# Urdu: بلا (octopus), pronunciation of



## Gope

The meaning of 'octopus' is given in parentheses after the word بلا by the author/publisher in the following text (shahaabnaamah, p.136), but I do not find this sense given to بلا in Platts. In this sense, how would the word be pronounced:
لیکن رفتہ رفتہ ایک عالمگیر بلا  کی طرح اس نے باہمی خیر سگالی کے ہر شعبے کو اپنی لپیٹ میں لے لیا تھا۔
Thanks.


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## HZKhan

بلا to urduu meN 'male cat' ko kehte haiN. 
urduu meN mere xayaal se octopus ke lie apnaa koii lafz nahiiN hai.


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## Alfaaz

بلا could also be _balaa_.

_Octopus_ in Urdu could perhaps be ہشت پا - _hasht-paa_ and اخطبوط - _axtubuut_ or اخبوط - _axbuut_ (included here - a source that does have mistakes sometimes). 

The transliteration آکٹوپس is also used.


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## HZKhan

Alfaaz said:


> _Octopus_ in Urdu could perhaps be ہشت پا - _hasht-paa_ and اخطبوط - _axtubuut_ or اخبوط - _axbuut_ (included here - a souce that does have mistakes sometimes).



shukriya. merii nazar meN 'hasht-paa' munaasib lafz hai.


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## Sheikh_14

Hasht paa and axtubuut are both accepted alternatives , one originating from Persian the other Arabic. The transliteration is most common whilst axbuut may be either a typo or corruption. Hasht Paa has been attested earlier in a thread if a remember correctly. The arabic Axtubuut in my view most probably derives from Greek, though I may be wrong in that regard. *It would be interesting to know what members use besides Octopus.
Lastly, the discussion on Octopuses brings the queston that what do you call its tentacles in Urdu?*


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## Gope

All this is certainly interesting, but what about a clear answer to my question?


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## Qureshpor

Gope said:


> The meaning of 'octopus' is given in parentheses after the word بلا by the author/publisher in the following text (shahaabnaamah, p.136), but I do not find this sense given to بلا in Platts. In this sense, how would the word be pronounced:
> لیکن رفتہ رفتہ ایک عالمگیر بلا  کی طرح اس نے باہمی خیر سگالی کے ہر شعبے کو اپنی لپیٹ میں لے لیا تھا۔
> Thanks.



Here "balaa" implies "calamity".....3aalam-giir balaa/world-wide calamity/universal calamity or something similar. I don't know where an octopus comes into the equation in this sentence.


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## Sheikh_14

^3aalam and well said.


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## tarkshya

It would take a very imaginative mind to visualize عالمگیر بلا
as an Octopus! I can't even think of it as a billa (male cat) too, because it would have be a really awesome world conquering male cat! I wonder what kind of animal was it


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## Gope

Sheikh_14 said:


> ^3aalam and well said.


In what sense do you use ^3aalam here?


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## Qureshpor

Here is a definition from Platts.

A عالم_ʻālam (v.n. fr. علم 'to know'), s.m. The world, the universe; men, people, creatures; regions; kingdom (in comp., e.g. 'vegetable-kingdom');—age, period, time, season; state, condition, case, circumstances; a state of beauty; a beautiful sight or scene:—ʻālam-ārā, adj. World-adorning; world-regulating:—ʻālam-afroz, adj. & s.m._ *World*-_illumining;—the sun:—ʻālam-ě-bālā, s.m. The world above, the heavens, heaven; the inhabitants of the heavens:—ʻālam-panāh, s.m. Asylum of the world; a king; your majesty, &c. (=jahān-panāh):—ʻālam-tāb, adj. World-inflaming; world-warming; world-illumining:—ʻālam-ě-siflī, s.m. The lower world, the earth:—ʻālam-ě-ṣūrat, s.m. The visible or external world:—ʻālam-ě-ulwī, s.m. The upper world, &c. (=ʻālam-ě-bālā):—ʻālam-ě-g̠aib, s.m. The invisible world, the world of spirits, the future state, the next world:—ʻālam-ě-fānī, s.m. The perishable world, the present world:—ʻālam-gard, adj. & s.m. World-traversing;—a great traveller:—*ʻālam-gīr, adj. & s.m. Conquering the universe, world-conquering; world-embracing, world-wide, universal, general;—conqueror of the world; a title of Aurangzeb:*—ʻālam-ě-mastī, s.m. A state of intoxication, or of lustfulness:—ʻālam-ě-maʻnī, s.m. The invisible or spiritual world:—ʻālam-naward, adj. & s.m.=ʻālam-gard, q.v.

3aalam, in the plural occurs in the opening chapter of the Qur'an and this chapter is part of the daily prayes.

al-Hamdu lillaahi rabbi_l*3aalamiin

*Praise be to Allah,  Lord of the Universe


_


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## mundiya

Sheikh_14 said:


> Hasht paa and axtubuut are both accepted alternatives , one originating from Persian the other Arabic. The transliteration is most common whilst axbuut may be either a typo or corruption. Hasht Paa has been attested earlier in a thread if a remember correctly. The arabic Axtubuut in my view most probably derives from Greek, though I may be wrong in that regard. *It would be interesting to know what members use besides Octopus.
> Lastly, the discussion on Octopuses brings the queston that what do you call its tentacles in Urdu?*



Urdu speakers will have to confirm, but "paa" would probably signify a tentacle, and is also used in "hasht-paa".


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## Gope

My question was addresses to Sheikh_14 SaaHib who observed "3aalam and well said". I wanted to know what he meant by that particular 3aalam.


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## Qureshpor

Gope said:


> My question was addresses to Sheikh_14 SaaHib who observed "3aalam and well said". I wanted to know what he meant by that particular 3aalam.


Gope SaaHib, I appreciate your question was addressed to Sheikh SaaHib. When I wrote the word 3aalam-giir, I had (in my haste) written it as 3aal-giir. Sheikh SaaHib pointed to my mistake which I rectified immediately. You will see post 7 has been edited. Now, if you still wish Sheikh SaaHib to repeat this explanation, then that's OK!


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## Gope

So it is that simple! Thank you Qureshpor SaaHib, the matter certainly ends here.


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## Sheikh_14

mundiya said:


> Urdu speakers will have to confirm, but "paa" would probably signify a tentacle, and is also used in "hasht-paa".



Paa obviously means either legs or feet depending upon context but I was wondering if any more specific word was available like the english tentacle? For instance its rather awkward to say hasht paa ke paa the legs (tentacles) of the eight legged animal. If there isn't a distinct alternative to paa than certainly you can use axtubuut instead.


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## marrish

_axtubuut_ is not a "_balaa_" neither a tentacle, it's a biological term. Still, _balaa_ can be imagined as a giant octopus having spread its tentacles across the word, perhaps this is the reason somebody put the word octopus in parentheses there.


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## Alfaaz

Qureshpor said:
			
		

> I don't know where an octopus comes into the equation in this sentence.


 marrish SaaHib has already provided an adequate explanation for _3alam-geer balaa_ and _octopus_, (you would more likely already know) but in addition to that it could be mentioned that _octopus_ is also used in this sense (figuratively) in English as well: 


> Octopus:
> 
> _Something, such as a multinational corporation, that has many powerful, centrally controlled branches.
> ...
> a powerful influential organization with far-reaching effects, esp harmful ones
> ...
> something likened to an octopus, as an organization that exercises far-reaching control._





			
				marrish said:
			
		

> _axtubuut_ is not a "_balaa_" neither a tentacle, it's a biological term.


 marrish SaaHib, it seems Sheikh_14 SaaHib was trying to suggest that if _paa_ is used for _tentacle_, then_ axtubuut _can be used for _octopus _(instead of_ hasht-paa_). Nobody suggested that _axtubuut_ is a _balaa_ or _tentacle_...!


			
				Sheikh_14 said:
			
		

> *Lastly, the discussion on Octopuses brings the queston that what do you call its tentacles in Urdu?
> *
> Paa obviously means either legs or feet depending upon context but I was wondering if any more specific word was available like the english tentacle? For instance its rather awkward to say hasht paa ke paa the legs (tentacles) of the eight legged animal.


In colloquial language, you might hear (for _tentacles_) _hasht-paa ke baazuu _- which would probably translate into English as _Eight-foot's arms_...!! 

مجس، محس، گیرہ، شاخک، وغیرہ seem to be used as scientific jargon, listed here.


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