maqam means A modal structure characterizing the art of music of countries in North Africa, West Asia and Central Asia. It carries an Arena rating of 1471, earned across 54 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, maqam ranks #2,929 of 17,149 for Most Exacting Words, #3,756 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #4,213 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words, #4,311 of 17,130 for Most Beautiful Words.
Why “maqam” is a great word
MAQAM — [Noun] A modal structure in the art music of North Africa, West Asia, and Central Asia, encompassing scales, melodic patterns, and aesthetic conventions. Ultimately from Arabic مَقَام (maqām, "place, position, station"). Unlike a "mode," which primarily defines abstract pitch relationships, or a "scale," which is a strict series of pitches, a maqam is a holistic geography of sound. It is the oud player's fingers finding the path through a quarter-tone, the singer's voice catching on a microtonal inflection, and the prescribed modulation guiding an improvisation from melancholy to ecstasy—a map where every station is a known and felt destination.
Etymology
Ultimately from Arabic مَقَام (maqām). Doublet of mugham.
noun
- A modal structure characterizing the art of music of countries in North Africa, West Asia and Central Asia.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- muqam 74% match — A mode of Uyghur traditional music; in modern times the muqams have been codified as classical music suites known as the Twelve Muqam (Uyghur ئون ئىككى مۇقام; Chinese 十二木卡姆). vs maqam →
- taqsim 65% match — An improvisation or a solo recital based on a maqam. vs maqam →
- maqama 64% match — Arabic literary genre vs maqam →
- mugham 63% match — A musical composition of Azerbaijan in a complex form that blends classical poetry and musical improvisation. vs maqam →
- thaat 55% match — One of the basic musical scales or modes used by classical Hindustani ragas, characterized by seven notes (swaras). vs maqam →
- qawwali 53% match — A style of Muslim devotional music, especially among the South Asian Sufis, accompanied by drums and harmonium. vs maqam →
- mbaqanga 52% match — A style of South African music, with rural Zulu roots and a jazz influence, that originated in the 1960s. vs maqam →
- maqsurah 51% match — An enclosure, box, or screen near the mihrab in a mosque, typically reserved for a Muslim ruler and his entourage, and originally designed to shield him from potential assassins during prayer. vs maqam →