A kunya (Arabic: كنية) is an honorific widely used in place of given names through the Arab world. It is a type of epithet referring to the bearer's first-born son or daughter. Arabic ( or just ) is the largest living member of the Semitic language family in terms of speakers. ... An honorific is a word or expression that conveys esteem or respect and is used in addressing or referring to a person. ... A given name specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name. ... “Arab States” redirects here. ... An epithet (Greek - επιθετον and Latin - epitheton; literally meaning imposed) is a descriptive word or phrase. ...

General use

abū (father) or umm (mother) precedes the son's name, in a genitive construction (the iđāfa). The English equivalent would be to call someone whose eldest son is named John "Father of John." Use of the kunya normally signifies some closeness between the speaker and the person so addressed, but is more polite than use of the first name. The kunya is also frequently used with reference to politicians and other celebrities to indicate respect. Abu is an Arabic term meaning father of. It should be followed by another word to form a complete name, for example Abu Nidal, Abu Sayyaf. ... The genitive case is a grammatical case that indicates a relationship, primarily one of possession, between the noun in the genitive case and another noun. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...

For example, Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian President, is often referred to as "Abu Mazen". This refers to his first-born son, Mazen. While Mazen died in 2002, Abbas still retains the name. His wife is accordingly called "Umm Mazen". Mahmoud Abbas (Arabic: ) (born March 26, 1935), commonly known by the kunya Abu Mazen (ابو مازن), was elected President of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) on January 9, 2005, and took office on January 15, 2005. ... The term Palestinian has other usages, for which see definitions of Palestinian. ... The President of the Palestinian National Authority is the highest-ranking political position (equivalent to head of state) in the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). ... Mahmoud Abbas (Arabic: محمود عباس) (born March 26, 1935), commonly known as Abu Mazen (ابو مازن), was elected President (Raees) of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) on January 9, 2005 and took office on January 15, 2005. ...

Men who do not yet have a child are often nevertheless addressed by a made-up kunya. Most often the name chosen comes from a popular name in history, where he choses his kunya, sometimes it would be the name of their father. The kunya may also be totally made up, although less often.

When using a person's full name, the kunya will precede the proper name. Thus: abū māzin maħmūd, for "Mahmud, the father of Mazen". In Classical Arabic, but not in any of the spoken dialects, abū can change into the forms abā and abī (accusative and genitive, respectively), depending on the position of the kunya in the sentence. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The term accusative may be used in the following contexts: A form of morphosyntactic alignment, as found in nominative-accusative languages. ...

The kunya is also sometimes used metaphorically rather than literally. A modern example would be the Moro Islamist terrorist group Abu Sayyaf operating in Southern Philippines (Mindanao). The word sayyaf means "swordsmith", so "Father of the swordsmith" signifies the group's belligerent charter. Filipino Muslims form the largest non-Christian group in the country, comprising 5 % of the total Philippine population as of 2005. ... Islamism is a political ideology derived from the conservative religious views of Muslim fundamentalism. ... The Abu Sayyaf Group (Arabic: جماعة أبو سياف; ; ASG), also known as al-Harakat al-Islamiyya is one of several militant Islamist separatist groups based in and around the southern islands of the Philippines, in Bangsamoro (Jolo, Basilan, and Mindanao) where for almost 30 years various groups have been engaged in an insurgency... A swordsmith is a smith or blacksmith whose expertise is working on swords. ...

Kunya as a nom de guerre

A special practice evolved among Palestinian leaders, originally in the Fatah faction (of which Abbas is part), to use real or fictional kunyas as noms de guerre in attempts to thwart Israel. The term Palestinian has other usages, for which see definitions of Palestinian. ... Fatah (Arabic: ); a reverse acronym from the Arabic name Harakat al-Tahrir al-Watani al-Filastini (literally: Palestinian National Liberation Movement) is a major secular Palestinian political party and the largest organization in the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), a generally secular multi-party confederation. ... A pseudonym or allonym is a name (sometimes legally adopted, sometimes purely fictitious) used by an individual as an alternative to their birth name. ...

For example, Yasser Arafat was known by the name Abu Ammar (abū `ammār), even though he never had a son named Ammar, it was based on Ammar ibn Yasir, a companion of Muhammad and a prominent figure in Arab history. Not to be confused with Yasir Arafat (cricketer). ... Yasser Arafat in 1999 Yasser Arafat (August 4 or August 24, 1929 – November 11, 2004), born Muhammad `Abd ar-Rauf al-Qudwa al-Husayni (Arabic محمد عبد الرؤوف القدوة الح&#1587... “Ammar” redirects here. ... In Islam, the SÌ£aḥābah (Arabic: ‎ companions) were the companions of Muhammad. ... Muhammad in a new genre of Islamic calligraphy started in the 17th century by Hafiz Osman. ...

This usage of the kunya has gained currency outside of the Palestinian movement, and is now often used by Arab guerrillas and clandestine operators. Examples of this include the Lebanese leaders Abu Anis (used by George Hawi during the Lebanese Civil War) and Abu Arz (Etienne Saqr). George Hawi (1938 – June 21, 2005) was a Lebanese politician and former secretary general of the Lebanese Communist Party (LCP) His nickname durig the war was Abou Anis. He was assassinated in 2005. ... Combatants Lebanese Front Syria LNM PLO Commanders Bachir Gemayel Dany Chamoun Kamal Jumblatt Yasser Arafat The Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990) was a multifaceted civil war whose antecedents trace back to the conflicts and political compromises reached after the end of Lebanons administration by the Ottoman Empire. ... Etienne Saqr is a right wing Lebanese nationalist politician and founder of the Guardians of the Cedars militia group. ...

See also

• Arabic name
• Abd
• Abu

The tughra (stylized signature) of Sultan Mahmud II of the Ottoman Empire. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Abu is an Arabic term meaning father of. It should be followed by another word to form a complete name, for example Abu Nidal, Abu Sayyaf. ...

External links

• Page on Arabic naming practices.