bedouin
/ˈbɛd.(ə.)wɪn/ noun
Forms bedouins Bedu Beduin Bedawin
Synonyms
Etymology
From Old French beduin (compare French bédouin), from Arabic بَدَوِيِّين (badawiyyīn), plural of بَدَوِيّ (badawiyy), from collective noun بَدْو (badw, “nomads”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun One of the nomadic Arabs who live in tents, and are scattered over Arabia, Syria, and northern Africa, esp. in the deserts.
- adjective Pertaining to the Bedouins; nomad.
Etymology [F. bédouin, OF. béduin, fr. Ar. bedawi rural, living in the desert, fr. badw desert, fr. bada to live in the desert, to lead a nomadic life.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “bedouin”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details