KMD 189-191

Text Information

Siglum
KMD 189-191
Transliteration
l- yṣ{l}ḥ
ḥ[[]]yrṣ br <<ḥ>>
ḥqb br mys¹
Ahmad Al-Jallad
Translation
May {Ḥyrṣ} son of Ḥqb son of Mys¹ be well
Ahmad Al-Jallad
Language and Script
Dhofari 1a

Interpretation

Commentary

l- yṣlḥ: An optative prefix conjugation from the pan-Semitic root ṣlḥ 'to be well, successful'; cf. Mehri ṣayləḥ 'to be fat'; Aramaic ṣəlaḥ 'to prosper'; Arabic ṣalaḥa 'to be good, right'. The hook of the second l is not as rounded as the initial l but this may be due to the texture of the rock. The reading yṣbḥ is also plausible but syntactically more difficult.

ḥyrṣThe author seems to have written an incorrect letter and blotted it out between the and y. The verb ḥayrəṣ in Mehri means 'to covet' (Johnstone 1987: 187), as it does in Arabic. The name ḥrṣ is attested once in Safaitic.

There is an extra after the br of the second line. This probably begins the name of the father on the third line. The author abandoned writing it on the same lines as his name because of the roughness of the rock. 

ḥqbThe root ḥqb is known in Arabic but it does not give rise to personal names in ANA.

mys¹: A kind of tree (Lane, 2748b); it is used as a personal name several times in Safaitic. 

Ahmad Al-Jallad

Editio Princeps
Al-Shaḥrī and King 1993
Field Collector
G.M.H. King and A.A.M. Al-Shaḥrī

Technique
Painted
Direction of Script
Vertical columns right to left

  • Al-Shaḥrī, A.A.M. & King, G.M.H. The Dhofar Epigraphic Project. A Description of the Inscriptions recorded in 1991 and 1992. [Unpublished but available on http://www.ancientarabia.co.uk/ under "Projects"/"Dhofar epigraphic project".] 1993.
  • Johnstone, T.M. Mehri Lexicon and English-Mehri Word-List. With a list of the English definitions in the /Jibbāali Lexicon/ compiled by G.R. Smith. London: School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, 1987.
  • [Lane] Lane, E.W. An Arabic-English Lexicon, Derived from the Best and Most Copious Eastern Sources. (Volume 1 in 8 parts [all published]). London: Williams & Norgate, 1863-1893.
Site
Area D - Between the Wadi Arzat and Medinat al-Ḥaq roads, Dhofar Governorate, Oman
Date Found
1991-1992
Current Location
In situ
Subjects
Genealogy, Prayer
Download Image
Updated 14 Sep, 2025 by Ahmad Al-Jallad

Cite this Site

Al-Jallad, Ahmad. 'KMD 189-191.' OCIANA. 14 Sep, 2025. https://ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions/45829. Accessed: 30 Sep, 2025.