Note 795 — Chapter IX
Reading edition
Murábiṭ is literally 'one who lives in a ribáṭ,' i.e., a guardhouse or military post on the frontier. Such buildings were often occupied, in addition to the garrison proper, by individuals who, from pious motives, wished to take part in the holy war (jihád) against the unbelievers. The word murábiṭ, therefore, gradually got an exclusively religious signification, 'devotee' or 'saint,' which appears in its modern form, marabout. As applied to the original Almoravides, it still retains a distinctly military flavour.