A Muslim scholar or learned person, particularly one versed in Islamic law and literature.
From Arabic 'adīb, derived from the root meaning 'to educate' or 'to discipline.' The word evolved to denote someone cultured and educated in Islamic sciences and classical Arabic literature.
The word traveled from Arabic into European languages during the Middle Ages when Western scholars were frantically translating Islamic scientific and philosophical works—adib became one of many Arabic terms that showed Europe just how much learning was happening in the Islamic world.
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