مكة

See also: مکہ, مکھ, مکه, and مكه

Arabic

Etymology

Of uncertain etymology. Variously explained as

• From a similar name بَكَّة (bakka) appearing in the Quran
• Possibly from Ge'ez ምኵራብ (məkʷrab, “sanctuary, temple”), doublet of مِحْرَاب (miḥrāb); compare Greek Μακοράβα (Makoráva).

This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mak.ka/

Proper noun

مَكَّة • (makka) f

1. Mecca (a large city in Saudi Arabia)

   مَكَّة الْمُكَرَّمَة ― makkat al-mukarrama ― Mecca

   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 48:24:

     وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِي كَفَّ أَيْدِيَهُمْ عَنْكُمْ وَأَيْدِيَكُمْ عَنْهُمْ بِبَطْنِ مَكَّةَ مِنْ بَعْدِ أَنْ أَظْفَرَكُمْ عَلَيْهِمْ وَكَانَ ٱللّٰهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرًا

     wa-huwa llaḏī kaffa ʔaydiyahum ʕankum wa-ʔaydiyakum ʕanhum bi-baṭni makkata min baʕdi ʔan ʔaẓfarakum ʕalayhim wa-kāna llāhu bi-mā taʕmalūna baṣīran

     And it is He who withheld their hands from you and your hands from them within [the area of] Makkah after He caused you to overcome them. And ever is Allah of what you do, Seeing.

Declension

Declension of noun مَكَّة (makka)

Singular	singular diptote in ـَة (-a)
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	—	مَكَّة makka	—
Nominative	—	مَكَّةُ makkatu	—
Accusative	—	مَكَّةَ makkata	—
Genitive	—	مَكَّةَ makkata	—

Derived terms

• أَهْلُ مَكَّةَ أَدْرَى بِشِعَابِهَا (ʔahlu makkata ʔadrā bišiʕābihā)

Descendants

• → Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܡܲܟܵܐ (Makkā)
• → Azerbaijani: Məkkə
• → Bashkir: Мәккә (Məkkə)
• → Bengali: মক্কা (Mokka)
• → English: Mecca
• → Malay: Mekah
• Ottoman Turkish: مكه (Mekke)
  • Turkish: Mekke
• → Persian: مکه (Makke)
• → Swahili: Makka

References

• Wehr, Hans (1979) “مكة”, in J. Milton Cowan, editor, A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic, 4th edition, Ithaca, NY: Spoken Language Services, →ISBN

Further reading

• مكة on the Arabic Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^ar