[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Indian literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in) › [Dark Ages](https://indike.org/pramana/in.darkages) › [Mughals (1526–1857)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.darkages.mughal) › [Akbar (1556–1605)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.darkages.mughal.akbar) › [Akbarnāma](https://indike.org/pramana/in.darkages.mughal.akbar.akbarnama) › [The Akbarnama (H. Beveridge), vols. I–II](https://indike.org/pramana/in.darkages.mughal.akbar.akbarnama~en-beveridge) › 23.5 # The Book of Akbar 23.5 The Akbarnama (H. Beveridge), vols. I–II 23.5 - **Language:** English ### [23.5](https://indike.org/pramana/in.darkages.mughal.akbar.akbarnama~en-beveridge.23.5) Most probably the word comes from the Greek τρίγωνον, a triangle. I do not think it can come from δέκατος, for I do not see how the letter r came to be inserted. It appears, from Sachau's Albīrūnī, that the word which in our dictionaries is spelled darijan is in Arabic draijān. I have suggested above that the first syllable or letter of adarjān is the Arabic article, but there may be another explanation. As Persian does not admit of conjunct consonants at the beginning of words, it is possible that when the word was borrowed from the Arabic or the Greek, the dr or the tr of the Greek necessitated either a prosthetic or a medial vowel. Thus trigonon or draijān became in Persian, either adrajan or darijan. In a similar manner we have both Iskandar and Sekandar as transliterations of Alexander and dirham for the Greek drachme, Firangī for Frank, etc. But if adarjān comes from trigonon and not from decanus, it must still be acknowledged that it came to have the same meaning as decanate in English or drekkana in Sanscrit, and is stated by Alchabitius to be the equivalent of decanus. If anything were necessary to prove that the word adarjān is identical in meaning with wajh, facies, I think it is furnished by the fact that Haly, (i.e., ‘Alī ibn Abi-’l Rijāl al-Shaibānī) in his elaborate work on astrology, says nothing about darijan or adarjān, though he has a chapter De Faciebus or, (as the Arabic has it) Fī-l-wujūh. - [Previous: 23.4](https://indike.org/pramana/in.darkages.mughal.akbar.akbarnama~en-beveridge.23.4) - [Next: 23.6](https://indike.org/pramana/in.darkages.mughal.akbar.akbarnama~en-beveridge.23.6) - [Up: 23](https://indike.org/pramana/in.darkages.mughal.akbar.akbarnama~en-beveridge.23) --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/in.darkages.mughal.akbar.akbarnama~en-beveridge.23.5](https://indike.org/pramana/in.darkages.mughal.akbar.akbarnama~en-beveridge.23.5) · Pramāṇa