# عالم
## Arabic
### Etymology 1

Borrowed from Aramaic עָלְמָא / ܥܳܠܡܳܐ (ʿāləmā) or Hebrew עוֹלָם (ʿōlām), possibly from Akkadian 𒂖𒆷𒈬𒌋𒀀 (/⁠ellamu, illamu⁠/, “front, before; both temporally and in location; coming before your time or being currently physically before you now”).
The pattern فَاعَل (fāʕal) is considered originally foreign to Arabic and Ethiopic, occurring only in likely loanwords such as طَابَع (ṭābaʕ), خَاتَم (ḵātam), فَالَج (fālaj). It should be noted some of these loans are suspected to be early, such as خَاتَم (ḵātam) being present in Old Arabian Inscriptions and عَالَم (ʕālam) retaining the sound masculine plural ending in spite of being treated as a non-human plural; a feature that suggests it existed prior to the restriction of such a use exclusively for male humans; whereas one group renders known Middle Iranian suffixes, as in طَابَق (ṭābaq) and سَاذَج (sāḏaj) and رَامَك (rāmak) and via Aramaic fricativized as in كَامَخ (kāmaḵ) the ending of which became Classical Persian ـه (-a) and ـک (-ak). Nautically, even Dravidian borrowings with this measure like طَالَم (ṭālam) are possible early. Consequently due to its early appearance, the فَاعَل (fāʕal) pattern has since become a sparsely used coined pattern in its own right, typically however still being reserved for loanwords using the structure of these earlier loans as their basis; for example the later loan طَاقَم (ṭāqam).

#### Alternative forms

* عٰلَم (ʕālam)

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ʕaː.lam/

#### Noun

عَالَم • (ʕālam) m (plural عَالَمُون (ʕālamūn) or عَوَالِم (ʕawālim))
* world
* universe, cosmos, existence
* (chiefly Christianity) world, hereunder, worldly life
    Synonym: دُنْيَا (dunyā)
    فِي العالَمِ يَكُونُ لَكُم ضِيقٌ، وَلٰكِن ثِقُوا: أَنَا قَد غَلَبْتُ العالَم.fī l-ʕālami yakūnu lakum ḍīqun, walākin ṯiqū: ʔanā qad ḡalabtu l-ʕālam.In the world ye shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer: I have overcome the world. (John 16:33)
* things, creation, that which exists before you
* nation, people, group, type, or kind

##### Descendants

* → Azerbaijani: aləm
* → Bashkir: ғәләм (ğələm)
* → Bengali: আলম (alom)
* → Indonesian: alam
* → Kazakh: ғалам (ğalam), әлем (älem)
* → Kyrgyz: аалам (aalam)
* → Malay: alam
** → Hanunoo: alam
** → Hiligaynon: alam
** → Indonesian: alam
** → Tagalog: alam
* → Middle Armenian: ալամ (alam)
** Armenian: ալամ (alam)
* → Ottoman Turkish: عالم (ʿālem)
    > Turkish: âlem (inherited)
* → Persian: عالم ('âlam)
** → Urdu: عالم (äläm)
** → Udi: аьлаьм (äläm)
* → Tabasaran: аьлам (a̱lam)
* → Uzbek: olam

### Etymology 2

Derived from the active participle of the verb عَلِمَ (ʕalima, “to know”), from the root ع ل م (ʕ l m).

#### Noun

عَالِم • (ʕālim) m (plural عَالِمُون (ʕālimūn) or عُلَمَاء (ʕulamāʔ), feminine عَالِمَة (ʕālima))
* scholar, man of letters, scientist
* knowledgeable person, savant

##### Descendants

* → Azerbaijani: alim
* → Bengali: আলেম (alem)
* → Fula: aalim
* → Persian: عالم ('âlem)
* → Ottoman Turkish: عالم (ʿālim)
    > Turkish: âlim (inherited)
* → Kazakh: ғалым (ğalym)
* → Kyrgyz: аалым (aalım)
* → Urdu: عالم (ālim)

### References

* “ˁlm”, in The Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon Project, Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College, 1986–
* Fischer, Wolfdietrich (2006) Grammatik des Klassischen Arabisch (in German), 4th edition, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, →ISBN, § 62 Anm. 5, page 36
* Fraenkel, Siegmund (1880) De vocabulis in antiquis Arabum carminibus et in Corano peregrinis‎ (in Latin), Leiden: E. J. Brill, page 17
* Fraenkel, Siegmund (1880) De vocabulis in antiquis Arabum carminibus et in Corano peregrinis‎ (in Latin), Leiden: E. J. Brill, page 21
* Jeffery, Arthur (1938) The Foreign Vocabulary of the Qurʾān (Gaekwad’s Oriental Series; 79), Baroda: Oriental Institute, pages 208–209
* Nöldeke, Theodor (1875) Mandäische Grammatik‎ (in German), Halle: Verlag der Buchhandlung des Waisenhauses, page 112

## Kohistani Shina
### Noun

عالم ('alim)
* teacher

## North Levantine Arabic
### Etymology

From Arabic عَالَم (ʕālam).

### Noun

عالم • (ʕālam) m (plural عوالم (ʕwālim))
* world
    Synonym: دني (dini)
* people, folk
    Synonym: ناس (nās)
    كان في كتير عالم هنيك.kān fi ktīr ʕālam hunīk.There were a lot of people there.

#### Usage notes

* When meaning “people” it is often construed with a feminine or plural verb, like ناس.

## Ottoman Turkish
### Etymology 1

Borrowed from Arabic عَالَم (ʕālam).

#### Noun

عالم • (alem) (plural عالمون (alemun), and عوالم (ewalim))
* world, universe, everything except God
* age, time, period

##### Descendants

* Turkish: âlem

### Etymology 2

Borrowed from Arabic عَالِم (ʕālim).

#### Noun

عالم • (alim) (plural علما (ulema), and علام (ullam))
* learned man, scholar, man of letters
* particularly, a member of a certain class of men with a state-sponsored tenure, as distinguished from a mufti, being part of the askeri class, alim [since Mehmed II]

#### Adjective

عالم • (alim)
* learned, educated
    عالم بر خاتون ― alim bir hatun ― a learned lady

#### Descendants

* Turkish: âlim

### Further reading

* Meninski, Franciszek à Mesgnien (1680) “عالم”, in Thesaurus linguarum orientalium, Turcicae, Arabicae, Persicae, praecipuas earum opes à Turcis peculiariter usurpatas continens, nimirum Lexicon Turkico-Arabico-Persicum‎, Vienna, columns 3196–3197
* Ottoman imperial Sunni ulama on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
* Die Ulamā im Osmanischen Reich on the German Wikipedia.Wikipedia $^{de}$

## Persian
### Etymology 1

Borrowed from Arabic عَالَم (ʕālam).

#### Pronunciation

* (Classical Persian) IPA: [ʔɑː.ˈlam]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [ʔɑː.lǽm]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [ʔɑː.lǽm]
** (Kabuli) IPA: [ʔɑː.lǽm]
** (Hazaragi) IPA: [ʔɔː.lǽm]
* (Iran, formal) IPA: [ʔɒː.lǽm]
* (Tajik, formal) IPA: [ʔɔ.lǽm]

#### Noun

عالَم • ('âlam)
* world; universe
    Synonyms: جهان (jahân), دنیا (donyâ)
** c. 1260s, Jalāl ad-Dīn Mohammad Rūmī, translated by Reynold A. Nicholson, مثنوی معنوی [Masnavi-ye-Ma'navi], volume III, verse 64:کین جهان چاهیست بس تاریک و تنگ هست بیرون عالمی بی بو و رنگk-in jahân čâhi-st bas târik o tang hast birun 'âlami bi bu o rang[Saying,] "This world is an exceeding dark and narrow pit; outside is a world without scent or colour."
** late 1300s, Xāja Shams-ud-Dīn Moḥammad Ḥāfeẓ-e Shīrāzī, “Ghazal 470 (Sīne mālāmāl-e dard ast)”, in دیوان حافظ [Divān of Ḥāfeẓ]:زیرکی را گفتم این احوال بین خندید و گفت صعب روزی بوالعجب کاری پریشان عالمیziraki râ goftam in ahvâl bin, xandid o goft sa'b ruzi, bol-'ajab kâri, parišân 'âlamiI said to a wise one, "Look at these conditions!" He laughed and said, "A difficult day, a strange affair, a perplexing world!"

##### Descendants

* → Gujarati: આલમ (ālam)

### Etymology 2

Borrowed from Arabic عَالِم (ʕālim), from عَلِمَ (ʕalima).

#### Pronunciation

* (Classical Persian) IPA: [ʔɑː.ˈlim]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [ʔɑː.lɪ́m]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [ʔɑː.lɪ́m]
** (Kabuli) IPA: [ʔɑː.lɪ́m]
** (Hazaragi) IPA: [ʔɔː.lím]
* (Iran, formal) IPA: [ʔɒː.lém]
* (Tajik, formal) IPA: [ʔɔ.lím]

#### Adjective

عالِم • ('âlem)
* learned; knowledgeable

##### Related terms

* علم ('elm, “knowledge”)

##### Descendants

* → Gujarati: આલિમ (ālim)

## Punjabi
### Etymology 1

Borrowed from Classical Persian عَالَم (ālam), borrowed from Arabic عَالَم (ʕālam).

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɑː.lə.mᵊ/

#### Noun

عالَم • (ʻālam) m (Gurmukhi spelling ਆਲਮ)
* world
* universe
* kingdom
* state, condition

### Etymology 2

Borrowed from Classical Persian عَالِم (ālim), borrowed from Arabic عَالِم (ʕālim), from عَلِمَ (ʕalima).

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɑː.lə.mᵊ/

#### Adjective

عالَم • (ʻālam) (Gurmukhi spelling ਆਲਮ)
* learned
* knowledgeable
* intelligent
* wise

##### Usage notes

* Many Arabic loanwords, such as عالَم (ʻālam), can have multiple meanings in Punjabi, where in this case, one is related to the noun, while the latter meaning is used to refer to the adjective. Both are borrowed from different Arabic words, yet have the same pronunciation in Punjabi, unlike in, the sister language, Urdu عالِم ('ālim), (and rarely in Hindi आलिम (ālim)), where there is a distinction in pronunciation between the adjective and the noun. This can cause ambiguity as generally Punjabi speakers, who tend to also speak Hindi and Urdu, might actually mix words from either languages and not emphasise on the difference in pronunciation.

##### Related terms

* عِلْم (ʻilm)

## South Levantine Arabic
### Etymology 1

From Arabic عَالَم (ʕālam).

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ʕaː.lam/, [ˈʕæː.lam]
* Audio (Ramallah):(file)

#### Noun

عالم • (ʕālam) m
* world
    Synonym: دنيا (dinya)

### Etymology 2

From Arabic عَالِم (ʕālim).

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ʕaː.lim/, [ˈʕæː.lɪm]
* Audio (Ramallah):(file)

#### Adjective

عالم • (ʕālem) (feminine عالمة (ʕālme), elative أعلم (ʔaʕlam))
* aware
* (formal) knowing

#### Noun

عالم • (ʕālem) m (plural علماء (ʕulamāʔ), feminine عالمة (ʕālme))
* scholar, scientist
    Synonym: باحث (bāḥes)

## Urdu
### Etymology 1

Borrowed from Classical Persian عَالَم (ālam), borrowed from Arabic عَالَم (ʕālam).

#### Pronunciation

* (Standard Urdu) IPA: /ɑː.ləm/
* Audio (Pakistan):(file)
* Rhymes: -əm

#### Noun

عالَم • ('ālam) m (Hindi spelling आलम)
* world
* universe
* mankind
* kingdom
* season
* state, condition
* age, period

### Etymology 2

Borrowed from Classical Persian عَالِم (ālim), borrowed from Arabic عَالِم (ʕālim), from عَلِمَ (ʕalima).

#### Pronunciation

* (Standard Urdu) IPA: /ɑː.lɪm/
* Audio (Pakistan):(file)
* Rhymes: -ɪm

#### Adjective

عالِم • ('ālim) (Hindi spelling आलिम)
* learned
* knowledgeable
* intelligent
* wise

#### Noun

عالم • ('ālim) m (Hindi spelling आलिम)
* doctor
* scientist
    Synonyms: دانش مند (dāniś-mand), سائنسدان (sāinsdān)
* scholar
    Synonym: دانشور (dāniśvar)

##### Related terms

* علم ('ilm)