Discover the meaning of the term Al-iḍafa (إضافة) in Islamic vocabulary.
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Updated on 11 April 2026 at 1:05 AM
📖 2 min readA reciprocal relation such that neither is conceived without the other, like fatherhood and sonship.
The relation befalling a thing by comparison to another relation, like fatherhood and prophethood.
The joining of two names in a manner yielding definition or specification.
Language: it comes in the sense of joining, inclining, attribution and specification. If one says: the judgement is annexed to such a one or to such a quality, that is an attribution to him; if one says: the judgement is annexed to such a time, that is a specification. It is said: the i dafa is the joining of a thing to a thing, or its attribution or relation.
With the grammarians: the joining of a noun to a noun in a manner yielding definition or specification. With the philosophers: a reciprocal relation such that neither is conceived without the other, like fatherhood and sonship. According to the Law: the deferring of the effect of a disposal from the time of speech to a future fixed by the disposer, without the performance of a condition.
The relation befalling a thing by comparison to another relation, like fatherhood and sonship.