G
gaba, gabeh Coarsely woven rugs from south-western
Iran made of un-dyed wool.
garden carpet A design originally thought to
represent the layout of a Persian garden with flower beds and
streams. The term now refers to any rug that includes rectangular
compartments, each containing some floral or botanic motif.
gauge rod a rod used in Tibetan pile weaving.
Pile yarn is looped over the gauge rod and around the warps. When the
loops over the gauge rod are cut, a pile of consistent height is produced.
gereh (P) Knot.
gereh zadan (P) To knot into fringes.
Ghirodes knot See "symmetric knot."
gillim See "killim."
ground The interlaced combination of warp and weft
that is structurally essential to the fabric. In pile rugs, the
"ground" may be referred to as the "foundation."
guard stripe Stripes or lesser borders on either
side of the main border. See "border."
gul, gol A medallion of octagonal or angular shape
used in Turkmen designs. Often, the gul is repeated to form an
all-over pattern in the field. Certain Turkmen tribes are associated
with specific guls as emblems of the tribe.
hali (T) Carpet (Pronounced "ha-la").
hatchli, hatchlu See "katchli."
heybeh (T) Saddle bag.
Herati pattern A design, usually repeated,
consisting of a flower centered in a diamond with curving lanceolate
leaves located outside the diamond and parallel to each side.
hue Color from the spectrum or combination of such
colors.
H
ikat A process in which fabric designs are created
by tie-dyeing warps and/or wefts before they are used on the looms.
A fabric produced by this process.
indigo A blue vegetable dye derived form a member of
the pea family,. A yellow juice from the plant oxidizes to blue upon
exposure to air. Indigo was chemically synthesized in 1880.
J
jijim, djidjim (T) A flatweave of narrow strips sewn
together.
jolam (T) See "tent band."
jollar See "kapunuk."
joval, juval, tschoval, chuval (T) A large bag,
approximately 3 ft. by 6 ft., one surface of which may be covered with
pile, used to store clothing. Often, only the pile face has
survived.
jufti knot A symmetric or asymmetric knot tied over
four warps instead of the usual two warps.
jute A fiber from the stem of the plant, Corchorus
capsularis. Jute has been used in the pile of rugs form India.
K
kallehgi, kelley (P) A long, narrow carpet in which
length is at least twice the width, 5 ft. by 10 ft. by 24 ft., for
example.
kapunuk A pile fabric decoration for the inside of
Turkmen tent doors.
kardak (P) Carpet trimming knife.
katchli, hatchlu, hatchli (T) The cross formed by
the four panels in the design of an ensi.
kejebe (T) A tent-like enclosure for the bride on
the back of a camel in a Turkmen wedding procession. The kejebe is
represented in Turkmen rugs by shape
kelley (P) See "kalleghi."
kenareh (P) Persian term for a runner, 2 1/2 to 3
1/2 ft. wide.
kermes (P) A red dye prepared from a scale insect,
Coccul ilicis, which infests oak trees.
khorjin, kharjin (P) A saddle bag.
killim A tapestry-woven rug. Also, the
flatweave end of a rug.
kork (P) Underhair of a goat or fine belly wool of a
sheep.
kufic (A) Used to describe border designs that are
thought to be derived from an Arabic script.
L
lac a red dye made from a scale insect, Coccus
laccae.
lachak torang (P)Any design with corner and central medallions.
lazy lines Diagonal lines visible from the back of
the rug caused by successive rows of turnarounds of discontinuous
wefts. This occurs when only a portion of the width of a rug is
woven at one time.
M
macrame (A) Fringe. Used to describe off-loom
weaving and knot work. From the Arabic for "knot."
madder A red dye extracted from the root of the
madder plant, Rubia tinctorium. Madder dye has been synthesized at
the alzarine colors. "Alizari" is Arabic for madder.
mafrash (A) A small bag, often with a pile
face. A traveling or bedding bag.
main border See "border."
mako (P) Weaver's shuttle.
Manchester See "merino."
matn (P) Ground or field of a rug.
mazarlik (T) A Turkish carpet with representations
of trees and houses. Some believe such carpets are used enfold the
dead when carried to a cemetery.
meander Any of a wide variety of continuous border
designs that do not fill the band they occupy but alternate from side to
side.
medallion a large enclosed portion of a design
usually located in the center of a field. Common shapes are
diamonds, octagons and hexagons.
"Memling" gul a motif named after Hans
Memlinc, a 15th century artist whose works show rugs designed with the
motif.
mercerized Cotton thread whose strength and gloss
has been increased by treating with alkali under pressure.
merino A breed of sheep producing very fine
wool. The merino was first raised in Spain. Australian merino
wool is used in some rugs from Iran and India.
"Manchester" is merino wool processed in Manchester, England.
mian farsh (P) The middle carpet in the traditional
Persian rug arrangement. See "audience rug."
mihrab (P) The prayer niche in a mosque represented
by the arch in a prayer rug.
millefleurs A design composed of many flower
blossoms, often occupying the field of a prayer rug, found in rugs from
Iran and India.
mina khani (P) An over-all pattern
consisting of two or more flower blossoms connected by a diamond lattice.
M
mir-i-boteh (P) A design of multiple
rows of botehs.
mohair, mouher (P) Yarn or fabric made
from the fleece of the Angora goat.
mordant A product used in dyeing
that reacts with the dye and fiber to fix the dye permanently to the
fiber. Different mordants produce different hues and shades from the
same dye.
morghi (P) A hen. A design
employing images of chickens.
mori (T) A term describing the weave of
certain Pakistani and Indian rugs, specifically the absence of warp offset
in these rugs.
muska (T) A triangular design, supposed
to have magical properties, derived from the shape of a pouch used to
carry Koranic inscriptions or religious or shamanistic relics.
Glossary of Terms A through L
Glossary of Terms
G through M
Glossary of Terms N through S
Glossary of Terms T through Z
