Bibliotheca Polyglotta

▪ RǦL_1 ‘foot’ ↗¹riǧl
▪ RǦL_2 ‘swarm (esp. of locusts)’ ↗²riǧl
▪ RǦL_3 ‘common purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.; bot.)’ ↗³riǧl
▪ RǦL_4 ‘man’ ↗raǧul, ‘masculinity, virility, manhood’ ↗ruǧūlaẗ
▪ RǦL_5 ‘to comb (hair)’ ↗raǧǧala
▪ RǦL_6 ‘to improvise, extemporise’ ↗ĭrtaǧala
▪ RǦL_7 ‘cooking kettle, caldron; boiler’ ↗mirǧal

Other values, now obsolete, include (Hava1899):

▪ ^†RǦL_8 ‘set free with its mother (suckling)’: ^†raǧil~raǧal; cf. also ^†ʔarǧala ‘to let (a young one) free with his mother; (fig.) to grant a respite to s.o.’
▪ ^†RǦL_9 ‘somewhat curly (hair)’: ^†raǧil~raǧl~raǧal
▪ ^†RǦL_10 ‘variegated (garment)’: ^†muraǧǧal
▪ ^†RǦL_11 ‘hard ground’: ^†raǧlà~raǧlāʔᵘ
▪ ^†RǦL_12 ‘blank paper; misfortune; precedence; time’: ^†riǧl
▪ ^†RǦL_ ‘...’: ^†...
▪ For several names of plants and stars, cf. [v1] ↗¹riǧl ‘foot’ and [v3] ↗³riǧl ‘purslane’

♦ Semantic value spectrum in ClassAr (acc. to BAH2008): ‘man, manhood, masculinity; foot, leg, to go on foot, dismount; to comb one’s hair; to improvise, talk or give an improvised speech; rocky land difficult to walk upon; (of locusts) to swarm; poverty, lazy person’.

▪ [gnrl] : There is hardly any value in this root that does not seem to be ultimately based on [v1] ‘foot’, though exact details remain unclear in many cases. The hypothesis of ‘foot’ as the overall etymon is corroborated by the fact that no other value but [v1] ‘foot’ has cognates in Sem and the broad spectrum of other meanings covered by √RǦL apparently is an Ar idiosyncrasy.
▪ [v1] : As Kogan2011 #6.3.2 observes, »[t]here is no single protSem term for ‘foot’. [… cf. Ar ↗faʕama ‘to have fat hips; to be fat (arms)’]. Reflexes of *rigl- ‘foot’ are attested throughout CSem (Hbr, Syr, Ar, Sab […; see] SED I No. 228) except Ug and Phoen […]. There is no consensus about whether Gz ʔəgr and related EthSem terms (SED I #7) are connected with *rigl- (similar forms in Ar dialects, such as DaṯAr ʔižr, SyrAr ʔəžər, make the picture especially complicated. […].« – V. Christian thought √RǦL was an extension in -L from the 2-cons. root nucleus *RǦ , reflected in Ar ↗raǧǧa ʻ(to rustle, shake, rock >) be convulsed, tremble, quake, sway, be excited, be distressed; to move, (move away >) deter’, reduplicated in raǧraǧa ‘to be moved, tremble, quiver, sway, be faint’. According to the author, the basic value of RǦL, assumed to be *‘to shake > to hit’, also produced ¹riǧl ʻ(to hit > kick >) foot’ and raǧlaẗ ʻfirm step’, whereas [v4] raǧul ʻman’ probably was *‘strong one < who beats < who makes tremble\shake’.¹
▪ [v2] : ‘Swarm (esp. of locusts)’ is prob. based on, or akin to, ^†[v8] ‘to let/set free’, and is thus *‘(s.th., animal, etc.) set free and now spreading freely, uncontrollably’, cf. also below, values [v3], [v5], [v6], ^†[v9], and ^†[v10].
▪ [v3] : The use of riǧl for ‘common purslane’ seems to be motivated by the plant’s similarity with ‘curly hair’, which would make [v3] ³riǧl dependent on ^†[v9] ^†raǧil~raǧl~raǧal ‘curly (hair)’ and, via the latter, on ^†[v8] *‘to be set free and spread uncontrollably’, cf. also [v2] ²riǧl ‘swarm (esp. of locusts)’.
▪ [v4] : ‘Man’ and derivatives (‘to behave like a man, masculinity, virility, manhood, etc.’) are prob. from ‘pedestrian’ (in Syr also ‘foot-soldier’), cf. the EgAr form rāgil which looks very much like a PA I, ‘going by foot’. But it could also be based on ^†riǧlaẗ~ruǧlaẗ ‘vigour in walking’. See also V. Christian’s view, sketched above sub [v1].
▪ [v5] : raǧǧala ‘to comb (hair)’ is a D-stem with (prob.) the original caus. meaning of *‘to let (hair) fall down freely’, thus derived from ^†[v8], cf. also values [v2], [v3], [v6], ^†[v9], and ^†[v10].
▪ [v6] : The notion of ‘improvisation, extemporisation’, associated with the Gt-stem ĭrtaǧala, is most likely a development from ^†[v8] *‘to let/set free to spread/unfold spontaneously, uncontrolled’, itself prob. derived from [v1] ‘foot’; cf. also [v2], [v3], [v5], ^†[v9], ^†[v10]. Derivation from [v4] ‘man’ – improvisation as proof of ‘manliness, manly virtue’ – looks less likely, though perh. not impossible, cf. DaṯAr (Dt-stem) taraǧǧal »‘marchander’, […] et en cela faire preuve de raǧālaẗ ou m?rǧalaẗ [< raǧul]« Landberg1923 (s.v. raqam) – in the extemporisation of verses, the ideas of *‘letting free’ and *‘manly virtue’ may overlap like in bargaining for a good price.
▪ [v7] : Etymology obscure. The idea that ‘cooking kettle, caldron; boiler’ could be from [v1] ‘foot’ (as *‘kettle with “feet”’) is rejected by some sources. If not *‘kettle with feet’, is mirǧal then a *‘kettle put/set down on (some kind of) feet (e.g., stones)’? (Cf. ^†ʔarǧala ‘to set down, discharge’, denom. vb. IV, from ¹riǧl ‘foot’). In principle, the miFʕaL pattern is used to form a n.instr., but this does not seem very meaningful for any of the other values that one may imagine as possible bases.
▪ ^†[v8] : The value ‘set free with its mother’ (said of a suckling) is with all likelihood based on [v1] ‘foot’, from *‘newly born, managing/strong enough to stand on its own feet and to run around and/or to drink from her teats’. Apparently, the freedom and lack of control granted to a suckling or a foal was the model on which further ideas were developed, esp. ^†ʔarǧala ‘to let free; (fig.) to grant a respite to s.o.’, as well values [v2], [v3], [v5], and [v6], discussed above, in addition to ^†[v9] and ^†[v10], below.
▪ ^†[v9] : The fact that the same words (^†raǧil~raǧl~raǧal) are used in ClassAr to express both ^†‘somewhat curly (hair) and ^†‘set free’ makes it rather likely that ^†[v9] represents some kind of fig. use of ^†[v8], so that the original meaning of ‘curly hair’ would be *‘hair “set free”, hair that grows without control, like a young foal running/hopping freely around’; for related values see [v2], [v3], [v5], [v6], and ^†[v10].
▪ ^†[v10] : The term ^†muraǧǧal for ‘variegated’ (said of a garment) is prob. extended use of ^†muraǧǧal in the sense of ‘leaving traces of wings on the sand (locusts)’, a PP II which is evidently derived from [v2] ‘swarm (esp. of locusts)’, as such akin to [v3], [v5], [v6], ^†[v8], and ^†[v9].
▪ ^†[v11] : The value ‘hard ground’ is mentioned also by BAH2008 as one of the chief values attached to √RǦL in ClassAr. The corresponding item, ^†raǧlà~raǧlāʔᵘ is the f. of the elative ^†ʔarǧalᵘ, meaning ‘white-spotted on one foot; large-footed’ (evidently from [v1] ‘foot’). It thus seems that ‘hard ground’ is somehow based on ‘foot’, though it seems difficult to find the tertium comparationis that would connect the two.
▪ ^†[v12] : In ClassAr, the term ^†riǧl appears not only with the values ‘foot’ (↗¹riǧl = [v1]), ‘swarm (esp. of locusts)’ (↗²riǧl = [v2]) and ‘common purslane (↗³riǧl’ = [v3]’), but also with still other values, as diverse as ‘blank paper; misfortune; precedence; riǧl time’). We may assume that these are somehow based on [v1], [v2], or [v3], but it is complete unclear how exactly one can get from the latter to the former.

1. Viktor Christian, »About some verbs of speaking«, WZKM, 29 (1915): 438-444, 444 link.

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▪ [v1] Kogan2015 175-6 #3: Ug ri-i[g]-lu, Hbr rägäl, Syr reglā, Ar riǧl, Sab rgl, Min rgl ‘foot’
▪ [v4] : According to Zammit2002, Ar raǧul ‘man’ has no cognates in Sem. But cf., perh. Syr ragālā, ragālāṯā ‘foot-soldier’.
▪ ...

▪ [gnrl] : See above, section CONC. In a more systematic manner, the spectrum of semantic values that seem to have developed from the basic ‘foot’, may perh. be sketched as follows:
0 – ^†¹riǧl ‘foot; (esp.) hind-leg of beasts\quadrupeds; (meton.) part, portion’. – Several natural phenomena are named ‘foot of...’, due to their resemblance with a foot:
0.1 riǧl al-baḥr ‘sea-gulf’
0.2 stars in Orio: ^†riǧl al-ǧabbār, riǧl al-ǧawzāʔ al-yusrà ‘Rigel, fixed star in the left foot of Orio’, ^†riǧl al-ǧawzāʔ al-yusrà ‘star in the right foot of Orio’
0.3 Several plants, too, may owe their name to a resemblance with *‘feet’: ^†riǧl al-ʔasad ‘filago, lion’s foot; ^†riǧl al-baqaraẗ ‘arum, friar’s cowl; ^†riǧl al-ǧarād ‘atriplex, oroche; ^†riǧl al-ḥamāmaẗ ‘anchusa, pigeon’s foot; ^†riǧl al-daǧāǧaẗ ‘chamemelum, hen’s foot; ^†riǧl al-ʔarnab ‘layopus, hare’s foot; ^†riǧl al-zāġ, riǧl al-ġurāb ‘lotus ornithopodus, bird’s foot, trefoil; ^†riǧl al-ʕuṣfūr ‘ornithopodus, bird’s foot; ^†riǧl al-qiṭṭ ‘glechoma, ground-ivy; ^†riǧl al-qaʕq, riǧl al-zurzūr, riǧl al-ʕiqāb ‘coronopus, crow’s foot; ^†riǧl al-wazz ‘podophyllum, duck’s foot (dangerous plant); ^†riǧl al-yamāmaẗ ‘delphinium, lark’s spur’. However, cf. also below on derivations from ^†raǧil, raǧl ‘curly’.
Immediately from ‘foot’ are three ideas, the third of which has sparked a larger sub-field in its own right:
1 – ^†raǧila (a, raǧal) ‘to have a white-spotted foot (horse)’, ^†ʔarǧalᵘ (f. raǧlāʔᵘ, ^†raǧlà, pl. ruǧl) ‘white-spotted on one foot; large-footed’, ^†tarǧīl ‘white spot on a horse's foot’
2 – ^†raǧala (u, raǧl) ‘to tie s.o. by the feet’, ^†ĭrtaǧala ‘to tie (a beast) by the foot; to seize s.o.’s foot’
3 – ^†raǧila (a, raǧal) ‘to go foot’, ^†raǧl ‘walking on foot’, ^†riǧlaẗ, ruǧlaẗ ‘pedestrianism’, ^†raǧil, rāǧil (pl. raǧl, raǧǧālaẗ, ruǧǧāl, riǧāl, ruǧlān) ‘pedestrian, on foot’, ^†raglān (pl. ruǧālà, raǧālà, raǧlà) ‘foot-passenger’, ^†raǧīl (pl. ʔarǧilaẗ, ʔarāǧilᵘ, ʔarāǧīlᵘ) ‘foot-passenger, pedestrian’, (pl. raǧlà, ruǧālà, raǧālà) ‘good walker, tramp’ > al-^†ʔarāǧīl (pl.) ‘hunters’; ^†ĭrtaǧala ‘to go at a middling pace (horse)’
3.1 ^†riǧlaẗ, ruǧlaẗ ‘vigour in walking’
3.1.1 ^†raǧl, raǧul ‘man; perfect; vigorous; husband’ > ^†raǧulaẗ ‘manlike woman, virago’, ^†ruǧlaẗ, ^†ruǧliyyaẗ, ^†raǧūliyyaẗ ‘manliness’, ^†taraǧǧala ‘to be manlike (woman); to go down (a well) without rope’. – The identification, in EgAr rāgil, of PA I ‘pedestrian’ with ‘man’ may be influenced by Syr ragālā, ragālāṯā ‘foot-soldier’.
3.2 ^†taraǧǧala ‘to alight (rider); (fig.) to be advanced (day)’. – Cf. Syr etraggal ‘to come\go on foot, dismount, step forward’?
3.3 ^†ʔarǧala ‘to let s.o. go on foot; to let (a young one) free with his mother; (fig.) to grant a respite to s.o.’; ^†raǧila, a (raǧal) ‘to be set free with his mother (young beast)’; ^†raǧala (u, raǧl) ‘to let (a female) suckle her young; to suck (his mother: young)’, ^†raǧil, raǧal ‘set free with his mother (suckling)’
3.3.1 ^†raǧil, raǧl ‘somewhat curly (hair)’, ^†raǧal (pl. ʔarǧāl, raǧālà) ‘having curly hair’, ^†raǧila (a, raǧal) ‘to be curly (hair)’
3.3.1.1 ^†raǧǧala ‘to comb (the hair); to comfort s.o.’, ^†mirǧal ‘comb’, ^†muraǧǧal ‘combed; hence also: variegated (garment)’
3.3.1.2 perh. from *‘curly’ also the names of some plants: riǧl, ^†riǧlaẗ ‘garden purslane’, ^†tarāǧīl ‘smallage (herb)’.
3.3.2 ^†²riǧl ‘swarm of locusts; hence also: large troop of beasts; and also: army’, ^†muraǧǧal ‘leaving traces of wings on the sand (locusts)’
3.3.3 ^†ĭrtaǧala ‘to extemporise (speech)’
?4 – mirǧal ‘copper caldron’ > ^†ĭrtaǧala ‘to cook s.th. in a kettle’
?5 – ^†²riǧl ‘blank paper; misfortune; precedence; time’
?6 – ^†raǧlà, raǧlāʔᵘ ‘hard ground’
▪ [v1] Kogan2015 175-6 #3: »The origin of protCSem *rigl ‘foot’ is uncertain; no directly comparable roots or forms are attested in either Akk, or EthSem,¹ or modSAr. One may suspect that *rigl- was the protCSem alternative to a more ancient general designation of ‘foot’, viz. *paʕm- (perhaps the main protSem term with this meaning in view of its basic status in Ug, Phoen and some of modSAr ...). The spread of this replacement was uneven. In Aram and Ar, *paʕm- was completely (or almost completely) ousted by *rigl-,² whereas in Hbr the presence of *paʕm- ‘foot’ is rather marginal (purely anatomic attestations listed in HALOT 952 scarcely exceed half a dozen).³ Conversely, in Ug and Phoen *paʕm- fully preserves its basic status (Ug pʕn, Phoen pʕm), whereas *rigl- is hardly attested at all.⁴ «
▪ ...

1. »Notwithstanding numerous attempts to prove the contrary (cf. Kaye 1991b, Voigt 1998a), Gz ʔəgr ‘foot’ is probably not to be identified with this root (cf. SED I #7).« 2. »There seems to be no trace of *paʕm- in Aram. In Ar, cf. perhaps fʕm ‘to be fullformed, thick in her shank (a woman)’.« 3. »It has been argued that the meaning ‘foot’ for paʕam is a Northern (Israelite) feature (Rendsburg 2006:322).« 4. »It is of course enigmatic why *rigl-, so conspicuously absent from Ug texts, found its way into the quardilingual lexical list. Note, on the one hand, that its position in the list (= Sum ur, Akk pe-nu) does not favor a general meaning ‘foot’, but rather ‘thigh’ – not attested for the reflexes of *rigl- in any other Sem language. On the other hand, this is probably not the only case when the choice of the ancient Ug lexicographer does not fully match our expectations. Why, for example, ʔadānu (rather than ʔabu) was chosen to designate ‘father’ (Huehnergard 1987a:104) or tunnanu (rather than naḥ(a)šu or baṯ(a)nu) was used for ‘snake’ (ibid. 185)? As for Phoen, the hypothetical mrgl ‘servant at the feet of ...’ is very uncertain (DNWSI 1060).«

▪ [v1] (Huehnergard2011:) Engl (etc.) Rigel, a fixed star in Orio, from Ar ↗riǧl ‘foot’

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raǧǧal‑ رَجَّلَ , ‑raǧǧil‑ (tarǧīl)

ID – • Sw – • BP … • APD … • © SG | 5Apr2023

√RǦL

vb., II

1 to comb (the hair); 2 to let down (the hair), let it hang long – WehrCowan1976

▪ Among the two values in the MSA D-stem raǧǧala, [v1] ‘to comb (hair)’ is prob. secondary, based on [v2] with the original caus. meaning of *‘to let (hair) fall down freely’. The latter meaning seems in its turn to be derived from ↗^†RǦL_8 ‘set free with its mother’ (said of a suckling), which with all likelihood is based on ↗¹riǧl ‘foot’. The chain of semantic development can thus be imagined as follows: *‘foot > newly born (foal, etc.), managing/strong enough to stand on its own feet and run around freely, uncontrolled > to “release” the hair, let it fall down freely’. The value ‘to comb’ is a further development, as curly hair often needs to be treated with a comb in order to hang down freely. See also ↗^†RǦL_9 ^†raǧil~raǧl~raǧal ‘somewhat curly (hair)’.
▪ The underlying idea of *‘set free, spreading freely, spontaneously, etc.’ can be found also in other items from the same root, such as ↗²riǧl ‘swarm (esp. of locusts)’, ↗³riǧl ‘common purslane’ (< *‘spreading freely’), ↗ĭrtaǧala ‘to improvise, extemporize’.
▪ …

▪ (Hava1899:) ^†raǧil, raǧl ‘somewhat curly (hair)’, ^†raǧal (pl. ʔarǧāl, raǧālà) ‘having curly hair’, ^†raǧila (a, raǧal) ‘to be curly (hair)’; ^†raǧǧala ‘to comb (the hair); to comfort s.o.’, ^†mirǧal ‘comb’, ^†muraǧǧal ‘combed; hence also: variegated (garment)’
▪ ...

▪ No immediate cognates in Sem or outside, but ultimately based on ↗¹riǧl.
▪ ...

▪ See above, section CONC.
▪ ...

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For other values attached to the root, cf. ↗¹riǧl, ↗²riǧl, ↗³riǧl, ↗raǧul (with ↗ruǧūlaẗ), ↗ĭrtaǧala, and ↗mirǧal, as well as, for the whole picture, root entry ↗√RǦL.

ĭrtaǧal‑ اِرْتَجَلَ , ‑rtaǧil‑ (ĭrtiǧāl)

ID – • Sw – • BP … • APD … • © SG | 3Apr2023

√RǦL

vb., VIII

to improvise, extemporize, deliver offhand (a speech) – WehrCowan1976

▪ Like many other items in the root, the Gt-stem ĭrtaǧala is, with all likelihood, a development from ↗^†RǦL_8 ‘to let/set free, (suckling) set free with its mother’, itself prob. based on ↗¹riǧl ‘foot’. The chain of semantic extension may be imagined as follows: *‘foot > newly born (foal etc.), managing/strong enough to stand on its own feet and to run around freely > (fig.) to let words or a melody come out freely, spontaneously’.
▪ With this underlying idea, ĭrtaǧala is akin to ↗²riǧl ‘swarm (esp. of locusts)’, ↗³riǧl ‘common purslane’ (< *‘≈ curly hair, spreading freely/uncontrollably’), ↗raǧǧala ‘to let (hair) fall down freely (> to comb)’.
▪ Derivation from ↗raǧul ‘man’ – improvisation as proof of ‘manliness, manly virtue’ – looks less likely, though perh. not impossible, cf. DaṯAr (Dt-stem) taraǧǧal »‘marchander’, […] et en cela faire preuve de raǧālaẗ ou m?rǧalaẗ [< raǧul]« (Landberg1923, s.v. raqam) – in the extemporisation of verses, the ideas of *‘letting free’ and *‘manly virtue’ may overlap like in bargaining for a good price.
▪ …

▪ ...

▪ No immediate cognates in Sem or outside, but ultimately based on ↗¹riǧl; cf. perh. also ↗raǧul.
▪ ...

▪ See above, section CONC.
▪ ...

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►ĭrtiǧāl, n., improvisation, extemporization, extemporary speech: vn. VIII
►ĭrtiǧālī, adj., extemporary, improvised, impromptu, offhand, unprepared: nsb-formation, from vn. VIII
►murtaǧal, adj., improvised, extemporaneous, extemporary, impromptu, offhand: PP VIII

For other values attached to the root, cf. ↗¹riǧl, ↗²riǧl, ↗³riǧl, ↗raǧul (with ↗ruǧūlaẗ), ↗raǧǧala, and ↗mirǧal, as well as, for the whole picture, root entry ↗√RǦL.

¹riǧl رِجْل , pl. ʔarǧul

ID 314 • Sw 46/56 • BP 4356 • APD … • © SG | 15Feb2021, last updated 3Apr2023

√RǦL

n.f.

1a foot; b leg; 2 ↗²riǧl; 3 ↗³riǧl – WehrCowan1976

▪ As Kogan2011 #6.3.2 observes, »[t]here is no single protSem term for ‘foot’. [… cf. Ar ↗faʕama ‘to have fat hips; to be fat (arms)’]. Reflexes of *rigl- ‘foot’ are attested throughout CSem (Hbr, Syr, Ar, Sab […; see] SED I No. 228) except Ug and Phoen […]. There is no consensus about whether Gz ʔəgr and related EthSem terms (SED I #7) are connected with *rigl- (similar forms in Ar dialects, such as DaṯAr ʔižr, SyrAr ʔəžər, make the picture especially complicated. […]«
▪ V. Christian thought √RǦL was an extension in -L from the 2-cons. root nucleus ↗*RǦ-, reflected in Ar ↗raǧǧa ʻ(to rustle, shake, rock >) be convulsed, tremble, quake, sway, be excited, be distressed; to move, (move away >) deter’, reduplicated in raǧraǧa ‘to be moved, tremble, quiver, sway, be faint’. According to the author, the basic value of √RǦL, assumed to be *‘to shake > to hit’, also produced ¹riǧl ʻ(to hit > kick >) foot’ and raǧlaẗ ʻfirm step’; cf. also ↗raǧul ʻman’ (*‘strong one < who beats < who makes tremble\shake’).²
▪ There is hardly any value in the root ↗RǦL that does not seem to be ultimately based on ¹riǧl ‘foot’, though exact details remain unclear in many cases. The hypothesis of ‘foot’ as the overall etymon is corroborated by the fact that hardly any other value but ‘foot’ has cognates in Sem and the broad spectrum of other meanings covered by the root RǦL is, apparently, an Ar idiosyncrasy. For an overview of the ‘foot’-related semantic field, cf. section DISC in root entry ↗√RǦL. Among the many “feet” are the names of several stars (Rigel, in Orio) and plants (“foot of…”). The most productive secondary values derived from ‘foot’ seem to have been: (1) ‘to go on foot, walk’ (> ‘pedestrian’ > ‘foot-soldier’ > ‘man’), (2) ‘to alight (rider) (< *to stand on one’s feet)’, and (3) ‘to let go on foot, let (a young one) free with his mother’ > ‘to spread freely, uncontrollably’ (… > 3.1 ‘curly hair’ > 3.1.1 ‘to comb’ > ‘to comfort’; 3.1.2 ‘garden purslane’; … > 3.2 ‘swarm’ > ‘troop of beasts’ > ‘army’; … > 3.3 ‘to improvise, extemporise’).
▪ …

2. Viktor Christian, »About some verbs of speaking«, WZKM, 29 (1915): 438-444, 444 link.

▪ ...

▪ Kogan2015 175-6 #3: Ug ri-i[g]-lu, Hbr rägäl, Syr reglā, Ar riǧl, Sab rgl, Min rgl ‘foot’
▪ ...

▪ Kogan2015 175-6 #3: »The origin of protCSem *rigl- ‘foot’ is uncertain; no directly comparable roots or forms are attested in either Akk, or EthSem,⁵ or modSAr. One may suspect that *rigl- was the protCSem alternative to a more ancient general designation of ‘foot’, viz. *paʕm- (perhaps the main protSem term with this meaning in view of its basic status in Ug, Phoen and some of modSAr ...). The spread of this replacement was uneven. In Aram and Ar, *paʕm- was completely (or almost completely) ousted by *rigl-,⁶ whereas in Hbr the presence of *paʕm- ‘foot’ is rather marginal (purely anatomic attestations listed in HALOT 952 scarcely exceed half a dozen).⁷ Conversely, in Ug and Phoen *paʕm- fully preserves its basic status (Ug pʕn, Phoen pʕm), whereas *rigl- is hardly attested at all.⁸ «
▪ ...

5. »Notwithstanding numerous attempts to prove the contrary (cf. Kaye 1991b, Voigt 1998a), Gz ʔəgr ‘foot’ is probably not to be identified with this root (cf. SED I #7).« 6. »There seems to be no trace of *paʕm- in Aram. In Ar, cf. perhaps fʕm ‘to be fullformed, thick in her shank (a woman)’.« 7. »It has been argued that the meaning ‘foot’ for paʕam is a Northern (Israelite) feature (Rendsburg 2006:322).« 8. »It is of course enigmatic why *rigl-, so conspicuously absent from Ug texts, found its way into the quardilingual lexical list. Note, on the one hand, that its position in the list (= Sum ur, Akk pe-nu) does not favor a general meaning ‘foot’, but rather ‘thigh’ – not attested for the reflexes of *rigl- in any other Sem language. On the other hand, this is probably not the only case when the choice of the ancient Ug lexicographer does not fully match our expectations. Why, for example, ʔadānu (rather than ʔabu) was chosen to designate ‘father’ (Huehnergard 1987a:104) or tunnanu (rather than naḥ(a)šu or baṯ(a)nu) was used for ‘snake’ (ibid. 185)? As for Phoen, the hypothetical mrgl ‘servant at the feet of ...’ is very uncertain (DNWSI 1060).«

▪ (Huehnergard2011:) Engl Rigel, from Ar riǧl ‘foot’.

►raǧila, a, vb. I, to go on foot, walk
►taraǧǧala, vb. V, 1 = I | taraǧǧala fī ṭarīqi-h, to walk all the way; 2 to dismount (min or ʕan from; rider); 3 ↗raǧul : tD-stem, denom.
►raǧil, adj., going on foot, pedestrian, walking
►¹rāǧil, pl. raǧl, raǧǧālaẗ, ruǧǧāl, ruǧlān, adj., 1a going on foot, walking; b pedestrian: PP I

For other values attached to the root, cf. ↗²riǧl, ↗³riǧl, ↗raǧul (with ↗ruǧūlaẗ), ↗raǧǧala, ↗ĭrtaǧala, and ↗mirǧal, as well as, for the whole picture, root entry ↗√RǦL.

²riǧl رِجْل

√RǦL

1 ↗¹riǧl; 2 pl. ʔarǧāl, n., swarm (esp. of locusts); 3 ↗³riǧl – WehrCowan1976

▪ The value ‘swarm (esp. of locusts)’ of the word riǧl (which also can mean ‘foot’ and ‘common purslane’, see ↗¹riǧl; and ↗³riǧl) is prob. based on, or akin to, ↗^†RǦL_8 ‘to let/set free’, and is thus *‘(s.th., animal, etc.) set free and now spreading freely, uncontrollably’, prob. based, ultimately, on ↗¹riǧl.
▪ With this underlying idea, ²riǧl ‘swarm (esp. of locusts)’ is akin to ↗³riǧl ‘common purslane’ (< *‘≈ curly hair, spreading freely/uncontrollably’), ↗raǧǧala ‘to let (hair) fall down freely (> to comb)’, as well as ↗ĭrtaǧala ‘to improvise, extemporize’.
▪ …

▪ ...

▪ No immediate cognates in Sem or outside, but prob. ultimately based on ↗¹riǧl.
▪ ...

▪ See above, section CONC.
▪ ...

–

For other values attached to the root, cf. ↗¹riǧl, ↗³riǧl, ↗raǧul (with ↗ruǧūlaẗ), ↗raǧǧala, ↗ĭrtaǧala, and ↗mirǧal, as well as, for the whole picture, root entry ↗√RǦL.

³riǧl رِجْل

√RǦL

1 ↗¹riǧl; 2 ↗²riǧl; 3 n., common purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.; bot.) (EgAr riglaẗ) – WehrCowan1976

▪ The value ‘common purslane’ of the word riǧl (which otherwise can mean ‘foot’ and ‘swarm, esp. of locusts’, see ↗¹riǧl and ↗²riǧl) is prob. due to the plant’s resemblance with ^†‘curly (hair)’ (↗^†RǦL_9), which in its turn seems to have developed from ↗^†RǦL_8 *‘to be set free and run around uncontrollably (suckling, foal)’, ultimately from ↗¹riǧl ‘foot’.
▪ With this underlying idea, ³riǧl ‘common purslane’ is akin to ↗²riǧl ‘swarm (esp. of locusts)’, ↗raǧǧala ‘to let (hair) fall down freely (> to comb > to comfort)’, as well as ↗ĭrtaǧala ‘to improvise, extemporize’ and other, now extinct values.
▪ …

▪ ...

▪ No immediate cognates in Sem or outside, but ultimately based on ↗¹riǧl.
▪ ...

▪ See above, section CONC.
▪ ...

–

For other values attached to the root, cf. ↗¹riǧl, ↗²riǧl, ↗raǧul (with ↗ruǧūlaẗ), ↗raǧǧala, ↗ĭrtaǧala, and ↗mirǧal, as well as, for the whole picture, root entry ↗√RǦL.

raǧul رَجُل , pl. riǧāl, riǧālāt

√RǦL

man – WehrCowan1976

▪ ‘Man’ and derivatives (‘to behave like a man, masculinity, virility, manhood, etc.’) are prob. from ‘pedestrian’ (in Syr also ‘foot-soldier’), thus ultimately from ↗¹riǧl ‘foot’ (so also Kogan2011). – Cf. also the EgAr form rāgil which looks very much like a PA I, meaning *‘going on foot’ (and the EgAr pl. riggālaẗ ‘men’ sounds very similar to the Syr sg. ragālā ‘foot-soldier’). But it could also be based on ^†riǧlaẗ~ruǧlaẗ ‘vigour in walking’.
▪ …

▪ … ▪ ...

▪ According to Zammit2002, Ar raǧul ‘man’ has no cognates in Sem. But cf., perh. Syr ragālā, ragālāṯā ‘foot-soldier’.
▪ Ultimately prob. based on ↗¹riǧl.
▪ ...

▪ See above, section CONC.
▪ ...

–

►riǧālāt, n.pl., great, important men, leading personalities, men of distinction;
►riǧāl al-dawlaẗ, n.pl., statesmen;
►riǧāl al-sanad, n.pl., informants, sources of information

►taraǧǧala, vb. V, 1-2 ↗riǧl; 3 to assume masculine manners, behave like a man: tD-stem, denom.
►ĭstarǧala, vb. X, 1a to become a man, reach the age of manhood, grow up; b to act like a man, display masculine manners or qualities: *Št-stem, denom., desider.

►riǧālī, adj., men’s, for men (e.g., apparel): nsb-formation, based on pl. of raǧul
►^BP#4771ruǧūlaẗ, n.f., masculinity, virility, manhood: abstr. formation on pattern FuʕūLaẗ
►ruǧūliyyaẗ, n.f., masculinity, virility, manhood: : abstr. formation in ‑iyyaẗ, based on preceding
►EgAr ^BP#4471²rāgil, pl. riggālaẗ, n., man

For other values attached to the root, cf. ↗¹riǧl, ↗²riǧl, ↗³riǧl, ↗raǧǧala, ↗ĭrtaǧala, and ↗mirǧal, as well as, for the whole picture, root entry ↗√RǦL.

mirǧal مِرْجَل , pl. marāǧilᵘ

√RǦL

1a cooking kettle, caldron; b boiler – WehrCowan1976

▪ The etymology of mirǧal ‘cooking kettle, caldron; boiler’ is somewhat obscure. The idea that it could be from ↗¹riǧl ‘foot’ (as *‘kettle with “feet”’) is rejected by some scholars. If not *‘kettle with feet’, is mirǧal then perh. a *‘kettle placed on (some kind of) “feet” (e.g., stones)’? (Cf. ^†ʔarǧala ‘to set down, discharge’, denom. vb. IV, from ¹riǧl ‘foot’.) – In principle, the miFʕaL pattern is used to form nomina instrumenti, but this does not seem very meaningful for any of the values else associated with ↗√RǦL and, theoretically, candidates that could serve as bases of derivation. – I (S.G.) still think mirǧal is from ¹riǧl ‘foot’, perh. *‘instrument (kettle) that stands on its own “feet”’, like a foal\suckling that has become strong enough to stand on its own feet to get sucked by its mother (see ↗RǦL_8). Alternatively, it may be the *‘instrument that sets free (clouds of) steam etc.’, similar to ↗²riǧl ‘swarms\clouds (esp. of locusts)’.
▪ …

▪ ...

▪ ?
▪ ...

▪ See above, section CONC.
▪ ...

–

For other values attached to the root, cf. ↗¹riǧl, ↗²riǧl, ↗³riǧl, ↗raǧul (with ↗ruǧūlaẗ), ↗raǧǧala, ↗ĭrtaǧala, as well as, for the whole picture, root entry ↗√RǦL.

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