Royal or imperial title before Alexander, and later used by Byzantine sovereigns from 630 onward.

Basmalah is the expression 'Bism Allah al-Rahman al-Rahim' (in the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful) which appears at the head of every chapter of the Holy Qur'an (Muslims Holy book), with the exception of Surat al-Tawbah (Repentance, IX). The invocation of the Basmalah is considered to have a great benedictory powers, and is therefore highly used before important acts in every day life.

Transversal spatial unit in a covered space. The bay contrasts with the nave which is longitudinal. In a hypostyle space, the bay corresponds to the division between two rows of columns set perpendicular to the axis of the entrance.

In Cairo, many bazaars for the sale of goods have been located in streets and passages that could be closed at night with wooden doors and chains. Mamluk windows, placed at least two meters above ground, enabled stalls to be pitched against them without difficulty. The wooden roof is substantial but is not a permanent structure. The shopkeepers stand on a kind of dais some feet above the road.

Dynasty of Shiite emirs who occupied Baghdad in the tenth and eleventh centuries and who kept the Abbasid caliphs under tutelage.