A Historical, Comparative Study of the Word “Nazr” and its Derivatives in Hebrew, Syriac and Arabic Languages Focusing on the Quran, the Old Testament and the New Testament

The purpose of the present research work is to study the structural and semantic evolution and development of the word nazr (a vow or commitment to carry out an act) and its derivatives in Hebrew, Arabic and Syriac languages ​​with a focus on the reports of the Quran, the Old Testament and the New Testament using the historical and comparative-analytical methods. The derivatives of the root nazr have been used with two meanings in the Holy Quran: ‘to vow to carry out an act’ and ‘to intimidate’. However, this word has merely been used with the meaning of ‘to vow to carry out an act’ in Hebrew language and in the Old Testament, as well as in Syriac language and in the New Testament, and no mention has been made of the meaning of ‘intimidation’ in them. Studies show that as we get closer to the age of Islam, the root of this word takes on a second meaning, i.e. intimidation.