Root ج-ه-ر — Jahara (To Declare Openly)
The root ج-ه-ر carries the core meaning of bringing something into the open — whether through sight (making visible) or sound (speaking loudly). It is the source of the Quranic command in Sūrat Al-Ḥujurāt regarding raising one's voice.
Verb Forms and Derivatives
| Form | Arabic | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Form I | جَهَرَ / يَجْهَرُ | jahara / yajharu | to be brought to light; to declare publicly; to raise one's voice |
| Form III | جَاهَرَ / يُجَاهِرُ | jāhara / yujāhiru | to speak openly; to express frankly; to address face-to-face |
| Maṣdar (Form I) | جَهْر | jahr | loudness; openness |
| Adverb/maṣdar | جِهَار / جَهَار | jihār / jahār | openly; in public |
| Ḥāl adverb | جِهَارًا | jihāran | openly, face-to-face (manṣūb) |
| Adjective | مَجْهُور | majhūr | loud-voiced; public |
| Modern Arabic | الْمِجْهَر | al-mujhar | microscope (makes hidden things visible) |
Examples from the Quran
1. Banū Isrāʾīl's Demand — جَهَارَةً
لَن نُّؤْمِنَ لَكَ حَتَّىٰ نَرَى اللَّهَ جَهْرَةً (Al-Baqarah 2:55)
"We will never believe you until we see Allāh openly (jah-ratan)."
Banū Isrāʾīl's repeated demands of Mūsā عليه السلام escalated to wanting to see Allāh face-to-face — a demand for which they were punished.
2. Nūḥ's Complaint — جِهَارًا
ثُمَّ إِنِّي دَعَوْتُهُمْ جِهَارًا (Nūḥ 71:8)
"Then I called them openly (jihāran)…"
Nūḥ عليه السلام detailed to Allāh every method of daʿwah he tried — public calling, private counsel, night and day — and yet his people refused. جِهَارًا here is a ḥāl (circumstantial adverb), manṣūb.
3. Common Expression: نَهَارًا جِهَارًا
"In broad daylight, openly" — e.g., a criminal entered my house nahāran jihāran (in broad daylight). Both words are manṣūb.
4. Sūrat Al-Ḥujurāt 49:2
وَلَا تَجْهَرُوا لَهُ بِالْقَوْلِ كَجَهْرِ بَعْضِكُم لِبَعْضٍ
"…nor speak to him in a loud voice as you speak to one another…"
تَجْهَرُوا (majzūm by لَا نَاهِيَة); جَهْرِ is the maṣdar used in a muḍāf construction.
Modern Derivative
الْمِجْهَر (microscope) — derived from the root because a microscope makes hidden things visible/apparent, bringing them "into the open." This is an elegant semantic extension of the original root.
Session References
- Surah Al-Hujuraat Session 3: Root ج-ه-ر explored in depth — all forms, Quranic examples (Al-Baqarah 2:55, Nūḥ 71:8), modern Arabic derivative (microscope), and the expression nahāran jihāran.