What does cadi mean?
A "cadi" is an Islamic judge — an official who adjudicates disputes and applies religious law, principally Sharia, within a Muslim community or state. Historically, especially under the Ottoman Empire, the cadi held considerable authority, combining judicial duties with certain administrative functions such as supervising markets and public morals, so that the office was central to civic life in many towns. The word entered European languages from Arabic qāḍī ('judge') during the medieval and early modern periods, when travelers, merchants, and diplomats regularly encountered these officials in North Africa, the Middle East, and Ottoman lands. In modern English, "cadi" survives chiefly in historical, legal, and scholarly writing about Islamic jurisprudence; contemporary academic sources more often use the transliteration "qadi." It should not be confused with "caddy," the golf attendant or tea container, despite the near-identical spelling. The word offers a concise, evocative way to refer to a distinctive institution of Islamic governance.
nounA judge in an Islamic country who interprets and administers religious law, particularly Sharia. The term is chiefly historical or scholarly in English usage.
- A judge administering Islamic law (Sharia) in Muslim countries.
- Historically, a civil magistrate in Ottoman dominions whose authority combined judicial and administrative functions.
"The dispute over the merchant's debts was brought before the cadi of Cairo."
"Under Ottoman rule, every major town had a cadi to adjudicate disputes according to the law."
"Travelers' accounts from the eighteenth century often describe audiences with the local cadi."
The standard plural simply adds -s; some older texts also use "cadis" interchangeably with "kadis" reflecting alternative transliterations.
"Several cadis were summoned to resolve the succession dispute."
The word 'cadi' traveled from Arabic courts into European languages centuries ago — it even appears in the title of one of Voltaire's tales.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of cadi
"Cadi" derives from Arabic qāḍī, meaning 'judge', formed from the Arabic verb root q-ḍ-y relating to judgment and adjudication. The word passed into European languages — including French, Italian, Spanish, and English — through contact with the Islamic world, entering English usage around the sixteenth to seventeenth century as travelers and traders described legal institutions of the Ottoman Empire and North Africa. Its modern academic transliteration, "qadi", comes directly from the same Arabic source.
How cadi is actually used
"Cadi" is a formal, largely historical or scholarly term in modern English; it appears mainly in texts about Islamic law, the Ottoman Empire, or Orientalist literature. It coexists with the transliteration "qadi," which is now more common in academic writing on Islam.
Easily confused with cadi
A caddy is a golf attendant or a small container for tea, whereas a cadi is an Islamic religious judge.