Madrasas

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An educational institution, often associated with Islamic teachings, that provides instruction in religious and secular subjects
2. A type of school primarily aimed at teaching the Quran and other aspects of Islamic doctrine alongside general education
3. An establishment where students learn about Islamic philosophy, theology, and various academic disciplines, serving as a center for both spiritual and intellectual development

Etymology: "Madrasas" is the plural of "madrasa," a word English borrowed from Arabic, where "madrasa" means "school." Its root is the verb "darasa," meaning "to learn" or "to study," and the "ma-" prefix and "-a" ending mark the word as a noun of place, a name for the location where that learning happens. The Arabic word therefore names a school by its function, as a place of studying, rather than by the subject taught. Because the Arabic root carries the sense of study and reading, the institutions it names have long combined religious and secular instruction. English uses the plural form "madrasas" for more than one such institution, and the term has been used in English primarily for Islamic schools, though the Arabic word itself simply means any school.