكَلِّم	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب	1^st person الْمُتَكَلِّم	2^nd person الْمُخَاطَب	3^rd person الْغَائِب
past (perfect) indicative الْمَاضِي	m	مِلْتُ miltu	مِلْتَ milta	مِيلَ mīla	مِلْتُمَا miltumā	مِيلَا mīlā	مِلْنَا milnā	مِلْتُمْ miltum	مِيلُوا mīlū
past (perfect) indicative الْمَاضِي	f	مِلْتُ miltu	مِلْتِ milti	مِيلَتْ mīlat	مِلْتُمَا miltumā	مِيلَتَا mīlatā	مِلْنَا milnā	مِلْتُنَّ miltunna	مِلْنَ milna
non-past (imperfect) indicative الْمُضَارِع الْمَرْفُوع	m	أُمَالُ ʔumālu	تُمَالُ tumālu	يُمَالُ yumālu	تُمَالَانِ tumālāni	يُمَالَانِ yumālāni	نُمَالُ numālu	تُمَالُونَ tumālūna	يُمَالُونَ yumālūna
non-past (imperfect) indicative الْمُضَارِع الْمَرْفُوع	f	أُمَالُ ʔumālu	تُمَالِينَ tumālīna	تُمَالُ tumālu	تُمَالَانِ tumālāni	تُمَالَانِ tumālāni	نُمَالُ numālu	تُمَلْنَ tumalna	يُمَلْنَ yumalna
subjunctive الْمُضَارِع الْمَنْصُوب	m	أُمَالَ ʔumāla	تُمَالَ tumāla	يُمَالَ yumāla	تُمَالَا tumālā	يُمَالَا yumālā	نُمَالَ numāla	تُمَالُوا tumālū	يُمَالُوا yumālū
subjunctive الْمُضَارِع الْمَنْصُوب	f	أُمَالَ ʔumāla	تُمَالِي tumālī	تُمَالَ tumāla	تُمَالَا tumālā	تُمَالَا tumālā	نُمَالَ numāla	تُمَلْنَ tumalna	يُمَلْنَ yumalna
jussive الْمُضَارِع الْمَجْزُوم	m	أُمَلْ ʔumal	تُمَلْ tumal	يُمَلْ yumal	تُمَالَا tumālā	يُمَالَا yumālā	نُمَلْ numal	تُمَالُوا tumālū	يُمَالُوا yumālū
jussive الْمُضَارِع الْمَجْزُوم	f	أُمَلْ ʔumal	تُمَالِي tumālī	تُمَلْ tumal	تُمَالَا tumālā	تُمَالَا tumālā	نُمَلْ numal	تُمَلْنَ tumalna	يُمَلْنَ yumalna

References

Freytag, Georg (1837) “مال”, in Lexicon arabico-latinum praesertim ex Djeuharii Firuzabadiique et aliorum Arabum operibus adhibitis Golii quoque et aliorum libris confectum‎^[6] (in Latin), volume 4, Halle: C. A. Schwetschke, page 225
Kazimirski, Albin de Biberstein (1860) “مال”, in Dictionnaire arabe-français contenant toutes les racines de la langue arabe, leurs dérivés, tant dans l’idiome vulgaire que dans l’idiome littéral, ainsi que les dialectes d’Alger et de Maroc‎^[7] (in French), volume 2, Paris: Maisonneuve et C^ie, page 1174
Steingass, Francis Joseph (1884) “مال”, in The Student's Arabic–English Dictionary‎^[8], London: W.H. Allen, page 1089
Wehr, Hans with Kropfitsch, Lorenz (1985) “مال”, in Arabisches Wörterbuch für die Schriftsprache der Gegenwart‎^[9] (in German), 5th edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, published 2011, →ISBN, page 1239

Gulf Arabic

Adverb

مال • (māl)

Followed by a noun or a pronominal suffix to indicate possession
الكتاب كان مالها.
l-kitāb kān mālha.
The book belonged to her.

Laki

Etymology

Related to Persian (mândan, “to stay, remain”).

Noun

مال (mal)

house

Persian

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [mɑːl]

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [mɑːl]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [mɑːl]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [mɔːl̥]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [mɒːl̥]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [mɔl]

Readings
Classical reading^?	māl
Dari reading^?	māl
Iranian reading^?	mâl
Tajik reading^?	mol

Audio (Iran): (file)

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Arabic مَال (māl). The pronominal use is also found in Iraqi Arabic, hence it may have entered Persian through dialectical Arabic.

Noun

مال • (mâl) (plural اموال (amvâl) or مال‌ها (mâl-hâ))

Used in the singular with a subsequent ezâfe to form constructions equivalent to English possessive pronouns and constructions.
Synonym: از آن (az ân-e)

ân sag-e bozorg mâl-e to-st?
Is that big dog yours?

in ketâb mâl-e man nist.
This book isn't mine.

in mâl-e irân ast?
Is this from Iran?

in dâstân mâl-e 15 sâl-e piš-e.
This story is from fifteen years ago.

bištar kelâsâm mâl-e sobh-e.
Most of my classes are in the morning.
(as an independent noun) property, wealth, money, assets

Usage notes

This noun forms the Persian equivalent to English possessive pronouns and constructions. For example, "mine" is (mâl-e man) and "yours" is (mâl-e to). However, the sense is broader than the English equivalents: (mâl-e irân) means not only "something belonging to Iran" but also "something from Iran" or even "something pertaining to Iran".
In the literary language, (az ân-e, “that”) can be used for similar purposes: (in pul az ân-e ki-st? az ân-e mâ-st, “Whose money is this? It's ours”). While it is not commonly used in the modern speech of Iran, it is more prevalent than (mâl-e) in the eastern dialects of Persian.^[1]

Derived terms

مالی (mâli)

Descendants

→ Assamese: মাল (mal)
→ Hindustani:
Hindi: माल (māl)

Urdu: مال (māl)
→ Sindhi: 𑋗𑋠𑋚𑋣 (mālu)

Etymology 2

Verb

مال • (mâl)

present stem form of (mâlidan, “to rub”)

Derived terms

References

^ Gernot Windfuhr, John R. Perry (2009) “Persian and Tajik” (chapter 8), in The Iranian Languages‎^[1] (in English), page 435: “Possession 'mine, yours, his', etc., is expressed by EZ constructions: Persian māl-e, lit. 'possession of', Tajik az on-i 'from that of' followed by an independent pronoun. Az ān-i and similar constructions are also found in local Persian dialects and earlier stages of Persian.”

South Levantine Arabic

Etymology

From ما (mā, “what”) +‎ لـ (la-, “to”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /maː.lo/, [ˈmæː.lo]
Audio (Ramallah): (file)

Phrase

مال • (māl)

what's up with, what's wrong with
(شو) مالك؟
(šū) mālak?
What's wrong with you?

(شو) مال أحمد؟
(šū) māl ʔaḥmad?
What's up with Ahmad?

ماله الحمار؟
mālo l-ḥmār
What's up with the donkey?

Inflection

Inflected forms of مال
Base form				مال (māl)
Personal-pronoun- including forms	singular		plural
Personal-pronoun- including forms	m	f	plural
1^st person	مالي (māli)		مالنا (mālna)
2^nd person	مالك (mālak)	مالك (mālek)	مالكم (mālkom)
3^rd person	ماله (mālo)	مالها (mālha)	مالهم (mālhom)

Urdu

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Classical Persian (māl), from Arabic مَال (māl).

Noun

مال • (māl) m (Hindi spelling माल)

Derived terms

مال گاڑی (māl gāṛī)

Related terms

مالی (mālī)

Etymology 2

From Sanskrit मल्ल (malla).

Noun

مال • (māl) m (Hindi spelling माल)

Etymology 3

From Sanskrit माल्य (mālya) or माला (mālā).

Noun

مال • (māl) f (Hindi spelling माल)

[1] Gernot Windfuhr, John R. Perry (2009) “Persian and Tajik” (chapter 8), in The Iranian Languages‎^[1] (in English), page 435: “Possession 'mine, yours, his', etc., is expressed by EZ constructions: Persian māl-e, lit. 'possession of', Tajik az on-i 'from that of' followed by an independent pronoun. Az ān-i and similar constructions are also found in local Persian dialects and earlier stages of Persian.”

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