hegira

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he·gi·ra

also he·ji·ra (hĭ-jī′rə, hĕj′ər-ə)

1. A flight to escape danger.

2. also Hegira The flight of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina in 622 ad, marking the beginning of the Muslim era.

[Medieval Latin, from Arabic hijra, emigration, flight, from hajara, to depart; see hgr in Semitic roots.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Hegira

(ˈhɛdʒɪrə) or

Hejira

1. (Islam) the departure of Mohammed from Mecca to Medina in 622 ad; the starting point of the Muslim era

2. (Islam) the Muslim era itself. See also AH

3. (often not capital) an emigration escape or flight

Also called: Hijrah

[C16: from Medieval Latin, from Arabic hijrah emigration or flight]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

He•gi•ra

(hɪˈdʒaɪ rə, ˈhɛdʒ ər ə)

n., pl. -ras.

1. (sometimes l.c.) Hijra.

2. (l.c.)

Also, hejira.

any flight or journey to a more desirable or congenial place.

[1590–1600; < Medieval Latin < Arabic; see Hijra]

hegira

a flight or escape to safety.

hegira

[heˈdʒaɪərə] N → hégira f

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

hegira

n → Hedschra f

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

References in classic literature ?

Just as his more fortunate fellow New Yorkers had bought their tickets to Palm Beach and the Riviera each winter, so Soapy had made his humble arrangements for his annual hegira to the Island.

View in context

Yet, palpitating and real, shimmering in the sun-flashed dust of ten thousand hoofs, she saw pass, from East to West, across a continent, the great hegira of the land-hungry Anglo-Saxon.

View in context

But see how closely, so far, each detail tallies with the world-old story of the hegira of the yellow race.

Noun	1.	Hegira - the flight of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina in 622 which marked the beginning of the Muslim era; the Muslim calendar begins in that year Hejira
	2.	hegira - a journey by a large group to escape from a hostile environment exodus, hejira escape, flight - the act of escaping physically; "he made his escape from the mental hospital"; "the canary escaped from its cage"; "his flight was an indication of his guilt"