Meanings
caliph1
plural caliphs · alternative khalifa · alternative khalīfa · alternative archaic caleef · alternative archaic calif · alternative archaic kaleefa · alternative archaic kalif · alternative archaic kaliph · alternative archaic khalif · alternative archaic khaleefeh
- The holder of a monarchical title based on a claim to be a successor of Muhammad.
The Abbasid caliphs patronized art and science beside religious developments ushering in the Islamic Golden Age when their capital Baghdad began to flourish as a center of knowledge, culture and trade.
1 more example
It carries us to the East, and the stately halls of the caliphs rise on the mind's eye; and we think over the thousand and one stories which made our childhood so happy, and stored up a world of unconscious poetry for our future years:...
1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “The Coronation”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, pages 148-149
Caliph2
Synonyms & antonyms
nounthe civil and religious leader of a Muslim state considered to be a representative of Allah on earth
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Arabicخَلِيفَة“caliph”
- Medieval Latincalipha
- Old Frenchcaliphe
- Middle Englishcalife
- Englishcaliph
From Middle English calife, caliphe, from Old French caliphe, from Medieval Latin calipha, from Arabic خَلِيفَة (ḵalīfa, “caliph”) and خَلِيف (ḵalīf, “successor”).
More words from Middle English, Old French, Medieval Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek χαλιφᾶς
- χαλιφᾶς (khaliphâs)political leader of the Muslim world
Arabic خَلِيفَة
- خَلِيفَة (ḵalīfa)political leader of the Muslim world
Bengali খলিফা
- খলিফা (kholipha)political leader of the Muslim world
Bulgarian хали́ф
- хали́ф (halíf)political leader of the Muslim world
Catalan califa
- califapolitical leader of the Muslim world
Chinese Mandarin 哈里發 /哈里发
- 哈里發 /哈里发 (hālǐfā)political leader of the Muslim world
Czech kalif, chalífa
- kalifpolitical leader of the Muslim world
- chalífapolitical leader of the Muslim world
Danish kalif
- kalifpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Dutch kalief
- kaliefpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Esperanto kalifo, ĥalifo
- kalifopolitical leader of the Muslim world
- ĥalifopolitical leader of the Muslim world
Estonian kaliif
- kaliifpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Finnish kalifi
- kalifipolitical leader of the Muslim world
French calife
- califepolitical leader of the Muslim world
German Kalif, Kalifin (cf. Päpstin)
- Kalifpolitical leader of the Muslim world
- Kalifin (cf. Päpstin)political leader of the Muslim world
- Chalifpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Greek χαλίφης
- χαλίφης (chalífis)political leader of the Muslim world
Hebrew ח׳ליפה, חָלִיף
- ח׳ליפהpolitical leader of the Muslim world
- חָלִיף (khalif)political leader of the Muslim world
- כָּלִיף (kalif)political leader of the Muslim world
Hindi ख़लीफ़ा, खलीफा
- ख़लीफ़ा (xalīfā)political leader of the Muslim world
- खलीफा (khalīphā)political leader of the Muslim world
Hungarian kalifa
- kalifapolitical leader of the Muslim world
Indonesian khalifah
- khalifahpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Irish cailif
- cailifpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Italian califfo
- califfopolitical leader of the Muslim world
Japanese カリフ, ハリーファ
- カリフ (karifu)political leader of the Muslim world
- ハリーファpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Korean 칼리파
- 칼리파 (kallipa)political leader of the Muslim world
Latvian kalifs
- kalifspolitical leader of the Muslim world
Lithuanian kalifas
- kalifaspolitical leader of the Muslim world
Malay khalifah
- khalifahpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Norwegian Bokmål kalif
- kalifpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Polish kalif
- kalifpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Portuguese califa
- califapolitical leader of the Muslim world
Punjabi ਖਲੀਫ਼ਾ, خَلِیفَہ
- ਖਲੀਫ਼ਾ (khalīfā)political leader of the Muslim world
- خَلِیفَہ (xalīfah)political leader of the Muslim world
Romanian calif
- califpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Russian хали́ф, кали́ф
- хали́ф (xalíf)political leader of the Muslim world
- кали́ф (kalíf)political leader of the Muslim world
Slovak kalif
- kalifpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Spanish califa
- califapolitical leader of the Muslim world
Swahili khalifa
- khalifapolitical leader of the Muslim world
Swedish kalif
- kalifpolitical leader of the Muslim world
Tagalog halipa
- halipapolitical leader of the Muslim world
Thai กาหลิบ, คอลีฟะห์
- กาหลิบpolitical leader of the Muslim world
- คอลีฟะห์political leader of the Muslim world
Turkish halife
- halifepolitical leader of the Muslim world
Ukrainian халі́ф
- халі́ф (xalíf)political leader of the Muslim world
Urdu خَلِیفَہ
- خَلِیفَہ (xalīfa)political leader of the Muslim world
Vietnamese kha-lip
- kha-lippolitical leader of the Muslim world
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with caliph
All rhymes →Anagrams
Cite this entry
caliph. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/caliph
“caliph.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/caliph. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “caliph,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/caliph.
Source: caliph on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.