Word origins

• kifayaEnough!
• Kingdom of LibyaA former constitutional monarchy in North Africa, existing from 1951 until its overthrow in 1969.
• Kingdom of MoroccoOfficial name of Morocco: a country in North Africa.
• kiratA Middle Eastern unit of area, ¹⁄₂₄ of a feddan.
• kirbehAn animal-skin bag used to carry water in the Middle East.
• kisraA thin fermented bread made in Sudan.
• kiswahThe cloth that covers the Kaaba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
• Kitab al-AzifSynonym of Necronomicon.
• kitabiOne of the People of the Book.
• kitmanThe deliberate concealment of information or beliefs, such as hiding one's faith to avoid persecution.
• KobanîA city in northern Syria.
• Kochabβ Ursae Minoris, the second-brightest star in the constellation Ursa Minor, formerly a dual North Star with Pherkad from about 1000 BC to about AD 300.
• KodokA town in the northeastern South Sudanese state of Upper Nile, once an important trading station.
• kufiA type of brimless, rounded cap associated with various African nations or ethnicities.
• KufraThe largest district of Libya.
• kunyaAn epithet in Arabic names, typically deriving from the name of the bearer's first-born son.
• kurbashA whip or strap about a yard in length.
• kurratEgyptian leek; considered a variety of Allium ampeloprasum (Allium ampeloprasum var. kurrat) or a species Allium kurrat
• Kutub al-SittahThe group of six collections of hadiths (sayings or acts of Muhammad) which form part of the official canon of Sunni Islam.
• lahohA spongy, pancake-like bread originating in Djibouti, Somaliland, Somalia, and Yemen.
• lakharajOf lands: paying no kharaj or rent.
• LaredjA male given name from Arabic.
• Laylatul QadrA night during Ramadan that commemorates the initial revelation of the Qur'an, usually on the 27th of Ramadan.
• lebanCoagulated sour milk diluted with water.
• lebbekThe tree Albizia lebbeck.
• lithamA veil of North Africa that covers the lower face.
• liwanA long, narrow-fronted hall or vaulted portal found in Levantine homes, often open to the outside.
• lokmaA pastry made of fried dough soaked in sugar syrup or honey and cinnamon, typically shaped into a ring or ball. (used especially of the Turkish variant of this pastry)
• loubiaA North African bean stew, typically made with white beans, tomatoes, spices, and sometimes meat, or to beans themselves in some regions.
• LoujainA female given name from Arabic.
• lunar letterSynonym of moon letter.
• LusailA city in Al Daayen, Qatar.
• LuwatiAn Indo-Aryan language spoken in Northern Oman near Muscat.
• MaaradA kind of Egyptian cotton.
• MabahithThe secret police of the Ministry of the Interior in Saudi Arabia.
• Ma'barThe Coromandel coast of India.
• mabkharaA traditional censer in the Arab world and Turkey, usually having a square pedestal base or legs with inward-sloping sides which support a square cup with outward-sloping sides.
• Madaripur DistrictOne of the thirteen districts in the Dhaka Division of Bangladesh.
• maddahArabic diacritic similar in appearance to a tilde. Over an alif (آ (ʔā) "alif maddah"), it indicates glottal stop, /ʔ/, followed by a long /aː/. The diacritic is not used separately, only over alif. Alif maddah can appear in the beginning: آسِف (ʔāsif) or in the middle of a word: قُرْآن (qurʔān).
• MahjarA literary movement started by Arabic-speaking writers who had emigrated to America from Ottoman-ruled Lebanon, Syria and Palestine at the turn of the 20th century.
• MahjariOf or pertaining to the Mahjar.
• mahlebA Middle Eastern spice derived from the pit of the mahaleb cherry (Prunus mahaleb)
• mahmalSynonym of kajawah (“a litter etc. borne by a camel”).
• mahramA family member who is haram to marry.
• majounA paste originating in Morocco, made from marijuana and honey, and ingested as a recreational drug.
• makdousA Levantine dish of oil-cured stuffed eggplants.
• makruhNot haram, but disliked or offensive, such that a person will be rewarded for avoiding it.
• maktabA traditional Islamic elementary school, primarily teaching literacy and the Qur'an.
• malfouf saladA salad made from shredded cabbage, lemon juice, olive oil, and mint.
• MalufA surname from Arabic.
• MamduhA male given name from Arabic that means "[a] praised [person]", or someone who is always mentioned in a positive way.
• manakishA Levantine Arabic food resembling a pizza and consisting of dough topped with thyme, cheese, or ground meat.
• ManbijA city in Syria.
• mancusA gold coin used in medieval Europe.
• mandilA turban; cloth used to make a turban.
• mansafA dish of lamb, rice and dried yogurt, popular in Jordan, the Levant, and Arab countries of the Persian Gulf.
• maqamaArabic literary genre
• MaqdisiSynonym of Jerusalemitein Palestinian contexts.
• maqlubaA traditional Levantine dish of meat, rice, and fried vegetables, cooked in a pot which is then flipped upside down prior to serving.
• maqsurahAn enclosure, box, or screen near the mihrab in a mosque, typically reserved for a Muslim ruler and his entourage, and originally designed to shield him from potential assassins during prayer.
• MarethA town and commune in Tunisia.
• marhalaA day's march (in Arab contexts).
• MarinidA member of a dynasty of Zenata Berber descent that ruled Morocco from the 13th to the 15th century.
• marjaiyaThe supreme religious body of ayatollahs in Shi'ism.
• MarkabA subgiant, visible as a second-magnitude bluish star in the northern constellation of Pegasus, one of four stars in the asterism of the Great Square of Pegasus, one of the lunar stars observed in navigation.
• MaryanaA female given name from Arabic or from the Slavic languages [in turn from Hebrew], variant of Mariana.
• masdarArabic verbal noun, also used in Georgian grammar (მასდარი)
• masgoufA traditional Mesopotamian dish of seasoned grilled carp, considered the national dish of Iraq.
• mashadahA kind of headcloth, a keffiyeh.
• mashallahExpressing the speaker's gratitude for a blessing or their recognition of divine intervention in its occurrence. God willed it.
• mashqA calligraphic form of Arabic.
• MashreqThe geographic region consisting of Arabic-speaking lands in eastern Africa and western Asia, from Egypt and the Sudan eastwards.
• Masjid al-HaramA grand mosque enclosing the Kaaba in Mecca and the courtyard surrounding it containing the Black Stone, the Well of Zamzam and the Station of Abraham.
• mastabaA wide stone bench built into the wall of a house, shop etc. in the Middle East.
• matbuchaA cooked dish of tomatoes and roasted bell peppers seasoned with garlic and chili pepper.
• mathnawiA kind of poem written in rhyming couplets, usually with a meter of ten or eleven syllables; found in Persian, Arabic, Turkish, Kurdish and Urdu cultures.
• MatrouhA governorate in north-western Egypt.
• Maulvibazar DistrictOne of the four districts in the Sylhet Division of Bangladesh.
• mawlidA holiday celebrating the birthday of a holy man or prophet, especially Muhammad.
• MayyunSynonym of Perim (“volcanic island off Yemen”).
• MebarakA surname.
• Medjerda RiverA river in North Africa.
• MedjoolA kind of large, moist date (the fruit).
• meghliA Lebanese rice pudding.
• MegrezDelta Ursae Majoris, a star in the constellation of Ursa Major and part of the Plough.
• mehariA type of fast-running dromedary camel, which can be used for racing or transport.
• MenkalinanA traditional name of the star Beta Aurigae.
• MenkarAlpha Ceti, a red giant star in the constellation of Cetus
• Menzel BourguibaA town in the extreme north of Tunisia.
• MerwanA male given name from Arabic.
• meshrabiyehThe latticed projecting windows of private houses, in Islamic architecture.
• meskitSynonym of mosque.
• mihaffaVarious forms of covered animal-borne litters, chiefly for female passengers.
• MihnaA religious inquisition launched by the caliph al-Ma'mun in the ninth century, which attempted to enforce the minority view that the Qur'an was a creation of God rather than being coeternal with God.
• mihrabA niche in a mosque that indicates the qibla (direction of Mecca), and into which the imam prays.
• mijwizA type of woodwind instrument with two pipes used in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Palestine
• millahAny variety of religion, except the religion of Islam.
• mimbarA pulpit in a mosque from which the leader of prayers delivers the khutbah.
• minbarA pulpit in a mosque, usually shaped like a small tower, where the imam stands to deliver sermons.
• MinhajA surname