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kalif

 - 3 dictionary results

ka⋅lif

  [key-lif, kal-if]
Use kalif in a Sentence
–noun
caliph.

ca⋅liph

  [key-lif, kal-if]
–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.
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Word Origin & History

caliph 
1393, from Arabic khalifa "successor," originally Abu-Bakr, who succeeded Muhammad in the role of leader of the faithful after the prophet's death. Caliphate "dominion of a caliph" is from 1614.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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