Rub el Hizb

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(Redirected from Rubʿ al-ḥizb)
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Rub el Hizb
In UnicodeU+06DE ۞ ARABIC START OF RUB EL HIZB

The Rub el Hizb (Arabic: رُبْع الحِزْب, romanizedrubʿ al-ḥizb, lit.'quarter of the group') is an Islamic symbol in the shape of an octagram, represented as two overlapping squares. While its main utility today is to mark a division inside some copies of the Quran to facilitate recitation, it has originally featured on a number of emblems and flags in the past and continues to do so today. It has traditionally been called the Seljuk Star.

Etymology[edit]

In Arabic, rubʿ means 'one-fourth' or 'quarter', while ḥizb (plural aḥzāb) translates to 'a group'. The Quran is divided into 60 aḥzāb (groups of roughly equal length in turn grouped into 30 ajzāʾ), with instances of Rub el Hizb further dividing each ḥizb into four, for a total of 240 divisions.

History[edit]

What would become Rub el Hizb was originally the symbol with which the Tartessos, since remote Neolithic times, made offerings to the Sun and represented it with eight rays. By the time of Al-Andalus in the Iberian Peninsula, it had defined as a cultural symbol, appearing on the coins. In addition, the use of it in so many areas[which?] led to its name being changed to "the star of Abd al-Rahman I". From al Al-Andalus it was exported to the rest of the Arab world. It has also been used extensively in Turkic Islamic culture and history.[1][2]

A similar symbol, consisting of two concentric circles with a defined punctual center, connected by eight radial sectors, exists with the two lines of the East-West orientation combined,[clarify] resulting in a hexagon with circular symmetry.[3][irrelevant citation]

Variants[edit]

Contemporary use[edit]

Architecture[edit]

Development of the Petronas Towers Tower 1 level 43 floor plan from a Rub el Hizb symbol.[4]

The symbol has been used as a basis for plans of buildings, as in the case of the Petronas Towers.

Former flags[edit]

The first country to use the Rub el Hizb on its flag was the Marinid Sultanate in 1258.

Current flags[edit]

Emblems[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Eight-Pointed Star Meaning". Antique Rugs by Doris Leslie Blau. 2019-02-01. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  2. ^ REKI, ARSLAN SELÇUK, Mahina, Semra (2018-05-22). "EVOLUTION OF GEOMETRIC PATTERNS IN ISLAMIC WORLD AND A CASE ON THE JALIS OF THE NAULAKHA PAVILION IN THE LAHORE FORT". Gazi University Journal of Science. B (6(1)): 83–97 – via https://dergipark.org.tr/. {{cite journal}}: External link in |via= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ Majeed Khan (13 December 2013). "Rock Art of Saudi Arabia". Arts 2013, 2, 447-475 (Figure 28); doi:10.3390/arts2040447. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  4. ^ Galal Abada (2004). "Petronas Office Towers" (PDF). Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Archived from the original on 2012-10-01.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)