A marid () is a type of devil (shayá¹ÂÃÂn) in Islamic tradition. The Arabic word, meaning "rebellious," is applied to such supernatural beings. As a substantive it refers to a chthonic demon not much dissimilar to the ÿifrët.
Hans Wehr's A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic defines marid as a "demon" or "giant." The term is directly mentioned once in the Quran in Surat As-Saffat (Q37:7). They are also identified with the Persian devan.
The word mÃÂrid (Arabic: àçñï) is an active participle derived from the Arabic root m-r-d (), whose primary meaning is "recalcitrant" or "rebellious." Lisan al-Arab, the encyclopedic dictionary of Classical Arabic compiled by Ibn Manzur, documents only forms of this general meaning. The term appears as an attribute of evil spirits in the Quranic verse Surah aá¹£-á¹¢ÃÂffÃÂt (37:7), which references a "safeguard against every rebellious devil" (). Cognates from the same Semitic root include the Hebrew words for "rebellion" () and "rebel" ().
The Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic lists secondary meanings of mÃÂrid as "demon" and "giant" (). Edward Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon cites a classical source describing the term as "applied to an evil jinnë of the most powerful class," though this distinction is not universally accepted. For example, the MacNaghten edition of One Thousand and One Nights uses marid and ifrit interchangeably (e.g., in The Story of the Fisherman).
A debated theory by historian Konstantin JireÃÂek believed that mÃÂrid refers to the , referring to marauder mercenaries during the ArabâÂÂByzantine wars, who were eponymously linked to the Albanian tribe of Mirdita.
Amira El-Zein describes the mÃÂrid as a supernatural being that attempts to predict the future by ascending to the heavens and eavesdropping on angels. The Quran references the mÃÂrid in Surah aá¹£-á¹¢ÃÂffÃÂt (37:7), which states that "the lowest heaven is adorned with stars to ward off rebellious devils" (Arabic: ôÃÂÃÂÃÂ÷ÃÂçÃÂààÃÂçñÃÂïÃÂ, romanized: shayá¹ÂÃÂnin mÃÂridin), and in Surah an-Nisa (4:117), which condemns the invocation of "none but a rebellious Satan." In Islamic tradition, similar to the ÿifrët, the mÃÂrid is associated with a distinct class of beings from the netherworld.
A narration attributed to Ali, recorded by Ali ibn Ibrahim al-Qummi, states that when God resolved to create Adam, he punished humanity's predecessors by obliterating the nasnas (half-formed beings), erecting a veil between jinn and humans, and confined the "rebellious giants" (Arabic: àÃÂçñÃÂïÃÂé, romanized: mÃÂridah) to the atmosphere. According to the Maliki Athari scholar Ibn 'Abd al-Barr in his work Al-Tamhîd, the mÃÂrid is a demonic entity more malevolent than ordinary shayá¹ÂÃÂn (devils) but less powerful than an ÿifrët. Al-Jahiz defines a spirit as an angel if it is entirely good, as a shayá¹ÂÃÂn if it is wicked, and as a mÃÂrid if the spirit succeeds in moving objects and listening at the doors of heaven.
The mÃÂrid appears prominently in the Sirat Sayf ibn Dhi-Yazan, a pre-Islamic epic. In the narrative, King Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan orders a mÃÂrid to lead him to King Solomon's treasure. True to its rebellious nature, the mÃÂrid deliberately disobeys. Sayf later learns from the prophet Khidr that he must command the opposite of his true intent to manipulate the mÃÂrid.
A study in Egypt notes that, according to Egyptian tradition, humanity's survival depends on divine restraint of demons; if unchained, mÃÂrid would annihilate humankind.
Though mÃÂrid and ÿifrët are both classified as powerful devils, they differ in disposition. While the ÿifrët is characterized as cunning, treacherous, and deceitful, the mÃÂrid is portrayed as less intellectually adept and susceptible to manipulation by humans.