Note 135 — TALE OF MA’AN THE SON OF ZAIDAH.[133]

The first girl calls gold “Tibr” (pure, unalloyed metal); the second “Asjad” (gold generally) and the third “Ibríz” (virgin ore, the Greek ὄβρυζον). This is a law of Arab rhetoric never to repeat the word except for a purpose and, as the language can produce 1,200,000 (to 100,000 in English) the copiousness is somewhat painful to readers.