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عَلَوِيّ
Alawite /ʕa.la.ˈwiːj/
adjectiveB1#1735 most common
Also: Alawi, Alid (descendant of Ali), relating to Ali
Example sentences
هُوَ عَلَوِيٌّ.
He is an Alawite.
صَدِيقَتِي عَلَوِيَّةٌ.
My friend is Alawite.
تَعِيشُ عائِلَةٌ عَلَوِيَّةٌ في القَرْيَةِ المُجاوِرَةِ.
An Alawite family lives in the neighboring village.
يَنْتَمِي كَثِيرٌ مِنْ سُكّانِ السّاحِلِ السُّورِيِّ إلى الطّائِفَةِ العَلَوِيَّةِ.
Many residents of the Syrian coast belong to the Alawite community.
دَرَسَ الباحِثُ التّقالِيدَ الدّينِيَّةَ العَلَوِيَّةَ في جِبالِ اللّاذِقِيَّةِ.
The researcher studied Alawite religious traditions in the mountains of Latakia.
يُمَيِّزُ المُؤَرِّخُونَ بَيْنَ المَعْنى العَلَوِيِّ بِوَصْفِهِ نِسْبَةً إلى الإمامِ عَلِيٍّ وَبَيْنَهُ بِوَصْفِهِ اسْماً لِطائِفَةٍ بِعَيْنِها.
Historians distinguish between the Alid sense, as an attribution to the Imam Ali, and its sense as the name of a particular sect.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | عَلَوِيٌّ | عَلَوِيُّونَ |
| Genitive | عَلَوِيٍّ | عَلَوِيِّينَ |
| Accusative | عَلَوِيًّا | عَلَوِيِّينَ |
| Vocative | يا عَلَوِيُّ | يا عَلَوِيُّونَ |
Word family
عَلِيّAli (name); high, lofty
عَلاto rise, to be high
عُلُوّheight, elevation
عَلَوِيَّةAlawite community; the Alawite faith
أَعْلىhigher, highest, supreme
Etymology
This is a nisba, a relative adjective formed from the proper name عَلِيّ (ʿAlī) with the suffix ‑iyy. The name itself comes from the root ع-ل-و, meaning to be high or elevated. The adjective first meant a descendant or follower of Ali, then became the name of a religious community in Syria.
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