All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and messenger.

Many Arabic animal names trace their roots to classical poetry or medieval natural histories. Our Arabic word of the week, however, is a relatively recent addition. Batreeq, the standard modern term ...