▪ ‘To twist tight, braid, plait’ is the “roof” value from which most other values in the root ↗√ǦDL can be thought to derive. It unites two basic notions which in other Sem languages appear as distinct values and have developed in many directions also in Ar: ‘twisting (rope)’ and ‘strength, firmness’.
▪ As rightly observed by
DRS, a semantic relation between ‘twisting’ and ‘strength, firmness’ can be found also in other roots, such as ↗√BRM, ↗√KBR, ↗√KRB, ↗√MSD, ↗√MRː(MRR), ↗√ʕSD, ↗√ʕQD, ↗√FTL, and ↗√QWY. In a similar vein, also ‘strong’ and ‘great, big, large’ are connected not only in √ǦDL but also in ↗√ʕẒM.
▪ This entry treats only ‘twisting’ proper (more precisely, the “remnants” of this value that have survived into MSA). For the wider semantic spectrum, see root entry ↗√ǦDL as well as individual entries ↗
ǧadal (with the related complex of *‘quarreling, wrangling, fighting; arguing, debating, etc.’ – the most prominent complex in MSA), ↗¹
miǧdāl (with *‘strength, firmness’) and ↗
ǧadwal (prob. a specific interpretation of ‘twisting’, namely the “intertwining” of trickles of water, etc., forming a rivulet, hence also the intertwining of lines in a table, chart, etc.).
▪ The value is widely attested in Sem (Akk,
1
Hbr, Aram, Ar, Soq, Te) and can thus be posited, with all likelihood, also for protSem *GDL.
▪ As the list of derivatives (see below) shows, there are only few items left in MSA that still display the original idea of ‘twisting tight, braiding, plaiting’. ClassAr contained a larger variety, including, e.g.,
†ǧadīl(aẗ) ‘girdle, ornamented belt; menstruous woman (who wears that type of belt)’ and
†ǧadīlaẗ ‘trap for catching pigeons, bird’s cage (made from twigs by “weaving/twisting” them)’ (hence also the
†ǧaddāl ‘trap\cage-maker’). The way s.th. was twisted could also take the more general meaning of ‘way, mood’ or ‘habit; nature; determination of the mind’ (= the way s.o. is “knitted”, his/her mental structure). Perh. also a type of falcon or hawk was called
†ʔaǧdal on account of its well-shaped appearance (alternatively, due to its strength).
▪ Metaphorical use of *‘nicely twisted, well-knit’ has survived into MSA in the PP I,
maǧdūl, in the meaning ‘slender and trim, shapely’ (in ClassAr also ‘graceful, handsome’).