The Qur’anic Root ʾ TH L

1. Introducing the root and its Qur’anic form

The Arabic root أ ث ل is associated with a tree called أَثْل (athl): a tall, fairly substantial tree resembling طَرْفاء (ṭarfāʾ), or tamarisks, whose wood served practical purposes. The same family also supplies words for the root or foundation of something, becoming established, acquiring property, and longstanding social standing.

In Arabic, أَثْلَةُ الشَّيْءِ (athlatu al-shayʾ) denotes something’s root or foundation. تَأَثَّلَ (taʾaththala) can mean to become rooted or firmly established, while مَجْدٌ مُؤَثَّلٌ (majdun muʾaththal) describes distinction with a long history and a firm foundation.

These uses have an evident figurative affinity with the characteristics of a tree such as athl. A tree with firm roots that remains in the ground for years can provide an image of stability and long standing.

Without sufficient historical evidence, however, we should not conclude that every meaning in this family necessarily developed from the tree’s name. Nor should figurative meanings of stability or established origin be inserted into every occurrence of that name.

The root أ ث ل occurs only once in the Qur’an:

Sabaʾ, 34:16

فَأَعْرَضُوا فَأَرْسَلْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ سَيْلَ الْعَرِمِ وَبَدَّلْنَاهُمْ بِجَنَّتَيْهِمْ جَنَّتَيْنِ ذَوَاتَيْ أُكُلٍ خَمْطٍ وَأَثْلٍ وَشَيْءٍ مِنْ سِدْرٍ قَلِيلٍ

fa-aʿraḍū fa-arsalnā ʿalayhim sayla al-ʿarimi wa-baddalnāhum bi-jannatayhim jannatayni dhawātay ukulin khamṭin wa-athlin wa-shayʾin min sidrin qalīl

“But they turned away; so We sent upon them the flood of Al-ʿArim, and exchanged their two gardens for two others: gardens containing bitter, unpalatable produce of khamṭ, and tamarisk trees, and a little sidr.”

Here أَثْلٍ (athlin) names a tree. The Qur’an places it alongside خَمْط (khamṭ) and سِدْر (sidr), describing the transformation of the gardens in the land of Sabaʾ.

This occurrence should not be translated as firmness of faith, the establishment of power, or the acquisition of wealth. Such meanings belong to other branches of Arabic usage; in this verse the word directly designates a kind of tree.

Morphological forms

The Qur’anic form وَأَثْلٍ (wa-athlin) consists of the conjunction وَ (wa, “and”) and the noun أَثْل (athl).

Here أَثْلٍ is an indefinite noun in the genitive case, neither a verb nor a verbal noun.

Other forms belonging to this family are attested in Arabic:

• أَثْل (athl): the tree’s name; tamarisk or tree tamarisk.
• أَثْلَة (athlah): a single athl tree; in another use, something’s origin or foundation.
• أُثُول (uthūl) and أَثَلَات (athalāt): plurals referring to athl trees.
• أَثَلَ، يَأْثِلُ (athala, yaʾthilu): to take root, acquire a foundation, or become firmly established.
• أُثُول (uthūl): a verbal noun denoting rootedness or firm establishment.
• أَثَّلَ (aththala): to give something a foundation; to establish one’s property or standing.
• تَأَثَّلَ (taʾaththala): to become rooted; concerning property, to acquire wealth and accumulate it for oneself.
• تَأْثِيل (taʾthīl): founding, establishing, or providing something with an enduring basis.
• أَثِيل (athīl): firmly rooted, longstanding, or possessing an established origin.
• مُؤَثَّل (muʾaththal): something founded and established, such as longstanding wealth or distinction.
• مُتَأَثِّل (mutaʾaththil): someone acquiring wealth or establishing something for himself.
• أَثْلَة (athlah): in some Arabic uses, household goods, provisions, or accumulated property.

Except for the noun أَثْل, the other forms in this list do not occur in the Qur’an. Qur’anic study therefore uses them to understand the root’s semantic field, not to add new meanings to its sole Qur’anic occurrence.

2. Athl: a familiar tree in Arab lands

Athl and ṭarfāʾ

Al-Khalīl ibn Aḥmad and later lexicographers describe athl as a tree resembling طَرْفاء (ṭarfāʾ).

Early descriptions say that athl is larger than ṭarfāʾ and has stronger, better-quality wood.

Some lexicographers identify it as a kind of ṭarfāʾ; others describe them as related but distinct trees.

Ṭarfāʾ and athl trees are familiar in arid and semi-arid regions. Many grow on sandy ground, in wadis, and in areas with relatively saline soil.

Their slender foliage and branches are recognizable features of this group of plants.

In Persian these trees are commonly known as gaz, corresponding broadly to tamarisk.

In modern botanical classification, the name athl is associated particularly with Tamarix aphylla, a member of the Tamaricaceae, or tamarisk family.

Modern botanical nomenclature must nevertheless be distinguished from the scope of early Arabic plant names.

The fact that a particular species is now known as Tamarix aphylla does not by itself establish that every early poet or writer mentioning athl intended precisely that species with all its detailed botanical characteristics.

Vernacular plant names can encompass several closely related species. Their boundaries may also differ between regions.

Thus “a tamarisk tree” or “tamarisk trees” is more appropriate in Qur’anic translation than an unqualified identification with one scientific species.

The scientific name can be supplied in explanatory discussion, but the word’s entire historical meaning should not be confined to a modern classification.

Recognized characteristics of athl

Early Arabic sources describe athl as a tall, upright tree.

Descriptions transmitted from Abū Ziyād and Abū Ḥanīfah al-Dīnawarī mention its useful wood, slender branches and foliage, and use in making utensils.

Athl wood was used for wooden vessels, bowls, building components, and other implements.

These accounts matter because they show that athl was not regarded as a wholly useless or worthless tree.

A tree’s fruit may be of little significance as human food while its timber, shade, or other parts remain useful.

We should therefore distinguish a useful tree from a tree that supplies abundant, desirable food.

This distinction matters in the account of Sabaʾ.

The Qur’an describes two gardens being replaced by gardens containing khamṭ, athl, and a little sidr.

This replacement does not imply that athl is a bad or harmful tree in every setting and for every purpose.

Does athl bear fruit?

Some older explanations describe athl as a tree without significant edible fruit.

Some lexical accounts nevertheless mention small red fruits.

Modern botanical descriptions likewise recognize flowers and seed-bearing structures in tamarisks.

Consequently, we cannot say categorically that athl produces no fruit or seed of any kind.

The more relevant question is whether its fruit and produce supply desirable, abundant human food, as the fruit of flourishing gardens does.

This is not a prominent feature of the familiar uses of athl.

In explaining Sabaʾ 34:16, it is therefore more appropriate to say that, compared with the fruit trees and plentiful crops of the earlier gardens, athl did not provide substantial, desirable food produce.

This formulation is more precise than the absolute claim “a fruitless tree.”

3. Rootedness and firm establishment in Arabic

Athlatu al-shayʾ: the origin and foundation of something

Arabic records أَثْلَةُ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ (athlatu kulli shayʾ) with the meaning of something’s origin or foundation.

The subject in this use need not be an actual tree.

It may concern a family’s foundation, a person’s established standing, or the source of someone’s wealth.

This meaning fits the image of a rooted tree: its roots connect it to the ground and help it remain stable.

Origin and foundation should nevertheless not be confined to a tree’s physical roots in every Arabic use.

For example, the athlah of a family does not refer to a root in the soil. It concerns the ancestry, history, and foundation claimed by that family.

An example from Al-Aʿshā’s poetry

A verse of Al-Aʿshā reads:

أَلَسْتَ مُنْتَهِيًا عَنْ نَحْتِ أَثْلَتِنَا
وَلَسْتَ ضَائِرَهَا مَا أَطَّتِ الْإِبِلُ

a-lasta muntahiyan ʿan naḥti athlatinā / wa-lasta ḍāʾirahā mā aṭṭati al-ibil

“Will you not stop attacking the foundation and honor of our family? You cannot harm it as long as camels raise their voices.”

Here أَثْلَتِنَا (athlatinā, “our athlah”) refers to the foundation, lineage, and standing of the poet’s family.

نَحْتُ أَثْلَتِنَا (naḥtu athlatinā) does not mean literally carving a tree’s wood. It is an image of speaking ill of, belittling, or damaging a family’s standing and heritage.

This example helps establish the root’s figurative meaning.

Al-Aʿshā is a recognized poet of the pre-Islamic period and the beginning of Islam. Yet the quotation of this verse in lexicons must be distinguished from independent confirmation of its precise date of composition.

The linguistic point is clear: athlah could refer to a family’s foundation and standing.

This use should not, however, replace the direct meaning of athl in Sabaʾ 34:16.

That verse concerns trees in gardens, not an attack on a people’s lineage.

Athīl and muʾaththal: having an established foundation

In Arabic, أَثِيل (athīl) describes something with a firm origin or foundation and a long history.

مُؤَثَّل (muʾaththal) can likewise describe wealth, standing, or power that has already been built up and firmly established.

Expressions such as مَجْدٌ مُؤَثَّلٌ (majdun muʾaththal) thus concern distinction with roots and a history.

The description alone does not establish that this standing is morally right or deserved.

Someone may possess longstanding family power and reputation while acting unjustly.

Lexically, muʾaththal therefore expresses establishment and long standing, not guaranteed moral legitimacy or virtue.

An example from poetry attributed to Imruʾ al-Qays

Poetry attributed to Imruʾ al-Qays includes:

وَلَكِنَّمَا أَسْعَى لِمَجْدٍ مُؤَثَّلٍ
وَقَدْ يُدْرِكُ الْمَجْدَ الْمُؤَثَّلَ أَمْثَالِي

wa-lākinnamā asʿā li-majdin muʾaththalin / wa-qad yudriku al-majda al-muʾaththala amthālī

“But I strive for firmly rooted distinction; and people like me may attain such longstanding distinction.”

Here muʾaththal qualifies majd, distinction or glory.

The subject is not an actual tree. The poet seeks an established position with a history.

This example shows that firmness and rootedness were familiar meanings in early Arabic poetic language.

It does not establish that athl in the Qur’an means glory, greatness, or political standing.

In Sūrat Sabaʾ, athl occurs among tree names and should first be understood within that botanical field.

Establishing wealth: taʾthīl al-māl

Arabic records أَثَّلَ مَالَهُ (aththala mālahu) for founding and firmly establishing one’s property.

تَأَثَّلَ مَالًا (taʾaththala mālan) is also used of someone acquiring wealth, gathering it, and retaining it for himself.

This use does not refer merely to possessing some money at a particular moment. It can include acquiring property that becomes an established stock or foundation of wealth.

تَأْثِيلُ الْمَجْدِ (taʾthīlu al-majd) is likewise recognized for building and establishing distinction.

This meaning must not lead us to conclude that athl in Sabaʾ 34:16 denotes the accumulated property of the people of Sabaʾ.

The destruction of their gardens may have affected their wealth, but the Qur’anic word itself names a tree.

The distinction between lexical meaning and a contextual consequence must be maintained.

4. Wa-athlin in the account of Sabaʾ

Three consecutive verses of Sūrat Sabaʾ are important for understanding athl in the Qur’an.

A flourishing land and the command to give thanks

Sabaʾ, 34:15

لَقَدْ كَانَ لِسَبَإٍ فِي مَسْكَنِهِمْ آيَةٌ ۖ جَنَّتَانِ عَنْ يَمِينٍ وَشِمَالٍ ۖ كُلُوا مِنْ رِزْقِ رَبِّكُمْ وَاشْكُرُوا لَهُ ۚ بَلْدَةٌ طَيِّبَةٌ وَرَبٌّ غَفُورٌ

la-qad kāna li-sabaʾin fī maskanihim āyatun; jannatāni ʿan yamīnin wa-shimālin; kulū min rizqi rabbikum wa-ushkurū lahu; baldatun ṭayyibatun wa-rabbun ghafūr

“There was indeed a sign for Sabaʾ in their dwelling place: two gardens, to the right and to the left. Eat of your Lord’s provision and give thanks to Him: a good and pleasant land, and a forgiving Lord.”

This verse introduces the land of Sabaʾ through its two gardens.

It also mentions provision, gratitude, and the favorable character of the land.

The subject is therefore more than the possession of a few trees: it includes prosperity, food, and enjoyment of blessings.

The verse itself does not specify the number of trees, every kind of crop, or the land’s precise irrigation system.

These details require separate historical and geographical investigation.

The replacement of the gardens

Sabaʾ, 34:16

فَأَعْرَضُوا فَأَرْسَلْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ سَيْلَ الْعَرِمِ وَبَدَّلْنَاهُمْ بِجَنَّتَيْهِمْ جَنَّتَيْنِ ذَوَاتَيْ أُكُلٍ خَمْطٍ وَأَثْلٍ وَشَيْءٍ مِنْ سِدْرٍ قَلِيلٍ

fa-aʿraḍū fa-arsalnā ʿalayhim sayla al-ʿarimi wa-baddalnāhum bi-jannatayhim jannatayni dhawātay ukulin khamṭin wa-athlin wa-shayʾin min sidrin qalīl

“But they turned away; so We sent upon them the flood of Al-ʿArim, and exchanged their two gardens for two others: gardens containing bitter, unpalatable produce of khamṭ, and tamarisk trees, and a little sidr.”

Here the transformation of the gardens follows the people’s turning away and the coming of the flood.

وَبَدَّلْنَاهُمْ بِجَنَّتَيْهِمْ جَنَّتَيْنِ (wa-baddalnāhum bi-jannatayhim jannatayn) indicates the replacement of two gardens with two others.

The subject is therefore not simply the total destruction of all vegetation, leaving bare ground behind.

The Qur’an speaks of replacement gardens with a different kind of vegetation.

Athl forms part of the description of this new vegetation.

Three distinct groups of plants

The verse places three words together: خَمْط (khamṭ), أَثْل (athl), and سِدْر (sidr).

The three should be identified separately.

Lexical sources and early explanations associate khamṭ with a bitter, unpalatable plant or fruit. Whether its precise referent is the arāk tree or another kind of plant is disputed.

Athl is tamarisk, or a tree resembling ṭarfāʾ.

Sidr refers to a recognized tree, some kinds of which also bear edible fruit.

The three names should not, however, be treated as synonyms.

In the wording of the verse, khamṭ accompanies أُكُل (ukul), produce or food. In Ḥafṣ’s transmission from ʿĀṣim, أُكُلٍ خَمْطٍ (ukulin khamṭin) is read with tanwīn on ukul. Abū ʿAmr, however, reads it without tanwīn, as a genitive construction: أُكُلِ خَمْطٍ (ukuli khamṭin). Al-Qurṭubī discusses the adjectival or substitutional analyses of the form with tanwīn and the genitive relationship in the other form.

These differences may matter for determining the relationship between the unpalatable produce and khamṭ, but they do not change the meaning of athl itself.

Athl remains a tree name.

Is athl a worthless tree?

This conclusion does not follow from the word’s lexical meaning.

As Arabic evidence shows, athl was a familiar, useful tree. Its wood could be used for utensils and some building components.

Such trees can also supply shade and vegetation in dry environments.

The usefulness of timber or shade, however, is not equivalent to a garden full of fruit and plentiful food crops.

An area may contain tamarisks and other hardy plants while its food production and agricultural prosperity remain incomparable with those of the formerly productive gardens.

Athl’s presence in the account of Sabaʾ should thus be understood through the comparison between two conditions.

The Qur’an describes the transformation of earlier prosperity and its replacement with a different kind of vegetation.

The verse’s point is not that The God presents tamarisk as an inherently bad creation. Rather, alongside khamṭ and a little sidr, it forms part of the picture of Sabaʾ’s transformed gardens.

The role of “a little sidr”

At the end of the list of plants, the Qur’an says:

وَشَيْءٍ مِنْ سِدْرٍ قَلِيلٍ (wa-shayʾin min sidrin qalīl).

Small quantity is explicitly expressed in this phrase.

This qualification matters: the verse does not merely name sidr but mentions a small amount of it.

On the apparent construction, qalīl qualifies sidr, and no independent number or quantity is specified for athl. Al-Qurṭubī also raises the possibility that this qualification refers collectively to khamṭ, athl, and sidr.

The verse alone therefore does not establish that the athl trees were necessarily very few, or that all the gardens consisted of only a handful of trees.

What is clear is the replacement of the first gardens by gardens containing these groups of plants.

Nor should شَيْءٍ مِنْ سِدْرٍ قَلِيلٍ (shayʾin min sidrin qalīl) make sidr itself a universal sign of scarcity and poverty. The small quantity describes this particular occurrence in the Sabaʾ context.

The flood of Al-ʿArim and the change in vegetation

In the verse, the transformation of the gardens follows سَيْلَ الْعَرِمِ (sayla al-ʿarim).

Early sources offer several explanations of ʿarim, including a powerful flood, a dam or barrier retaining water, and the name or description of something associated with the flow of water.

Determining it more precisely requires an independent study of the root ع ر م (ʿ R M) and the history of the land of Sabaʾ.

Contextually, however, an event associated with flooding clearly led to the transformation of the gardens.

This picture is consistent with the natural fact that a change in water flow can alter the kind and extent of an area’s vegetation.

Nevertheless, the presence of athl alone does not establish that the Qur’an supplies a scientific account of soil salinity, groundwater levels, or the precise ecological processes in the land of Sabaʾ.

Tamarisk can grow under certain arid and saline conditions, but its presence alone is insufficient to reconstruct the entire climatic and agricultural history of a region.

Lexical study should therefore not depend on geographical or ecological speculation.

The reason for the transformation in the Qur’anic account

Sabaʾ, 34:17

ذَٰلِكَ جَزَيْنَاهُمْ بِمَا كَفَرُوا ۖ وَهَلْ نُجَازِي إِلَّا الْكَفُورَ

dhālika jazaynāhum bi-mā kafarū; wa-hal nujāzī illā al-kafūr

“Thus We recompensed them for their disbelief and ingratitude; and do We recompense anyone in this way except the deeply ungrateful?”

This verse explains that the transformation belongs to the context of recompense for the people’s conduct.

Verse fifteen had commanded gratitude.

Verse sixteen described their turning away and the alteration of the gardens.

Verse seventeen connects this change with their kufr.

This sequence shows that the account of Sabaʾ does more than describe a change in tree species. It also concerns the enjoyment of blessings and the human response to them.

We should not, however, conclude from this account that every flood, drought, or destruction of gardens anywhere is certainly the result of the inhabitants’ disbelief and ingratitude.

The verse concerns the particular history of Sabaʾ and states the relationship between their conduct and the event within that account.

Extending such a judgment to every natural disaster requires independent Qur’anic evidence.

The meaning of athl should likewise not be equated with kufr. Tamarisk is not itself disbelief or recompense; it is one of the plants named in the picture of the transformed gardens.

5. Athl compared with related trees and roots

ʾ TH L and ṭarfāʾ: two related plant names

Ṭarfāʾ is recognized in Arabic as a name for trees and shrubs of the tamarisk group.

Early sources sometimes identify athl as a kind of ṭarfāʾ and sometimes as a similar but larger tree with better-quality wood.

The two names thus have a clear botanical relationship.

Small and large tamarisks should nevertheless not all be assigned to one scientific species without attention to regional usage.

“Tamarisk tree” is appropriate for athl in Qur’anic translation; an explanation can mention its affinity with ṭarfāʾ.

ʾ TH L and S D R: tamarisk and sidr

Study of S D R (Not yet published)

Sidr occurs several times in the Qur’an, including Sabaʾ 34:16.

In some regions, sidr denotes lote or jujube trees, or closely related kinds.

This tree is not identical with athl.

Some kinds of sidr have edible fruit, whereas athl is better known for its timber and other uses apart from fruit.

The distinction should not be made absolute by claiming that every kind of sidr bears identical fruit or that athl produces no biological yield whatsoever.

In Sabaʾ 34:16, the Qur’an itself gives the two names separately, and translation should preserve their distinction.

ʾ TH L and KH M Ṭ: tamarisk and unpalatable produce

Study of KH M Ṭ (Not yet published)

Lexical explanations associate khamṭ with a bitter, unpalatable plant or produce.

Athl is the tamarisk tree.

The two do not share one root or one plant name.

Both belong to the replacement gardens in the verse, but their juxtaposition does not establish that athl also lexically means bitterness.

The bitterness or unpalatability of the produce is understood from the field of khamṭ and the context of ukul.

Athl should therefore not be translated as “a bitter tree.”

ʾ TH L and ʾ Ṣ L: rootedness and origin

Study of ʾ Ṣ L

أَصْل (aṣl) in Arabic concerns something’s foundation or root.

أَثْلَةُ الشَّيْءِ (athlatu al-shayʾ) can likewise refer to its origin or foundation.

The two are very close in some uses.

Their roots are nevertheless distinct: أ ث ل (ʾ TH L) and أ ص ل (ʾ Ṣ L).

Similarity of meaning should therefore not lead us to treat athl morphologically as a derivative of aṣl.

Likewise, أَثِيل (athīl) in the ʾ TH L family and أَصِيل (aṣīl) in the ʾ Ṣ L family are distinct forms, despite their resemblance in sound and meaning.

The word aṣīl is familiar in Persian with meanings connected to established origin or authenticity. That association should not lead to translating athl in Sabaʾ 34:16 as “authenticity.”

ʾ TH L and TH B T: firmness and remaining stable

Study of TH B T

ثَبَات (thabāt) in Arabic concerns firmness and remaining stable.

Taʾaththala can likewise express becoming rooted and firmly established.

The two families are not absolute synonyms, however.

Thabāt can describe the stability of things or people in various settings. In the branch considered here, the ʾ TH L family concerns foundations and becoming rooted, while its principal Qur’anic branch names a tree.

Not every use of thabāt should therefore be placed within the field of athl.

ʾ TH L and J M ʿ: gathering and acquiring property

Study of J M ʿ

In Arabic, taʾaththala mālan concerns acquiring and accumulating property.

جَمْع (jamʿ) likewise expresses gathering.

Gathering wealth does not necessarily amount to taʾthīl, however: taʾthīl can also indicate the establishment and consolidation of property.

Conversely, athl itself does not mean accumulated wealth in the Qur’an.

Sabaʾ’s gardens may have constituted part of the people’s property and livelihood, but this economic fact does not change the meaning of the tree’s name.

6. Translation proposals for Forqan

For أَثْل (athl) in Sabaʾ 34:16, the most suitable English equivalent is “tamarisk tree.”

This equivalent accords with Arabic lexical descriptions and the familiar English plant name tamarisk.

Within the verse, because the tree name accompanies other groups of vegetation, “tamarisk trees” is more natural.

Proposed translation

Sabaʾ, 34:16

فَأَعْرَضُوا فَأَرْسَلْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ سَيْلَ الْعَرِمِ وَبَدَّلْنَاهُمْ بِجَنَّتَيْهِمْ جَنَّتَيْنِ ذَوَاتَيْ أُكُلٍ خَمْطٍ وَأَثْلٍ وَشَيْءٍ مِنْ سِدْرٍ قَلِيلٍ

fa-aʿraḍū fa-arsalnā ʿalayhim sayla al-ʿarimi wa-baddalnāhum bi-jannatayhim jannatayni dhawātay ukulin khamṭin wa-athlin wa-shayʾin min sidrin qalīl

“But they turned away; so We sent upon them the flood of Al-ʿArim, and exchanged their two gardens for two others: gardens containing bitter, unpalatable produce of khamṭ, and tamarisk trees, and a little sidr.”

This translation renders athl by its plant name.

Khamṭ and sidr are also kept separate so that each can be examined in its own root study.

If the name tamarisk is unfamiliar to an English reader, a short explanation can identify athl as a tall tree of the tamarisk group, resembling ṭarfāʾ, whose wood was used for making utensils.

There is no need, however, to place the scientific name Tamarix aphylla inside the main text of the Qur’anic translation.

Brief meaning for the word-by-word box

وَأَثْلٍ (wa-athlin): and tamarisk trees; a tree resembling ṭarfāʾ, with useful wood, forming part of the vegetation of Sabaʾ’s replacement gardens in this verse.

Unsuitable equivalents

“Fruitless tree” is unsuitable as a direct translation: accounts of athl’s fruit and seeds, and of the usefulness of its wood and other parts, vary.

“Worthless tree” is incorrect because athl had recognized practical uses in human life.

“Rootedness,” “longstanding wealth,” “authenticity,” and “established standing” likewise belong to other branches of this family. They do not replace the tree name in Sabaʾ 34:16.

Ṭarfāʾ can be mentioned in botanical explanation, but “tamarisk tree” is clearer for a general English audience.

The basic translation should therefore remain simple and precise: “tamarisk trees.”

7. Conclusion

In Arabic, the root أ ث ل concerns the athl tree as well as rootedness, firmness, and becoming established.

Athl was a familiar tree in Arab lands, resembling ṭarfāʾ and corresponding to what Persian calls gaz, tamarisk.

Lexical sources describe it as tall and possessing useful wood.

In other branches of Arabic, athlah refers to something’s origin or foundation, muʾaththal to established property or standing, and taʾaththala to becoming firmly established or acquiring wealth.

The examples from Al-Aʿshā and Imruʾ al-Qays show that uses concerning foundations and standing were familiar in early Arabic poetry.

These meanings should not, however, replace the direct meaning of the root’s sole Qur’anic occurrence.

Athl occurs only once in the Qur’an, in Sabaʾ 34:16.

There it is one of the trees named after the transformation of Sabaʾ’s gardens.

The verse describes the replacement of two prosperous gardens by gardens containing khamṭ, athl, and a little sidr.

This transformation belongs to the context of the people of Sabaʾ turning away, the flood of Al-ʿArim, and the loss of their earlier prosperity.

That context does not mean that the tamarisk tree itself is inherently bad, useless, or a sign of disbelief.

A tree may provide useful wood and shade while offering less food and a different agricultural value than a flourishing garden full of fruit.

In understanding the verse, we should therefore distinguish the tree’s own value from its role in the picture of the transformed gardens.

Modern botanical identification, though helpful for recognizing athl, should likewise not become an absolute claim about one scientific species throughout early Arabic usage.

For Forqan, the basic definition of this family is as follows: in its Qur’anic occurrence, athl names the tamarisk tree or a tree resembling ṭarfāʾ, a familiar tree of dry environments with useful wood. In other branches of Arabic, the same family also expresses origin and foundation, becoming rooted, and firmly establishing property or standing. These meanings do not, however, replace the tree name in Sabaʾ 34:16.

Accordingly, “tamarisk trees” is the most suitable equivalent for the sole Qur’anic occurrence of athl.

This translation preserves the word’s actual meaning without attributing unstated positive or negative qualities to the tree or turning the account of Sabaʾ into an invented symbolism of rootedness and the decline of power.