A COMPARATIVE-HISTORICAL AND ETYMOLOGICAL STUDY OF CERTAIN DEMONONYMS

This article explores the etymological origins and semantic development of the principal demonological terms used in the Qur’an and classical Islamic literature, namely Iblis, Shaytan, and Ifrit, from the perspective of comparative-historical linguistics. The research draws upon the studies of the orientalist scholar Arthur Jeffery and the Iranian linguist Mohammad Hasandoust to demonstrate that these lexemes are not purely Arabic in origin, but rather belong to a broader layer of borrowings derived from ancient Semitic languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, Ethiopic) and Indo-European traditions (Greek and Middle Persian). The article further examines the transformation of these terms into theological concepts within Islamic discourse and their later artistic reinterpretation in classical Eastern literature, particularly in the works of Nizami Ganjavi and Alisher Navoi