Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “caliph” come from?

Caliph comes from Middle English calife, from Old French caliphe, from Medieval Latin calipha, from Arabic خَلِيفَة.

caliph (English): The political leader of the Muslim world,...

Definitions

  1. The political leader of the Muslim world,...

Ancestry of “caliph”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishcalife—
2Old Frenchcaliphe—
3Medieval Latincaliphacaliph
4Arabicخَلِيفَةvicar, successor; caliph

Words derived from “caliph”

  • caliphate
  • caliphal
  • caliphian
  • caliphship
  • caliphatist
  • caliphhood
  • Caliphess
  • caliphally
  • Caliphist
  • caliphatic
  • Caliphism
  • caliphdom
Every word from Arabic خَلِيفَة →