Jinn

   In the pre-Islamic Arabian mythology the jinn were living beings of superhuman kind. They were not pure spirits but were corporeal beings, more like beasts than men, usually represented as hairy or having some animal shape. Their bodies were solid, but they had a mysterious power of disappearing and reappearing, or even of assuming human form. It should be observed that jinn are not recognized as individuals; the Arab says ‘the Ghul appeared’, not ‘a Ghul appeared’; with the advent of Islam, the term jinn became applied to many of the pre-Islamic gods. Four hundred and twenty species of jinn were marshalled before Solomon. The jinn of the Arabian Nights, who have distinct personalities, would appear to be later additions. According to Mohammedan tradition, the prophet assigned the healthy uplands to the believing jinn and the fever-haunted lowlands to the unbelieving.

   There were five orders of jinn: the Marid, the most powerful; the Efrit; the Shaitan; the Jinn; and the Jann. The development of this hierarchy appears to have arisen from the necessity of accommodating several groups of pre-Islamic gods in the pantheon of evil as represented by the jinn. There were also other jinn who fitted more or less into the classification given above. For details consult Azazel, Dalhan, Efrit, Ghaddar, Ghul, Hatif, Iblis, Jann, Lilith, Marid, Marut, Nasnas, Qutrub, Shaitan, Shiqq, Silat, Sut, and Taus. Among the Persians, the jinn were Devas, Narahs, and Piris.