Known in Arabic as Suhayl, Canopus is the second-brightest star in the night sky, second only to Sirius, and it has a cultural importance which it would be hard to exaggerate. In Islamic civilisation in particular, it is notable because the major axis of the Kaaba is aligned with its rising point.
As we read on through the nautical rhumbs, Suhayl has a prominent place, forming part of a diametrical pair which is closest to the poles. Suhayl would be practically a South Pole indicator, while its complementary opposites (al-Na‘sh, the Plough) would be North Pole indicators. Ibn Mājid explains: “Young and old among the people of the desert and the people of the sea, everyone knows Suhayl by sight.” And he adds: “Nothing is better than Suhayl to take altitude measures among what has been set in motion by the Turner of the Spheres (Tornator Caelorum, al-Dawwār). Southern peoples use it to unlock the routes to all of India and Arabia.”
It is remarkable that the name Suhayl, a star of such mighty practical importance, should mean literally “the little easy-going one”. As a diminutive of sahl, it has a range of related meanings, all familiar names of gentleness. As we had seen with the Pleiades (Thurayyā, Soraya, Zorayda?), Suhayl has also the discreet yet pervasive distinction of being used as a personal given name; it is a common male name not only in Arabic, but in Urdu, Persian and Turkish as well.
This archaic, indeed pre-Islamic, custom of using star names for children makes you wonder about similar practices across cultures. Apart from Spanish Sol and Luna, Sun and Moon, which are used as girls’ names (in Arabic, Shams is for men while Qamar is for women), I can only recall literary characters like Lyra Belacqua (His Dark Materials) and Sirius Black and his family of Harry Potter’s characters. I wonder if our readers can tell us about other people named after celestial bodies? Not sure Arthur would count… Any Betelgeuses or Achernars you are acquainted with!? [JA]
I can think of Thurya ثريا, which is for women. Very common in Najd where I am from. I guess it refers to the 7 stars. Also, Thurya in modern Atabic refers to chandelier lights. I think it is named after the stars because it looks like the stars in the sky. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks! It’s interesting to know that this is so common in Najd nowadays. Thurayya, or Sorayya, and other spellings too, is actually the Pleiades, which as far as I know has never been used as a name in European languages.
DeleteInteresting! I now know what it means in English. I think it is not as common with the younger generation anymore. It sounds like an older women name, like Muneerah and Madawi. It is a grandmother name. So sad to see a whole cultural references dying out
DeleteThank you. In Venezuela many girls are named Estrella. Is the Spanish translation or star. Very witty.
ReplyDeleteGracias. This seems to be common across Romance languages. I’m trying to think how that works in other languages. In Arabic you actually have male and female star (the equivalents of Estrello and Estrella !), Najm and Najmah. Stella is used as a name in English…
Delete