Meanings
proper noun
- The antidemocratic aftermath of the Arab Spring, involving more authoritarian governments and the rise of Islamic fundamentalism.
The Arab Winter Is Coming [title]
2018 November 3, Hassan Hassan, “The Arab Winter Is Coming”, in The Atlantic1 more example
The second argument of the book is that Arab nationalism looks very different during today’s Arab winter than it did before the Arab spring.
2020 May 12, Noah Feldman, “‘The Arab Winter,’ by Noah Feldman: An Excerpt”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
Origin
Coined by Daniel Byman in The Washington Post in December 2011, in reference to the Arab Spring.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
Arab Winter. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Arab%20Winter
MLA
“Arab Winter.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Arab%20Winter. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Arab Winter,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Arab%20Winter.
Source: Arab Winter on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.