expand the meaning of a base word in predictable ways. The most common of these, and their typical uses in rug terminology, are as follows.
-âbâd (Persian): forms names of inhabited places, settlements, cities, e.g. Meshkâbâd (from meshk , “musk”).
-dân (Persian): “container,” e.g. qâshoq-dân, “spoonbag.”
-i (Persian and Arabic): forms an attributive adjective and related nouns, “from/belonging to a place, tribe, etc.; characterized by,” e.g. Baluchi, “of the Baluch people,” aksi, “pictorial,” from aks “picture.”
-li, -lu (Turk.): similar in function to -i, e.g. parmakli, “fingerlike, finger-shaped” (parmak, “finger”); Qaragözlü, tribal name (qara göz, “black eye”).
-lik, -luk, -lyk (Turk.): something made for, appropriate to, or containing the base referent, e.g. eyerlik, “saddle cloth” (eyer, “saddle”).
CHINESE PLACE NAMES.
Since about 1975 the so-called Pinyin system of romanization has been universally accepted for Chinese geographical names. Thus the older form “Peking” is written “Beijing,” which more closely approximates the sound of the Chinese word in the Mandarin dialect. This standard is adopted for Chinese place names in this lexicon, with cross-references to variant spellings. The only relevant conventions of Pinyin that do not approximate English usage are as follows.
x: like sh as in ship , e.g. Xinjiang (shin-jang).
zh: like j as in job , e.g. Guizhou (gway-joe).
The traditional spellings are retained for place names in East Turkestan, such as “Khotan,” since these are familiar in rug literature.
A
aba (Arabic). A striped fabric or a sleeveless, loose outer garment. Also, a heavy wool cloth.
Abadah. See “Abâdeh.”
Abâdeh, Abadah. A town in southwestern Iran on the highway be tween Isfahan and Shiraz. Some rugs woven in this town have designs similar to Persian city rugs. Others copy local tribal rugs. Knot density is about 80 to 160 symmetric knots per square inch on a cotton foundation. Wefts are sometimes dyed blue. See “Iran.”
Abâdeh carpet Dilmaghani & Co.
Abbas I, Shah. Abbas I, called “the Great,” shah of Persia, reigned from 1587 to 1629. In wars with the Uzbeks, Ottoman Turks, and Portuguese, he consolidated the dominion of Persia from the Tigris to the Indus. His reign was distinguished by a magnificent court, the construction of mosques and public buildings, and a great expansion of commerce. He established workshops which produced carpets for his palaces and for state gifts. Approximately 300 silk carpets woven during or shortly after his reign have survived. Most of these silk carpets have been attributed to Isfahan and Kashan. See “Iran,” “Polonaise carpets,” and “Vase carpets.”
Abbasid caliphate. Caliphs ruling at Baghdad from 750 to 1258 C. E. who claimed descent from Abbas, uncle of Muhammad.
Abkhazia. An area of the northwestern Caucasus inhabited by the Abkhaz, a sub-group of the Circassians. They are Sunni Muslims and may have been a very minor source of nineteenth-century Caucasian pile rugs. See “Caucasus.”
abr (Persian). Sky-blue, cloud. Also, Persian for ikat fabrics. See “ikat.”
abrash (Arabic, “dappled, piebald”). A change in color in the field and border of pile rugs due to differences in wool or dye batches. Abrash may develop as different dye batches in a rug fade at different rates. The color change extends across the rug, weft-wise. Abrash is more likely to occur at the top of a rug than at the bottom, as beginning yarn batches are used up. Abrash is sometimes imitated in new commercial production of hand-knotted and power-loomed rugs.
Abrash in a Bakshaish rug (detail) Alberto Levi
abrisham, abrishom (Persian). Silk.
Abruzzi. A district of central Italy. From the seventeenth century, Abruzzi has been the source of flatwoven furniture covers and hand-knotted rugs. These are woven on narrow looms. Designs are usually geometricized floral, animal, or heraldic motifs. See “Italy.”
acanthus. A plant of the Mediterranean area having toothed leaves, Acanthus spinosus, Acanthus mollis. Stylized representations of the acanthus leaf are familiar as architectural ornamentation and have been recognized in some oriental rug designs. Acanthus leaves are a common motif in Savonnerie rugs.
Acanthus leaves Savonnerie rug (detail)
accessory fabric. A fabric superimposed (appliqué or quilted), inlaid, or seamed to a ground fabric.
accessory objects. Non-fabric objects attached to a fabric. In tribal weavings, such accessory objects as beads, sea shells, bells, bones, feathers, buttons, or coins are sometimes attached to the fabric as non-functional decorative or shamanistic additions.
Uzbek bag with accessory objects R. John Howe
accessory stitches. Functional or decorative stitches in a fabric that include flat stitches, looped stitches, and knot stitches.
acrylic. A synthetic fiber of acrylonitrile. Acrylic may be dyed before extrusion as filaments to be spun. When dyed in this manner, acrylic is very color-fast. It is static-free and stain resistant. Acrylic is used as a substitute for wool, but is not resistant to crushing.
Achaemenian dynasty. Rulers of ancient Persia from about 550 B.C.E. to 331 B.C.E. Certain designs in the Pazyryk carpet are very similar to decorative motifs used in Achaemenian architecture. See “Pazyryk carpet.”
acid dyes. Dyes derived from coal tar through the action of nitric acid. They produce bright colors in animal fibers. They are soluble in water and must be used in an acid solution. The first such dye was Bismarck brown developed in 1862. See “basic dyes” and “dye, synthetic.”
A.C.O.R., American Conference on Oriental Rugs. An association of approximately 25 local rug societies. Its goal has been to present a national oriental rug conference every two years. These conferences have included seminars, exhibitions, and sales of rugs of interest to collectors.
A.D. (Latin Anno Domini, “In the year of our Lord”). The year counted from the time of Christ, a system of date designation generally used by western countries. See “A.H.,” “C.E.,” “Islamic dates,” and “Gregorian date.”
Ada-Milas. The peninsula south of Milas in southwestern Anatolia. The area is a source of prayer rugs and rugs with a narrow, vertical, central panel containing a highly abstract tree-of-life design. The field is filled with repeated geometric figures in brownish red.
Adam. A style of architectural and interior decoration in vogue from
