Wadd ( ar, وَدّ) (

Ancient South Arabian script The Ancient South Arabian script (Old South Arabian 𐩣𐩯𐩬𐩵 ''ms3nd''; modern ar, الْمُسْنَد ''musnad'') branched from the Proto-Sinaitic script in about the late 2nd millennium BCE. It was used for writing the Old Sout ...

: 𐩥𐩵) is a pre-Islamic Arabian god. He was the national god of the Minaeans of

South Arabia South Arabia () is a historical region that consists of the southern region of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia, mainly centered in what is now the Republic of Yemen, yet it has also historically included Najran, Jizan, Al-Bahah, and 'As ...

, and the snake was associated with him. It is also called Waddum and Wadd'ab. In Islamic tradition, Wadd was worshipped by the Banu Kalb tribe and his idol was located in the city of Dumat al-Jandal. The idol was said to be destroyed by

Khalid ibn al-Walid Khalid ibn al-Walid ibn al-Mughira al-Makhzumi (; died 642) was a 7th-century Arab military commander. He initially headed campaigns against Muhammad on behalf of the Quraysh. He later became a Muslim and spent the remainder of his career in ...

. He is also mentioned in the

Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , ...

as a false god of the people of

Noah Noah ''Nukh''; am, ኖህ, ''Noḥ''; ar, نُوح '; grc, Νῶε ''Nôe'' () is the tenth and last of the pre-Flood patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5� ...

Attestations

Pre-Islamic era

Wadd was the national god of Ma'in, or the Minaeans; the magic formula ''Wd'b'' or "Wadd is y?father" was written on amulets and buildings. These writings were often accompanied with a symbol; a crescent moon with the small disc of

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...

. An altar dedicated to him was erected by Minaeans living on the Greek island of

Delos The island of Delos (; el, Δήλος ; Attic: , Doric: ), near Mykonos, near the centre of the Cyclades archipelago, is one of the most important mythological, historical, and archaeological sites in Greece. The excavations in the island ar ...

. The altar contains two inscriptions, one of which is in Minaean language and the other in Greek. Minaean inscription on the altar begins with symbols of three Minaean god one of which is of Wadd whose symbol is a snake. The Minaean text on the altar reads, "Hāni' and Zayd'il

f the lineage F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''. His ...

of Hab erected the altar of Wadd and of the deities of Ma'in at Delos." The Greek inscription reads, " ropertyof Oaddos, god of the Minaeans. To Oaddos." He was also worshipped by Minaean colonists in Dedan (modern-day

Al-'Ula Al-'Ula ( ar, ٱلْعُلَا '), is a city of the Medina Region in north-western Saudi Arabia. Historically located on the incense route, the city lies within the Governorate of 'Ula ( ar, مُحَافَظَة ٱلْعُلَا, Muḥāfathat A ...

) during the Lihyanite rule. A temple of Wadd evidently existed in Dedan. There is evidence from Minaean inscriptions of the presence of

Levites Levites (or Levi) (, he, ''Lǝvīyyīm'') are Jewish males who claim patrilineal descent from the Tribe of Levi. The Tribe of Levi descended from Levi, the third son of Jacob and Leah. The surname ''Halevi'', which consists of the Hebrew de ...

in the temple of Wadd who according to some scholars were either as priests or cult servants who could later be promoted to higher positions. Wadd was also the national god of the Awsan kingdom. It is known that in the

Hellenistic era In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in 3 ...

, a king of Awsan was proclaimed as "son of (god) Wadd", receiving offerings as if he himself were a god.

Islamic era

The

theophoric name A theophoric name (from Greek: , ''theophoros'', literally "bearing or carrying a god") embeds the word equivalent of 'god' or God's name in a person's name, reflecting something about the character of the person so named in relation to that dei ...

Abd Wadd is attested in the name of Amr ibn Abd Wadd, a champion of the tribe of Quraish who challenged the Muslims for a

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people, with matched weapons, in accordance with agreed-upon rules. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and ...

during the

Battle of the Trench The Battle of the Trench ( ar, غزوة الخندق, Ghazwat al-Khandaq), also known as the Battle of Khandaq ( ar, معركة الخندق, Ma’rakah al-Khandaq) and the Battle of the Confederates ( ar, غزوة الاحزاب, Ghazwat al- ...

. Ali, Muhammad's son-in-law and cousin, accepted the challenge and killed Amr. According to Hisham ibn al-Kalbi's '' Book of Idols'', the Banu Kalb tribe worshipped Wadd in the form of a man and is said to have represented heaven. His idol and temple stood in Dumat al-Jandal, and Malik ibn Harithah, a former devotee of Wadd, describes his idol:

lt was the statue of a huge man, as big as the largest of human beings, covered with two robes, clothed with the one and cloaked with the other, carrying a sword on his waist and a bow on his shoulder, and holding in nehand a spear to which was attached a standard, and n the othera quiver full of arrows.

He is mentioned in the

Qur'an The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , si ...

(71:23) as a deity of the time of the

Prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the ...

And they say: By no means leave your gods, nor leave Wadd, nor
Suwa' Suwāʿ ( ar, سواع) is mentioned in the Qur'an (71:23) as a deity of the time of the Prophet Noah. And they say: Forsake not your gods, nor forsake Wadd, nor Suwa', nor Yaghuth and Ya'uq and Nasr. ( Qur'an 71:23) Maulana Muhammad A ...
; nor Yaghuth, and
Ya'uq According to the Qur'an, Yaʿūq ( ar, يعوق) was a deity worshipped in the days of Noah. A temple dedicated to Rahmanan and named after Ya'uq is mentioned in South Arabian inscriptions as "mkrbn yʿwq". And they say: Forsake not your gods, ...
and Nasr. (
Qur'an The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , si ...
71:23)

The temple dedicated to Wadd was demolished on the orders of Muhammad in the expedition of Khalid ibn al-Walid (2nd Dumatul Jandal).

Sources

*''The Book of Idols'' (Kitab Al-Asnam) by Hisham Ibn Al-Kalbi

References

Arabian gods Lunar gods South Arabia Snake gods {{MEast-myth-stub

Attestations

Pre-Islamic era

Islamic era

See also

Sources

References