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caliph

 - 2 dictionary results

ca⋅liph

  [key-lif, kal-if]
Use caliph in a Sentence
–noun
1. a spiritual leader of Islam, claiming succession from Muhammad.
2. any of the former Muslim rulers of Baghdad (until 1258) and of the Ottoman Empire (from 1571 until 1924).
Also, calif, kalif, kaliph, khalif.

Origin:
1350–1400; ME caliphe, califfe < MF < ML calipha < Ar khalīf(a) successor (of Muhammad), deriv. of khalafa succeed

Related forms:
cal⋅iph⋅al  [kal-uh-fuhl, key-luh-] , adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To caliph
ca·liph also ca·lif or kha·lif   (kā'lĭf, kāl'ĭf)   
n.  A leader of an Islamic polity, regarded as a successor of Muhammad and by tradition always male.

[Middle English calife, from Old French, from Arabic ḫalīfa, successor (to Muhammad), caliph, from ḫalafa, to succeed; see ḫlp in Semitic roots.]
ca'li·phal adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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