Rub el Hizb

Rub El Hizb

The Rub el Hizb (Arabic: ربع الحزب rubʿ al-ḥizb) is an Islamic symbol, represented as two overlapping squares, which is found on a number of emblems and flags. In Arabic, Rubʻ means "one fourth, quarter", while Hizb means a group or party. Initially, it was used in the Quran, which is divided into 60 Hizb (60 groups of roughly equal length); the symbol determines every quarter of Hizb, while the Hizb is one half of a juz'. The main purpose of this dividing system is to facilitate recitation of the Qur'an.

The symbol is used as a marker for the end of a chapter in Arabic calligraphy. It is represented by two overlapping squares as in the Unicode glyph ۞ at U+06DE.

Uses

Development of the Petronas Towers Tower 1 level 43 floor plan from a Rub el Hizb symbol.

The Rub el Hizb can be seen on:

• The flag of the Marinid and Saadi dynasties of Morocco
• The current emblem of Turkmenistan
• The current emblem of Uzbekistan
• Azat party flag [1]
• The unofficial flag of Kazakhstan in the 1990s, the basis of the modern state flag, light blue with a hollow yellow rub el hizb
• The official emblem of the elite Special Police Squad "Bosna" of the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Siege of Sarajevo.
• The fictional flag of Hatay in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
• The emblem of the Organization of the Scout Movement of Kazakhstan
• The previous emblem of the Iraq Boy Scouts and Girl Guides Council
• The logo of the Cairo Metro
• The octagonal buildings [2] [3][4]
• Isra and Mi'raj: The meeting of the crescent moon and the star. [5]

The cross-sections of the Petronas Twin Towers are based on the Rub el Hizb, but with extra circular sectors (outlined in red in the image on the right) added to increase the total floor space.

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  Flag of Morocco between 1258–1659, used by the Marinid, Wattasid and Saadi dynasties

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  Emblem of Turkmenistan, in use since 2003

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  On the Emblem of Uzbekistan, adopted by law on July 2, 1992

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  Azat Party flag

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  Kazakhstan Customs flag

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  At Humayun's Tomb, Mughal monument in Delhi, India, completed in 1572

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  Moroccan flags, captured by France at the Battle of Isly 1844

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  Ilkhanate "Rub el Hizb" geometrical wall-tile containing the Azure dragon.

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  A Traditional Iranian howz in Isfahan

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  Flag of Arab East Jerusalem, with Rub el Hizb in the center

Al-Quds star

Basic al-Quds star

The al-Quds star (in Arabic نجمة القدس, najmat al-Quds) is an adaptation of the Islamic Rub el Hizb symbol which is specifically associated with Jerusalem, Palestine.

The eight-pointed star design is inspired by the octagonal ground-plan of the Umayyad Dome of the Rock shrine (built to commemorate Jerusalem's status as the first Qibla or direction of prayer in Islam), as well as by the standard Rub el Hizb symbol.

Versions of the al-Quds Star are used as:

• The logo of the 2009 Arab Capital of Culture, chosen to be Jerusalem, under the Cultural Capitals Program to promote and celebrate Arab culture and encourage cooperation in the Arab region.
• The logo of al-Quds Bank, a financial institution headquartered in Ramallah.

See also

• Star of Lakshmi
• Sujud, which uses the symbol ۩ in most Qur'ans
• List of symbolic stars
• Octagram

External links

• http://www.andalucia.cc/adarve/estrella.html