Sign in with Facebook"Dubai, What is in the name?" Dubai by Doctor38
Dubai Travel Guide: 2,418 reviews and 6,506 photos
Dubai in Arabic means young Desert Locust!! Why is it called that way? Will this area was full of Locust as recent as 50+ years ago. Actually Dubai area was known for Grass hopper to an extent that there is a very old Arabic Proverb (may be pre-Islamic era or early Islamic period), when some body want to describe something as plentiful he would say "like the Locust of Dubai”.
The Stem Deb/Dub in Semitic languges has lots of connections to insects and animals, it also means to crawl or walk and It is interesting for you to know that Debroha, the Biblical name, which means a bee in Ancient Caananite language (Dabbor in Arabic is also a type of bee)
Ok I will digress but you might be interested to know that in Arabic launguage lots of Animal names come from this stem ( db ) for example
Daabah: Animels in general
Dubb : Bear
Dhabb: Lizard
Dhaby (like in Abo Dhaby, UAE capitol): Gazelle
Dabbor :bee
Thobab: Fly (insect)
Theeb : Wolf
Dhaba' : Hayina
The pesky insects not only disappeared from Dubai but almost from the entire Arabian Peninsula. The insects used to invade the area from Africa across the Red Sea! Why aren't they around any more! I don't know. You might be surprised to know that people used to eat em!! I asked my grand father how it tasted like. Will his answer was (No not chicken) but shrimps. I have to admit that 30 years ago during a fluke, aberrant, mini Locust invasion of the surrounding area I saw a plate full of Locust? How was it prepared? Will it was boiled and NO I did NOT eat any of it. Any way I guess in the early 20th Century and time prior to that those Locust ate nothing but clean desert vegetation and where probably a source of healthy proteins.
I suppose -I am not sure- that people in the deserts of Africa do still eat these Locust, Please feel free to correct me if you think that I am wrong.
If you want to know more about Locust read
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locust
Reviews (5)
Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet by...
Favorites
(1)
If you are travelling to the Middle East or any other Muslim country, you might want read some thing about Islam or... more travel advice
Al-Memzar area
Things to Do
(3)
Let’s divide this area into 4 parts. Part 1; which is about 2 km along the Alkhaleeg rd. This section has few canteens... more travel advice
The Dubai Motor Show
Things to Do
(3)
This show takes place once every 2 years and it is the biggest car show in the Middle East. It attracts local and... more travel advice
The Dubai Air Show
Things to Do
(3)
This event is among the biggest in aviation world, it takes places every 2 years. It is mainly a business meeting where... more travel advice
-
Been to Dubai?
Share your travels with the world!
Doctor38's Related Pages
-
Al `Ayn
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Sharjah
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Dana
-
Petra
-
Madaba
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Amman
-
Al Karak
-
Tehran
-
T'bilisi
-
Yerevan
-
Syria
-
United Arab Emirates
-
Georgia
-
Iran
-
Asyut
-
Meknes
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Volubilis
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Moulay Idriss
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Tetouan
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
El Jadida
Dubai Travel Guide
Member Travel Pages
- "Not all that glitters is gold..."
- "Nothing is Too Impossible in Dubai"
- "DESERT ROSE MONOLOGUES - A DUBAI AFFAIR"
- "DUBAI - The Pearl of Arabia"
- "Developing Dubai"
- "Dubai"
- "Dubai - a city growing before your eyes!"
- See All...
Categories
- Things to Do in Dubai
- Hotels in Dubai
- Transportation in Dubai
- Nightlife in Dubai
- Restaurants in Dubai
- Shopping in Dubai
- Warnings and Dangers in Dubai
- See All...
Nearby Travel Guides
- Dubai Travel Guide
- See All...
Explore the World
Doctor38 Lives Here!
- Member Rank:
- 0 0 5 9 9
- Forum Rank:
- 0 0 4 4 2
- 331 Reviews
- 1,111 Photos
- Add Friend
- Follow
- Send Message
Badges & Stats in Dubai
- 5 Reviews
- 16 Photos
- 78 Forum posts
- 8 Comments
- 4,452PageViews
- See All Stats
- See All Badges (16)
Have you been to Dubai?
Share Your TravelsLatest Activity in Dubai
- Posted in Travel Medina Forum "Re: plane from mecca to medina"
- updated a Dubai Travel Page "Dubai, What is in the name?"
- Uploaded a Photo to "Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet by Armstrong"
- Wrote a Review Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet by Armstrong in Dubai Favorites
- Commented on one of MM212's Dubai travel pages
Top 10 Pages
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Rabat
Intro, 33 reviews, 134 photos
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Sharjah
Intro, 33 reviews, 117 photos
-
Syria
Intro, 37 reviews, 111 photos
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Casablanca
Intro, 29 reviews, 101 photos
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Tetouan
Intro, 24 reviews, 99 photos
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Meknes
Intro, 15 reviews, 61 photos
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Chefchaouene
Intro, 14 reviews, 61 photos
-
T'bilisi
Intro, 15 reviews, 46 photos, 2 travelogues
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Volubilis
Intro, 17 reviews, 43 photos
-
Safi
Intro, 10 reviews, 44 photos
Friends
See All Friends (17)
Budget Travel
Historical Travel
Museum VisitsLatest Dubai hotel reviews
- Karama Hotel
- 53 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 1, 2013 - Grosvenor House West Marina Beach By Le Meridien
- 1457 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 24, 2013 - Dolphin Hotel
- 40 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Apr 12, 2013 - Hilton Jumeirah Hotel
- 1427 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 22, 2013 - Royal Ascot Hotel
- 157 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 22, 2013 - Crowne Plaza Dubai
- 358 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 15, 2013 - Sofitel Dubai Jumeirah Beach
- 914 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 24, 2013 - Imperial Suites
- 65 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Apr 12, 2013 - Desert Palm Resort & Spa Dubai
- 104 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 14, 2013 - Rihab Rotana Suites Hotel
- 87 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 23, 2013 - Majestic Hotel
- 252 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 22, 2013 - Premier Inn Dubai Silicon Oasis
- 138 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 23, 2013 - Winchester Hotel Apartments
- 111 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 24, 2013 - Nihal Hotel
- 39 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 17, 2013
Comments (7)
good information, nice picture great job bye
Great job on Dubai page. I bet Dubai will be the next all time tourist destination like Italy and France!
As usual interesting and informative tips - and no Im not eating locusts either. We didnt eat them in Morocco but Ive watched them being eaten by African tribes in other countries on TV docu's!.... bye for now.
Very interesting page on Dubai's naming history and locusts! Good tips. Gillybob greetings
You live in a very nice city. I am wondering how hot it gets there. I think I will pass on the locusts.
Nice place looks Dubai, tks for share and let us to Know it. Also, many tks for your comments in the migraine Forum. I hope sirenna dont have it, mine its going better....just few nauseas and eye pain still.
Enjoyed reading about Dubai, hope you write more. The Metro will be great when it's finished! greetings from New Zealand, Pam :-)