سلف

سَلَفٌ ذ Such as have gone before, or preceded; (M, Msb; *) [i. e. the preceding generations; ] as also ↓ سَلِيفٌ and ↓ سُلْفَةٌ and ↓ سَلُوفٌ; all quasipl. ns.; (M;) of which the sing. is ↓ سَالِفٌ: (M, Msb: *) or such as have gone before, or preceded, of a man's ancestors (S, K) and of his relations, (K,) that are above him in age and in excellence; [but this addition is not always agreeable with usage;] one of whom is termed ↓ سَالِفٌ: (TA:) the pl. of سَلَفٌ is أَسْلَافٌ and سُلَّافٌ, (S, K,) [the former a pl. of pauc. and the latter of mult.,] or the latter is pl. of ↓ سَالِفٌ, and so is سَلَفٌ [said to be, though this is more properly termed, as it is in the M, a quasi-pl. n.]: (IB, Msb, TA:) and, accord. to Zj, سُلُفٌ is pl. of ↓ سَلِيفٌ, and سُلَفٌ is pl. of ↓ سُلْفَةٌ, which means a company (عُصْبَةٌ) that has passed away: (M:) or ↓ سَالِفٌ and ↓ سَلِيفٌ signify the same; going before; preceding; syn. مُتَقَدِّمٌ. (S.) [Accord. to Abu-lMahásin, السَّلَفُ is particularly applied to 'Áïsheh the wife of Mohammad, the three Khaleefehs Aboo-Bekr and 'Omar and 'Othmán, Talhah and Ez-Zubeyr, the Khaleefeh Mo'áwiyeh, and 'Amr Ibn-El-Ás. (De Sacy's Chrest. Ar., sec. ed., i. 156.)] And السَّلَفُ الصَّالِحُ is applied to the first chief persons of the Tábi'ees. (TA.) And السَّلَفُ المُقَدَّمُ is an appellation of the prophet Mohammad. (Ham p. 780.) [Hence, مَذَاهِبُ السَّلَفِ The tenets of the early Muslims. ] ― -b2- Also A people, or party, going before, or preceding, in journeying. (TA.) ― -b3- And [simply] A company of men; as in the saying, جَاآءَنِى سَلَفٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ [ A company of men came to me ]. (M.) ― -b4- And Any good, or righteous, deed, that one has done beforehand [ by way of preparing a future reward ]: or any فَرَط [i. e. cause of reward, or recompense, in the world to come, such as a child dying in infancy ], that [ as it were ] goes before one. (A 'Obeyd, O, K.) ― -b5- And i. q. سَلَمٌ; (T, Hr, Mgh, O, K, TA;) i. e. Any money, or property, paid in advance, or beforehand, as the price of a commodity for which the seller has become responsible and which one has bought on description: (T, TA:) or payment for a commodity to be delivered at a certain [ future ] period with something additional to [ the equivalent of ] the current price at the time of such payment; this [transaction] being a cause of profit to him who makes such payment; and سَلَمٌ also has this meaning: (TA:) or a sort of sale in which the price is paid in advance, and the commodity is withheld, on the condition of description, to a certain [ future ] period: (S, O:) it is a subst. from الاـِسْلَافُ. (Msb, * K, TA.) ― -b6- And A loan (قَرْضٌ) in which is no profit (Hr, O, Mgh, K, TA) to the lender (Hr, O, K, TA) except recompense [ in the world to come ] and thanks, (TA,) and which it is incumbent on the recipient thereof to return as he received it: (Hr, O, K, TA:) thus the Arabs term it: (Hr, O, TA:) and in this sense also the word is a subst. from الاـِسْلَافُ. (TA.) -A2- Also A stallion-camel. (IAar, M, TA.) -A3- Also, (M,) or ↓ سُلْفَةٌ, (O, TA,) The prepuce of a boy; (M, O, TA;) so says Lth; (O, TA;) and ↓ سَلِفٌ and ↓ سِلْفٌ signify the same; for this is meant by الجِلْدُ as an explanation of السَّلِفُ and السِّلْفُ in the K, in some copies of which الخُلْدُ is erroneously put for الجِلْدُ. (TA.)