بغل

See also: بعل, نعل, تعل, and تغل

Arabic

Etymology

In view of the Sabaean Old South Arabian 𐩨𐩶𐩡 (bġl), attested once from the 1^st century CE, Arabic has more likely borrowed thence and not from Ge'ez በቅል (bäḳl) as formerly claimed, but the Old South Arabian may be an Old Arabic loanword as well, mule breeding only introduced not long before from the North, thus an unknown-origin borrowing.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /baɣl/

Noun

بَغْل • (baḡl) m (plural بِغَال (biḡāl) or أَبْغَال (ʔabḡāl), feminine بَغْلَة (baḡla))

the offspring of a jack and a mare, a mule
Coordinate term: نَغْل (naḡl, “hinny”)
- 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 16:8:
  وَخَلَقَ اللَّٰهُ الْخَيْلَ وَالْبِغَالَ وَالْحَمِيرَ لِتَرْكَبُوهَا وَزِينَةً
  wa-ḵalaqa llāhu l-ḵayla wa-l-biḡāla wa-l-ḥamīra li-tarkabū-hā wa-zīnatan
  And God created horses, mules, and asses for you to ride on and as an embellishment.

Declension

Declension of noun بَغْل (baḡl)

Singular	Masculine			Feminine
	basic singular triptote			singular triptote in ـَة (-a)
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	بَغْل baḡl	الْبَغْل al-baḡl	بَغْل baḡl	بَغْلَة baḡla	الْبَغْلَة al-baḡla	بَغْلَة baḡlat
Nominative	بَغْلٌ baḡlun	الْبَغْلُ al-baḡlu	بَغْلُ baḡlu	بَغْلَةٌ baḡlatun	الْبَغْلَةُ al-baḡlatu	بَغْلَةُ baḡlatu
Accusative	بَغْلًا baḡlan	الْبَغْلَ al-baḡla	بَغْلَ baḡla	بَغْلَةً baḡlatan	الْبَغْلَةَ al-baḡlata	بَغْلَةَ baḡlata
Genitive	بَغْلٍ baḡlin	الْبَغْلِ al-baḡli	بَغْلِ baḡli	بَغْلَةٍ baḡlatin	الْبَغْلَةِ al-baḡlati	بَغْلَةِ baḡlati
Dual	Masculine			Feminine
Dual	Indefinite	Definite	Construct	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	بَغْلَيْن baḡlayn	الْبَغْلَيْن al-baḡlayn	بَغْلَيْ baḡlay	بَغْلَتَيْن baḡlatayn	الْبَغْلَتَيْن al-baḡlatayn	بَغْلَتَيْ baḡlatay
Nominative	بَغْلَانِ baḡlāni	الْبَغْلَانِ al-baḡlāni	بَغْلَا baḡlā	بَغْلَتَانِ baḡlatāni	الْبَغْلَتَانِ al-baḡlatāni	بَغْلَتَا baḡlatā
Accusative	بَغْلَيْنِ baḡlayni	الْبَغْلَيْنِ al-baḡlayni	بَغْلَيْ baḡlay	بَغْلَتَيْنِ baḡlatayni	الْبَغْلَتَيْنِ al-baḡlatayni	بَغْلَتَيْ baḡlatay
Genitive	بَغْلَيْنِ baḡlayni	الْبَغْلَيْنِ al-baḡlayni	بَغْلَيْ baḡlay	بَغْلَتَيْنِ baḡlatayni	الْبَغْلَتَيْنِ al-baḡlatayni	بَغْلَتَيْ baḡlatay
Plural	Masculine			Feminine
	basic broken plural triptote			sound feminine plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	بِغَال‎; أَبْغَال biḡāl‎; ʔabḡāl	الْبِغَال‎; الْأَبْغَال al-biḡāl‎; al-ʔabḡāl	بِغَال‎; أَبْغَال biḡāl‎; ʔabḡāl	بَغَلَات baḡalāt	الْبَغَلَات al-baḡalāt	بَغَلَات baḡalāt
Nominative	بِغَالٌ‎; أَبْغَالٌ biḡālun‎; ʔabḡālun	الْبِغَالُ‎; الْأَبْغَالُ al-biḡālu‎; al-ʔabḡālu	بِغَالُ‎; أَبْغَالُ biḡālu‎; ʔabḡālu	بَغَلَاتٌ baḡalātun	الْبَغَلَاتُ al-baḡalātu	بَغَلَاتُ baḡalātu
Accusative	بِغَالًا‎; أَبْغَالًا biḡālan‎; ʔabḡālan	الْبِغَالَ‎; الْأَبْغَالَ al-biḡāla‎; al-ʔabḡāla	بِغَالَ‎; أَبْغَالَ biḡāla‎; ʔabḡāla	بَغَلَاتٍ baḡalātin	الْبَغَلَاتِ al-baḡalāti	بَغَلَاتِ baḡalāti
Genitive	بِغَالٍ‎; أَبْغَالٍ biḡālin‎; ʔabḡālin	الْبِغَالِ‎; الْأَبْغَالِ al-biḡāli‎; al-ʔabḡāli	بِغَالِ‎; أَبْغَالِ biḡāli‎; ʔabḡāli	بَغَلَاتٍ baḡalātin	الْبَغَلَاتِ al-baḡalāti	بَغَلَاتِ baḡalāti

Descendants

Maltese: bagħal
→ Harsusi: beġelēt
→ Mehri: baġal, baġlēt
→ Classical Mandaic: ࡁࡀࡂࡀࡋ (bagal)
→ Classical Syriac: ܒܲܓܠܵܐ (baḡlā)
→ Swahili: baghala

References

Jeffery, Arthur (1938) The Foreign Vocabulary of the Qurʾān (Gaekwad’s Oriental Series; 79), Baroda: Oriental Institute, page 82
Fraenkel, Siegmund (1886) Die aramäischen Fremdwörter im Arabischen (in German), Leiden: E. J. Brill, page 110
Hommel, Fritz (1879) Die Namen der Säugethiere bei den südsemitischen Völkern als Beiträge zur arabischen und äthiopischen Lexicographie, zur semitischen Kulturforschung und Sprachvergleichung und zur Geschichte der Mittelmeerfauna. Mit steter Berücksichtigung auch der assyrischen und hebräischen Thiernamen und geographischen und literaturgeschichtlichen Excursen‎^[1] (in German), Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs’sche Buchhandlung, pages 112–117
Kazimirski, Albin de Biberstein (1860) “بغل”, 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^[2] (in French), volume 1, Paris: Maisonneuve et C^ie, page 146
Lane, Edward William (1863) “بغل”, in Arabic-English Lexicon‎^[3], London: Williams & Norgate, page 230
Leslau, Wolf (1991) Comparative Dictionary of Geʿez (Classical Ethiopic), 2nd edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, →ISBN, page 101
Militarev, Alexander, Kogan, Leonid (2005) Semitic Etymological Dictionary, volume II: Animal Names, Münster: Ugarit-Verlag, →ISBN, pages 77–78 Nr. 55
Nöldeke, Theodor (1879) “Die Namen der Säugethiere bei den südsemitischen Völkern als Beiträge zur arabischen und äthiopischen Lexicographie, zur semitischen Kulturforschung und Sprachvergleichung und zur Geschichte der Mittelmeerfauna. Mit steter Berücksichtigung auch der assyrischen und hebräischen Thiernamen und geographischen und literaturgeschichtlichen Excursen von Fritz Hommel. Leipzig 1879, J. C. Hinrichs’sche Buchhandlung XX und 471 S. in Octav”, in Göttingische gelehrte Anzeigen‎^[4] (in German), page 1258
Nöldeke, Theodor (1910) Neue Beiträge zur semitischen Sprachwissenschaft‎^[5] (in German), Straßburg: Karl J. Trübner, page 58
Sima, Alexander (2000) Tiere, Pflanzen, Steine und Metalle in den altsüdarabischen Inschriften (in German), Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, →ISBN, pages 40–42

Persian

Etymology

This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.
Particularly: “Looks like a possible derivative of Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂ǵʰús (“arm”) or *bʰeh₂g- (“to divide, allot”). Is there any literature that discusses this word?”

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [ba.ɣal]

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [bä.ɣäl]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [bä.ɣäl]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [bä.ɣäl̥]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [bæ.ɢæl̥]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [bä.ʁäl]

Readings
Classical reading^?	bağal
Dari reading^?	bağal
Iranian reading^?	bağal
Tajik reading^?	baġal

Noun


Iranian Persian	بغل
Dari	بغل
Tajik	бағал

بغل • (bağal)

(Iran, Dari and Tajik) hug
(Classical Persian, Tajik or obsolete) armpit
(Tajik) lap

Derived terms

بغل کردن (bağal kardan)
زیر بغل (zêr-e/zir-e bağal)

Descendants

→ Hindi: बग़ल (baġal), बगल (bagal) — nuqtaless
- → Tamil: பகிலு (pakilu)

Urdu

a woman's بغل (*bağal*, "armpit, oxter")

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian (bağal).

Pronunciation

(Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /bə.ɣəl/
Audio: (file)
Rhymes: -əl

Noun

بَغَل • (baġal) f (Hindi spelling बग़ल)

armpit, oxter, axilla
underarm
the bosom (in relation to something which is held or guarded close to it)
(figurative) on one side, aside, close by
flank, margin
(figurative) in between, within
gusset of a garment's underarm

Declension

Declension of بغل
	singular	plural
direct	بَغَل (baġal)	بَغَلیں (baġalẽ)
oblique	بَغَل (baġal)	بَغَلوں (baġalõ)
vocative	بَغَل (baġal)	بَغَلو (baġalo)

Derived terms

بَغَل گَنْد (baġal-gand, “armpit odor”)
بَغَل سُونْگھنا (baġal suñghnā, “to smell an armpit”)
بَغَل بْچَّہ (baġal-buca, “the plump skin of the underarms”)
بَغَل بَچَّہ (baġal-baca, “a coddled child”)
بَغَل بنَانا (baġal banānā, “shaving/grooming ones armpits”)
بَغَل گِیر (baġal-gīr, “embrace, hug”)
بَغَل گَرْمانا (baġal garmānā, “embrace which leads to sexual intercourse”)
بَغَل بَنْد (baġal-band, “rope tied up under the armpits”)

References

“بغل”, in اُردُو لُغَت (urdū luġat) (in Urdu), Ministry of Education: Government of Pakistan, 2017.