Glossary

Plain-language definitions of the recurring Arabic terms of Hajj — states, places, rites, and expiations. Reference material that spans every Hajj type.

Al-Hajar al-Aswad (Black Stone)الحجر الأسودal-Ḥajar al-Aswad: The Black Stone set in the eastern corner of the Ka'bah. Each circuit of tawaf begins from it, ideally by kissing, touching, or pointing to it (istilam).
Al-Haram (the sacred precinct)الحرمal-Ḥaram: The sacred precinct of Makkah — a bounded stretch of territory, not a building. Its limits are held to have been marked in the time of Ibrahim (عليه السلام), renewed by the Prophet (ﷺ) at the conquest of Makkah and by the caliphs after him; today they stand as signposted markers on every road in: at-Tan'im towards Madinah (the nearest, a few kilometres from the Ka'bah), Adat Laban towards Yemen, Wadi Nakhlah towards Iraq, the pass at al-Ji'ranah, al-Shumaysi (formerly al-Hudaybiyah) towards Jeddah (the farthest, some 15 km), and the bottom of Namirah towards Ta'if. Inside it game may not be hunted and wild plants may not be cut, and a hady or a dam must be slaughtered there. Mina and Muzdalifah lie inside the precinct; 'Arafah lies outside it, in the belt called al-Hill that runs between the Haram and the mawaqit. Masjid al-Haram is the mosque standing within the precinct, not the precinct itself.
Al-Mash'ar al-Haramالمشعر الحرامal-Mashʿar al-Ḥarām: The "Sacred Landmark" in Muzdalifah at which pilgrims make a standing (wuquf) and supplication after the dawn of the 10th, before departing for Mina.
'ArafahعرفةʿArafah: The plain east of Makkah where pilgrims make the Wuquf on the 9th of Dhul-Hijjah, the defining rite of Hajj: "Hajj is 'Arafah." The Day of 'Arafah is also a day of intense supplication.
Ashhur al-Hajj (Months of Hajj)أشهر الحجAshhur al-Ḥajj: The months within which Hajj is entered: Shawwal, Dhul-Qa'dah, and (the first ten days of, by the majority) Dhul-Hijjah. Ihram for Hajj is not validly begun before them.
Ayyam al-Tashreeqأيام التشريقAyyām al-Tashrīq: The three days following the Day of Nahr (11th–13th of Dhul-Hijjah), spent at Mina stoning the three Jamarat each day. Fasting on them is not permitted.
Damالدمal-Dam: Literally "blood" — a sacrifice offered as compensation. A dam al-jubran repairs the omission of an obligatory (wajib) act; it does not make up for missing a pillar. Omitting a Sunnah requires no dam.
Fidyahالفديةal-Fidyah: An expiation for committing a prohibition of ihram out of need — for example removing hair due to illness. The classic fidyat al-adha offers a choice of fasting, feeding the poor, or a sacrifice.
Hadith gradeدرجة الحديثDarajat al-Ḥadīth: How the reliability of a hadith is rated, from its chain of narrators (isnad) and its wording (matn) — the terms shown on each rite's Grade line. The strength scale comes first, strongest to weakest:
Mutawatir (mass-transmitted) (متواتر / Mutawātir): Relayed in every generation by so many narrators that their agreeing on a lie is not conceivable. It yields certainty (qaṭʿī), a class above even the soundest single chain — which is why the Qur'an, and the count of the tawaf circuits, are not argued from an isnad at all.
Muttafaq ʿalayh (agreed upon) (متفق عليه / Muttafaq ʿalayh): Recorded by both al-Bukhari and Muslim — the highest tier a singly-transmitted (āḥād) report reaches.
Sahih (sound) (صحيح / Ṣaḥīḥ): An unbroken chain of upright, precise narrators, free of hidden defect (ʿillah) and irregularity (shudhudh); binding as proof.
Sahih li-ghayrihi (sound through others) (صحيح لغيره / Ṣaḥīḥ li-ghayrihi): A ḥasan report lifted to ṣaḥīḥ by corroborating chains — sound not by itself but by the routes that back it. Sound in its own right, by contrast, is ṣaḥīḥ li-dhātihi.
Hasan Sahih (حسن صحيح / Ḥasan Ṣaḥīḥ): al-Tirmidhi's composite grade — the report reaches him by more than one chain, some sound and some good, so it stands at least at ḥasan.
Hasan (good) (حسن / Ḥasan): Like ṣaḥīḥ but a narrator's precision is slightly less; still accepted as proof.
Daif (weak) (ضعيف / Ḍaʿīf): Fails a condition of the above — a break in the chain or a criticised narrator — and is not used as independent proof.
Munkar (denounced) (منكر / Munkar): A weak report whose lone weak narrator contradicts what stronger narrators relay. Weaker than plain ḍaʿīf: the wording itself is rejected, not merely unsupported. The counterpart from a reliable narrator contradicting stronger ones is shādhdh (irregular).
Mawduʿ (fabricated) (موضوع / Mawḍūʿ): A forgery falsely attributed to the Prophet ﷺ — not a hadith at all, and unlawful to relay as one except to expose it.
Jaʿli (fake) (جعلي / Jaʿlī): The everyday Persian and Urdu word for a forgery — the same thing as mawḍūʿ.
Below this point the terms are not a ranking. They say how far up a chain a report reaches — to the Prophet (ﷺ), to a Companion (RA), to a Successor (RH) — or name a specific fault in it. Any of them can sit at any strength above: a marfuʿ report may be sound or weak, and a mawquf one may be flawless.Marfuʿ (raised to the Prophet ﷺ) (مرفوع / Marfūʿ): Says where a report stops, not how sound it is: this one is attributed to the Prophet (ﷺ) himself — his word, act or tacit approval. A marfūʿ report may still be ṣaḥīḥ or ḍaʿīf. Marfūʿ ḥukman ("raised in ruling") is a Companion's statement about something no one could say from opinion, so it counts as Prophetic.
Mawquf (stopped at a Companion) (موقوف / Mawqūf): Attributed to a Companion (RA), not carried up to the Prophet (ﷺ). Its chain can be perfectly sound while the words remain the Companion's own — which is why a grade line often reads "authentic, but mawqūf."
Maqtuʿ (stopped at a Successor) (مقطوع / Maqṭūʿ): One step further down than mawqūf: the words or act are a Successor's (RH) own, not a Companion's and not the Prophet's (ﷺ). "Ṣaḥīḥ maqṭūʿ" therefore means the report is soundly established as what that Successor did — evidence of early practice, not a Prophetic text. Not to be confused with munqaṭiʿ, which is about a gap in the chain.
Athar (a report of the early generations) (أثر / Athar): A report of a Companion (RA) or a Successor (RH) rather than of the Prophet (ﷺ). Several rulings in this app rest on athar where no Prophetic text settles the point — the grade line says so when they do.
Mursal (sent on without a link) (مرسل / Mursal): A Successor (RH) quotes the Prophet (ﷺ) directly, skipping the Companion who heard it. A gap anywhere else in the chain is munqatiʿ (منقطع, "discontinuous"). Both are species of ḍaʿīf, though the schools differ on how far a mursal may be acted upon.
Gharib (singular) (غريب / Gharīb): Only one narrator relays it at some point in the chain (tafarrud). It describes rarity, not weakness — al-Tirmidhi's "ḥasan gharīb" is a good report that came by a single route.
Muʿallal (defective) (معلل / Muʿallal): Sound on its face but carrying a hidden flaw (ʿillah) that only a specialist critic detects — a wrongly named narrator, a mawqūf report raised by mistake. The defect ruins it however clean the chain looks.
Sahih al-isnad (the chain is sound) (صحيح الإسناد / Ṣaḥīḥ al-isnād): A deliberately narrower verdict than "ṣaḥīḥ": the critic vouches for the chain and stops there, leaving the wording (matn) unexamined for a hidden defect or irregularity. Read it as "sound as far as its narrators go."
Hadyالهديal-Hady: The sacrificial animal offered during Hajj. It is obligatory for those performing Tamattu' and Qiran as a thanksgiving, and its meat is eaten and given away.
Halqالحلقal-Ḥalq: Shaving the head completely. Along with taqsir it releases the pilgrim from ihram. Halq carries the greater reward and applies only to men.
Honorificsألقاب التشريفAlqāb al-Tashrīf: The short devotional phrases appended to a revered name, by the rank of the one named. Saying them is a recommended courtesy of respect, not itself a rite.
Allah (سبحانه وتعالى / Subḥānahu wa Taʿālā / SWT): “Glorified and Exalted is He” — said after Allah's name to affirm His transcendence above any imperfection.
Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ / Ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam / SAW / PBUH): “May Allah bless him and grant him peace” — for the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) alone. ﷺ is a single-glyph ligature of the phrase; SAW transliterates it, and PBUH is its English form, “Peace Be Upon Him.”
Other prophets (عليه السلام / ʿAlayhi al-salām / AS): “Upon him be peace” — for any prophet other than Muhammad (ﷺ) (Ibrahim (عليه السلام), Musa (عليه السلام), ʿIsa (عليه السلام) …). Abbreviated AS; not “AH,” which marks the Hijri year, not an honorific.
Companions (Sahaba) (رضي الله عنه / Raḍiya Allāhu ʿanhu / RA): “May Allah be pleased with him” — for a Companion (Ṣaḥābī) who met the Prophet ﷺ as a believer. Becomes ʿanhā for a woman and ʿanhum for a group.
Successors & later scholars (رحمه الله / Raḥimahu Allāh / RH): “May Allah have mercy on him” — for a Successor (Tābiʿī, who met the Companions but not the Prophet ﷺ), the Tabaʿ al-Tābiʿīn after them, and later scholars. Written (RH) throughout this app, the way a Companion is written (RA).
Idtiba'الاضطباعal-Iḍṭibāʿ: A sunnah for men during the arrival tawaf: passing the upper ihram cloth under the right armpit and over the left shoulder, leaving the right shoulder bare.
Ifradالإفرادal-Ifrād: Performing Hajj alone, without an accompanying Umrah under the same ihram. No hady is required of the mufrid.
Ihramالإحرامal-Iḥrām: The state of ritual consecration a pilgrim enters to perform Hajj or Umrah, begun with the intention (niyyah) and the Talbiyah. While in ihram certain otherwise-permitted things become forbidden (the Mahzurat). Men also wear two unstitched white cloths, which are commonly called ihram by extension.
Ishtiratالاشتراطal-Ishtirāt: Stipulating a condition when entering ihram — "O Allah, my place of release is wherever You hold me back" — so that if illness or an obstacle prevents completion, the pilgrim exits ihram without penalty.
Istilamالاستلامal-Istilām: Greeting the Black Stone (and the Yemeni corner) at the start of each tawaf circuit by touching or kissing it, or — when crowded — pointing to it with a takbir.
Jamaratالجمراتal-Jamarāt: The three stone pillars in Mina — al-Sughra (small), al-Wusta (middle), and al-'Aqabah (large) — at which pilgrims perform the ramy (stoning). Singular: jamrah.
Ka'bahالكعبةal-Kaʿbah: The cube-shaped House at the centre of Masjid al-Haram in Makkah, the qiblah of the prayer and the focus of the tawaf.
Mabitالمبيتal-Mabīt: Staying overnight — at Muzdalifah on the night of the 10th, and at Mina during the nights of Tashreeq. It is counted among the wajibat by most scholars.
Mahzurat al-Ihram (Prohibitions of Ihram)محظورات الإحرامMaḥẓūrāt al-Iḥrām: The acts forbidden while in ihram — among them cutting hair or nails, using perfume, hunting land game, and marital intimacy. Violating one may entail a fidyah or dam.
Manasikالمناسكal-Manāsik: The rites of Hajj and 'Umrah taken together — the whole ordered set of acts, from ihram at the miqat to the farewell tawaf. It is the plural of mansak (or nusuk), from the root n-s-k, "to worship, to offer": a mansak was first the place of an offering, then the act itself, then — in the settled usage of the fuqaha — the rites as a body. The Qur'an has Ibrahim (عليه السلام) and Isma'il (عليه السلام) pray "and show us our rites" (2:128) and addresses the pilgrim who has "completed your rites" (2:200); the singular mansak stands at 22:34 and 22:67 for the rite appointed to each community. Stoning from his camel on the Day of Nahr the Prophet (ﷺ) said, "so that you may take your rites from me" (Sahih Muslim 1297) — which is why the manasik are learnt as his (ﷺ) own performance rather than assembled from rulings. Fiqh al-manasik, the fiqh of the rites, is the branch of law this app covers, and the app is named for it.
Maqam Ibrahimمقام إبراهيمMaqām Ibrāhīm: The Station of Ibrahim, the stone bearing his footprint from when he raised the Ka'bah's walls. After tawaf, pilgrims pray two rak'ahs behind it where possible.
MinaمنىMinā: The valley near Makkah where pilgrims camp, stone the Jamarat, and stay overnight (mabit) during the days of Tashreeq. The three Jamarat pillars stand in Mina.
Miqatالميقاتal-Mīqāt: A fixed boundary — in place (mawqit makani) or time (mawqit zamani) — beyond which a pilgrim heading to Makkah may not pass without entering ihram. There are five geographic mawaqit around Makkah.
Multazamالملتزمal-Multazam: The area of the Ka'bah between the Black Stone and the door, where it is recommended to cling and make supplication when the opportunity allows.
MuzdalifahمزدلفةMuzdalifah: The open area between 'Arafah and Mina where pilgrims spend the night of the 10th after leaving 'Arafah, combining Maghrib and Isha and collecting pebbles for the stoning. It contains al-Mash'ar al-Haram.
Nafrالنفرal-Nafr: The departure from Mina at the end of Hajj. The nafr awwal (first) is leaving after the 12th; the nafr thani (second) is staying to stone on the 13th before leaving.
Nusukالنسكal-Nusuk: An act of ritual worship or rite of pilgrimage; also used for the type of pilgrimage one intends (Tamattu', Qiran, or Ifrad), declared at ihram. One act is a nusuk (or mansak); several together are the Manasik — see that entry.
Qiranالقرانal-Qirān: Combining Umrah and Hajj under a single ihram, without exiting between them. Like Tamattu', it requires a hady.
Ramlالرملal-Raml: A sunnah for men in the first three circuits of the arrival tawaf: walking briskly with short, vigorous steps, showing strength.
Ramyالرميal-Ramy: The throwing of pebbles at the Jamarat, one pebble at a time with a takbir, symbolising rejection of Shaytan. On the 10th only Jamrat al-'Aqabah is stoned; on the days of Tashreeq all three are.
Rukn (Pillar)الركنal-Rukn: An essential pillar of Hajj or 'Umrah. Omitting a rukn entirely invalidates the pilgrimage — it cannot be compensated with a sacrifice. Plural: arkan. See the Ruling scale entry for how it sits against wajib, sunnah, makruh and haram.
Ruling scale (Pillar to Haram)الأحكام التكليفيةal-Aḥkām al-Taklīfiyyah: How strongly an act is required or forbidden. This is the scale every rite in this app is classified against, and it is what the Pillar / Obligatory / Sunnah labels on the cards are a simplification of — strongest obligation first:
Rukn (Pillar) (الركن / al-Rukn): An essential part of the rite itself. Omit one and the Hajj or 'Umrah is not valid — it cannot be repaired with a sacrifice, and the act still has to be performed. These are the cards labelled Pillar. Plural: arkan.
Fard (Obligation) (الفرض / al-Farḍ): An obligation established by decisive evidence. Three of the schools use fard and wajib as the same thing; the Hanafi school separates them — fard for what rests on certain evidence, wajib for what rests on evidence one degree below it. That is why a Hanafi list of the 'obligatory' acts does not line up with the others.
Wajib (Obligatory) (الواجب / al-Wājib): Required, but not part of the essence of the rite. A missed wajib does not invalidate the Hajj or 'Umrah; it is repaired by a compensatory sacrifice (dam). These are the cards labelled Obligatory. Plural: wajibat.
Sunnah mu'akkadah (confirmed Sunnah) (السنة المؤكدة / al-Sunnah al-Muʾakkadah): A practice the Prophet (ﷺ) kept to consistently and seldom left. Not obligatory and no dam is owed for omitting it, but abandoning it habitually is blameworthy.
Mustahabb / Mandub (recommended) (المستحب / al-Mustaḥabb): Recommended: rewarded when done, with nothing owed and no blame when left. The app files both this and sunnah mu'akkadah under the Sunnah label — each record's own Classification says which of the two it is.
Mubah (permitted) (المباح / al-Mubāḥ): Neutral — neither rewarded nor blamed. Worth naming, because several things pilgrims worry about (which gate to enter by, which route to walk) are simply mubah.
Makruh (disliked) (المكروه / al-Makrūh): Disliked: leaving it is rewarded, doing it is not sinful and invalidates nothing. The Hanafi school splits it in two — makruh tanzihi (merely disliked) and makruh tahrimi (prohibitively disliked, just short of haram) — so a Hanafi “makruh” can be far stronger than the word sounds.
Haram (forbidden) (الحرام / al-Ḥarām): Forbidden: doing it is sinful, and in ihram it may also require a fidyah — or, in the case of intercourse before the first tahallul, invalidate the Hajj outright. The prohibitions of ihram (Mahzurat) are the ones that apply here.
Sa'iالسعيal-Saʿy: Walking seven times between the hills of Safa and Marwah, re-enacting Hajar's search for water for her son Isma'il (عليه السلام). It follows a tawaf.
Sunnahالسنةal-Sunnah: A recommended act that follows the practice of the Prophet (ﷺ). Omitting a sunnah carries no penalty, but performing it completes and beautifies the pilgrimage. The app's Sunnah label covers both sunnah mu'akkadah and mustahabb — see the Ruling scale entry for the difference.
Tahallulالتحللal-Taḥallul: Release from the state of ihram. It comes in two stages: the first (asghar) lifts most prohibitions, and the second (akbar), after Tawaf al-Ifadah, lifts all of them including intimacy.
Talbiyahالتلبيةal-Talbiyah: The pilgrim's call recited on entering ihram and repeated often afterwards: "Labbayk Allahumma labbayk…" (Here I am, O Allah, here I am). It announces the response to Allah's call to pilgrimage.
Tamattu'التمتعal-Tamattuʿ: Performing Umrah in the months of Hajj, exiting ihram, then entering ihram again for Hajj in the same season. It requires a hady.
Taqsirالتقصيرal-Taqṣīr: Trimming (rather than shaving) the hair to exit ihram. Women perform taqsir only — cutting roughly a fingertip's length from the ends of the hair.
Tawafالطوافal-Ṭawāf: Circling the Ka'bah seven times anticlockwise, beginning and ending at the Black Stone. Different tawafs occur at different points of the rite — al-Qudum (arrival), al-Ifadah (the pillar tawaf), and al-Wada' (farewell).
Wajib (Obligatory)الواجبal-Wājib: An obligatory act of Hajj or 'Umrah. Unlike a pillar, a wajib that is missed does not invalidate the pilgrimage but must be compensated with a dam. Plural: wajibat. See the Ruling scale entry, including the Hanafi distinction between fard and wajib.
Wuqufالوقوفal-Wuqūf: "Standing" — being present in a place for a portion of its appointed time. The Wuquf at 'Arafah on 9 Dhul-Hijjah is the greatest pillar of Hajj; there is also a wuquf at al-Mash'ar al-Haram in Muzdalifah.
Yawm al-Nahr (Day of Sacrifice)يوم النحرYawm al-Naḥr: The 10th of Dhul-Hijjah, the Day of Sacrifice — the busiest day of Hajj, on which the stoning of Jamrat al-'Aqabah, the hady, halq/taqsir, and Tawaf al-Ifadah take place. It coincides with Eid al-Adha.
Yawm al-Tarwiyahيوم الترويةYawm al-Tarwiyah: The 8th of Dhul-Hijjah, on which pilgrims set out to Mina and stay there before moving to 'Arafah the next morning.