Trade Terminology among the Safaitic Arabs before Islam as Reflected in their Inscriptions

This paper deals with some aspects of commerce (merchandise and trade) activi- ties as attested in the Ancient North Arabian Safaitic inscriptions. The Safaitic tribes were in close contact with some political entities in the region, such as the Nabataeans and Romans. Their inscriptions reflect certain aspects of the tribal life of the Safaites and their activities ― the merchandise and trade activities, for instance. The activity of trade is discussed in this paper in the light of some terms that occurred in inscriptions. Furthermore, we can deduce that they were familiar with manufacturing salt through the expression of whdr hlqt mlh "and prepared a pitfall to extract salt". The inscriptions, also, gave some clues on the existence of market places ― for example, w qtt f zm. The social and daily life, in some cases, motivated the Bedouin to use what is so-called barter' namely, the exchange of animal products for grains and other needed things.