The Jabal á¸Âabà «b inscription (also known as Jabal á¸Âabà «b 1) is a South Arabian graffito inscription composed in a minuscule variant of the late Sabaic language and dates to the 6th century, notable for the appearance of a pre-Islamic variant of the Basmala. It was found on a rocky facade at the top of the eastern topside of mount Thaboob in the Dhale region of Yemen and first published in 2018 by M.A. Al-Hajj and A.A. Faqÿas, with the reading and interpretation of the text revised by Ahmad Al-Jallad in 2022.
The inscription is two lines long. The editio princeps originally read:<blockquote>èóàÃÂÃÂçàçÃÂñÃÂààçÃÂñÃÂÃÂàñèàçÃÂóàÃÂçêàçÃÂñòçà) çÃÂðÃÂÃÂ( àÃÂöÃÂà) ãÃÂÃÂç ççÃÂÃÂóçÃÂ( ÃÂçÃÂàñïàÃÂùàÃÂàùÃÂÃÂÃÂà) èãÃÂÃÂ( ãù÷çàççÃÂÃÂàçÃÂÃÂ
èóàÃÂÃÂçàçÃÂñÃÂààçÃÂñÃÂÃÂàñèàçÃÂóàÃÂçêà(ãóãÃÂÃÂÃÂ( çÃÂñòàààÃÂöÃÂàÃÂãàêàÃÂÃÂàùÃÂÃÂà) ÃÂèÃÂÃÂÃÂ( ÃÂÃÂé)ÃÂçÃÂÃÂé( ççÃÂÃÂàçÃÂ</blockquote>Later, the reading was revised to:<blockquote>èóàçÃÂÃÂàçÃÂñÃÂàÃÂ
çñÃÂàÃÂç ñè çÃÂóàÃÂçê
çñòÃÂÃÂç ààÃÂöÃÂÃÂ
àâêñÃÂç àîÃÂàóÃÂàê çÃÂçàÃÂç
bsùmlh | rḥmn | rḥmn | rb | sùmwt r{z}{q}n | mfá¸Âlk | wþṯrn | mḫh | sòkmt þymn</blockquote>In English:<blockquote>In the name of AllÃÂh, the RaḥmÃÂn
have mercy upon us, O lord of the heavens
satisfy us by means of your favor
and grant us the essence of it at the end/gift of our days</blockquote>
The first dating of the text, based on reconstructing it as an Islamic Basmalah, led to it being dated to the mid-7th century. The revised reading lacks an Islamic Basmalah, rather it possesses an earlier stage in the evolution of the Basmalah, as well as a lack of use of standardized Arabic language from early Islamic inscriptions (including graffiti), indicating a date in the sixth century, or the early seventh century at the latest. An assessment of the script of the inscription (Late Sabaic) suggests it was written in the mid-6th century.
The author may have been Jewish. Significantly, this inscription contains a pre-Islamic Arabian reference to the Basmala, invoking the monotheistic deity Rahmanan. However, while this inscription is apparently the first attested case where "In the name of AllÃÂh/God" is combined with "the Merciful," the Qur'anic form of the Basmalah contains a phraseological expansion into a tripartite form to include the final adjective al-raḥëm. It is possible that this expansion was made to facilitate the common QurâÂÂanic rhyme ë/à « + m/n.
The request, "have mercy upon us, O lord of the heavens" resembles the biblical phrase "Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy on us" in Psalm 123:3. Likewise, the request to "grant us the essence of it at the end of our days" may also be a reference to another Psalmic passage, where the reader asks "So teach us to number our days, that we may obtain a heart of wisdom" (Psalm 90:12). The particular phrasing of rabb al-samÃÂwÃÂt is also known from the Quran (rabbu s-samÃÂwÃÂti wa-l-þará¸Âi, Q 19:65). In its use of both the terms "AllÃÂh," which was the proper name of the one monotheistic God in pre-Islamic North Arabia, and "RahmÃÂn," the proper name of the one South Arabian monotheistic God, this inscription may reflect a syncretism that resulted from an alliance between multiple Arabian tribes to symbolize their political unity.
Alongside the ÿAbd- Shams inscription and the Ri al-Zallalah inscription, the Jabal Dabub inscription implies that the use of the term rabb was widely used by Arabian monotheists.