The Meaning of the Qur'anic Word ‘dābba’: ‘Animals’ or ‘Nonhuman Animals’?

Abstract

The word dābba (‘animal’), both in its singular and plural (dawābb) forms, occurs in the Qur'an a total of eighteen times. In its Qur'anic context, dābba is often understood by Arabic mufassirūn, English-language translators and other Islamic scholars as a reference to nonhuman animals only, the implication being that the Islamic scripture does not consider humans to be part of the animal world. However, analysis of the Qur'anic contexts in which the animal concept is treated indicates that this scripture subscribes to the etymological (rather than the conventional) meaning of this word: any being that produces intentional movement, the primary meaning of the verb dabba, is a dābba. Thus, the so-called rational beings (humans, angels and jinn) are part of the animal world, an understanding that is plainly expressed in many medieval Arabic lexicons whose definitions are shaped by the Qur'anic treatment of the animal concept. Furthermore, evidence from within the Qur'anic text indicates that it seems to avoid lumping all animals into one indistinct group. Both these observations may have a significant impact on the status and potentially the welfare of nonhuman animals in the Islamic scripture, and therefore have implications for attitudes to animal welfare.