The Qur’anic Root Ḥ W L

Central Meaning

The root Ḥ W L is tied to being around something, surrounding relation, turning, change of state, transfer, change of direction, and placing distance between two things. The word حَوْلَهُ (ḥawlahu) means around him, his surroundings, or what stands around him in relation to him.

This root should not be limited to “around” alone. Its field is broader. Sometimes it speaks of spatial surroundings, sometimes of a complete cycle of time, sometimes of a change in condition, sometimes of becoming a barrier between two things, and sometimes of changing direction or moving from one state to another.

At the center of the root is one shared image: something changes its relation to a center or a state. It may stand around it, turn from one state to another, or come between two things and alter their direct connection.

Linguistic Note

The semantic core of Ḥ W L is movement from simple fixedness into surrounding, turning, or changing relation. When something is around a center, it defines its relation to that center by surrounding it. When the state of something changes, it turns from one condition into another. When something becomes a barrier, it changes the direct connection between two sides.

For this reason, the meanings of this root are not separate islands. Being around, turning, changing condition, transferring, becoming a barrier, and even deviation of sight all share one principle: a change of relation and direction in relation to a center, path, or state.

Material Image

The material image of this root can be seen in something placed around a center. Imagine a house with a wall, trees, people, or open land around it. These are the ḥawl of the house: its surroundings.

The same image appears in time. Ḥawl in Arabic may mean a year because a year is one complete cycle of time. Time turns, seasons return, and a complete cycle is formed.

Another image is change of direction or deviation of sight. When the eye deviates from a straight line and turns elsewhere, this too belongs to the field of Ḥ W L. So the root is not only about complete circular motion. Sometimes it is about the bending of direction, departure from a straight line, or change of course.

Several material images therefore stand together: around a center, a complete cycle, transfer from one state to another, deviation from a straight direction, and standing as a barrier between two things.

Classical Arabic Note

In classical Arabic, ḥawl is used for surroundings: what lies around a person, house, place, city, or center. The same word is also used for a year, not merely as a dry calendar number, but as a complete cycle of time.

This usage was natural in ancient Arab life. Time was understood through the turning of seasons, travel, rain, dryness, pasture, trade, and returning cycles. The verb ḥāla also appears with the meaning of changing, becoming altered, or preventing direct connection between two things.

Related words such as ḥīlah show that the root is also tied to finding a way by changing course. A sound ḥīlah may be a way out through redirection, although later usage may also carry the negative sense of trickery or deception.

Ḥawlahu in the Qur’an

The word حَوْلَهُ (ḥawlahu) means around him or his surroundings. In Surat al-Baqarah, the Qur’an says:

فَلَمَّا أَضَاءَتْ مَا حَوْلَهُ ذَهَبَ اللَّهُ بِنُورِهِمْ (falammā ʾaḍāat mā ḥawlahu dhahaba allāh binūrihim) 2:17

Here, مَا حَوْلَهُ (mā ḥawlahu) means what was around him: his surrounding environment. The fire does not merely light the person himself; it lights what is around him. Brightness spreads into the surrounding space and makes the field of vision visible for a moment.

So ḥawlahu here has a spatial role: the area around a person, not the person himself.

Qur’anic Usage

Ḥawl as Surrounding Space

In the Qur’an, ḥawl is used to show the surrounding environment of a center. In 2:17, مَا حَوْلَهُ (mā ḥawlahu) refers to what surrounds a person. About al-Masjid al-Aqṣā, the Qur’an says: الَّذِي بَارَكْنَا حَوْلَهُ (alladhī bāraknā ḥawlahu) 17:1: the One around which We blessed. The word points to a surrounding area defined in relation to that place.

Ḥawl as a Year or Time Cycle

In حَوْلَيْنِ كَامِلَيْنِ (ḥawlayni kāmilayni) 2:233, ḥawlayn means two years, or two complete cycles of time. This shows that in this root, a year is not only a number. It is a completed cycle: time begins from a point and returns to completion.

Ḥāla as Becoming a Barrier

The Qur’an says: وَحَالَ بَيْنَهُمَا الْمَوْجُ (waḥāla baynahumā al-mawju) 11:43. Here ḥāla is not simple change. The wave came between the two and cut direct connection.

Another verse says: وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ يَحُولُ بَيْنَ الْمَرْءِ وَقَلْبِهِ (wāʿlamūā anna allāh yaḥūlu bayna al-marʾi waqalbihi) 8:24. This should not be understood as merely physical distance. Since the heart in the Qur’an is the center of understanding, inclination, change, and inner direction, the verse shows that the human being is not absolute owner even of his inner center. The knowledge and will of The God are present in the relation between a person and his heart.

Taḥwīl as Change of Direction or Transfer

The Qur’an says: وَلَا تَجِدُ لِسُنَّتِنَا تَحْوِيلًا (walā tajidu lisunnatinā taḥwīlanā) 17:77. Taḥwīl means turning, changing, or transferring something from one state to another. Here, the negation of taḥwīl means that the divine way is not turned away from its course.

In Surat Fāṭir, tabdīl and taḥwīl appear together: فَلَن تَجِدَ لِسُنَّتِ اللَّهِ تَبْدِيلًا وَلَن تَجِدَ لِسُنَّتِ اللَّهِ تَحْوِيلًا (falan tajida lisunnati allāh tabdīlanā walan tajida lisunnati allāh taḥwīlanā) 35:43. Tabdīl points more to replacing the essence of a thing, while taḥwīl is closer to shifting a course, redirecting, or moving a flow away from its path.

Ḥiwal as Transfer or Desire for Change

The Qur’an says: لَا يَبْغُونَ عَنْهَا حِوَلًا (lā yabghūna ʿanhā ḥiwalanā) 18:108. Ḥiwal here means transfer, change, or moving out of that state. They do not desire to be moved away from it.

Difference from Nearby Roots

D W R is more directly tied to rotating, circling, and circular motion. Ḥ W L can show being around something, but it is not always complete circular motion. Ḥ Y Ṭ is closer to encompassing and surrounding completely, while Ḥ W L points to a surrounding relation and not necessarily full enclosure.

Q R B concerns nearness, but something may be near without being around a center. J N B points to the side or flank, while ḥawl is broader and includes the surroundings. B Y N concerns between-ness and distance; when Ḥ W L comes with bayn, the meaning of becoming a barrier becomes prominent.

B D L concerns substitution and replacement. Tabdīl means the original thing is changed or replaced by another. Taḥwīl, however, is more about redirecting, transferring, or turning from one state or direction into another.

Translation Method

In Forqan translation, the derivatives of Ḥ W L should not all be forced into one English word. Ḥawl in a spatial context means around or surroundings, while in a temporal context it means a year or complete time cycle. Ḥāla baynahumā means he or it came between them or became a barrier. Taḥwīl means change, turning, redirection, or transfer from one state to another. Ḥiwal means transfer, change of state, or moving out of a condition.

The translation should therefore follow the context, not only the root.

Forqan Translation Suggestions

حَوْل (ḥawl): around, surroundings, aroundness; in temporal context: year or complete time cycle.

حَوْلَهُ (ḥawlahu): around him, his surroundings.

مَا حَوْلَهُ (mā ḥawlahu): what was around him; his surrounding environment.

حَوْلَيْن (ḥawlayn): two years; two complete cycles of time.

حَالَ بَيْنَهُمَا (ḥāla baynahumā): came between the two; became a barrier between them.

يَحُولُ بَيْنَ (yaḥūlu bayna): comes between; creates separation between; acts within the relation between the two.

تَحْوِيل (taḥwīl): change, redirection, transfer, turning from one state to another.

تَبْدِيل (tabdīl): replacement, substitution, changing the original thing into another.

حِوَل (ḥiwal): transfer, change of state, moving out of a condition or place.

حِيلَة (ḥīlah): a way out, strategy, redirection toward an aim; in some contexts, a device or trick.

Linguistic Summary

The root Ḥ W L denotes surrounding relation, turning, change, transfer, change of direction, and becoming a barrier. Spatially, ḥawl means what surrounds a center. Temporally, ḥawl means a complete cycle, a year. In motion and meaning, ḥāla and taḥwīl point to change of state, transfer, redirection, or a separation coming between two things.

The word حَوْلَهُ (ḥawlahu) in 2:17 means the environment around him: the field that the fire made visible for a moment.

The central image of the root is therefore this: something is defined in relation to a center. It may stand around it, turn from one state to another, change its course, or come between two things and create distance.