Falaka

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A method of corporal punishment in which the soles of the feet are struck repeatedly with a stick or cane
2. A form of physical punishment inflicted by beating the bottoms of a person's feet with a rod
3. An ancient and harsh chastisement that involves whipping or striking the soles of the feet

Etymology: The Arabic word "falaqa" means a split or cleft, and it gave English a name for one of the more unpleasant punishments in history: beating the soles of the feet with a stick or rod. The Arabic root points to the idea of splitting, which fits a physical act that opens the sole of a person's foot and leaves them unable to walk without pain. The punishment was used across the Ottoman Empire and in parts of the wider Middle East and South Asia, and the English word was borrowed from Arabic to describe it. The sense stayed narrow: the English term refers specifically to the whipping of the feet rather than to beating in general.

Synonyms: bastinado, bastinade