سَلَفٌ
1.
Such as have gone before, or preceded; (M, Msb; *) [i. e. the preceding generations;] as also
سَلِيفٌ and
سُلْفَةٌ and
سَلُوفٌ; all quasipl. ns.; (M;) of which the singular is
سَالِفٌ: (M, Msb: *) or such as have gone before, or preceded, of a man's ancestors (S, K) and of his relations, (K,) that are above him in age and in excellence; [but this addition is not always agreeable with usage;] one of whom is termed
سَالِفٌ: (TA:) the plural of سَلَفٌ is أَسْلَافٌ and سُلَّافٌ, (S, K,) [the former a plural of pauc. and the latter of mult.,] or the latter is plural of
سَالِفٌ, and so is سَلَفٌ [said to be, though this is more properly termed, as it is in the M, a quasi-plural n.]: (IB, Msb, TA:) and, according to Zj, سُلُفٌ is plural of
سَلِيفٌ, and سُلَفٌ is plural of
سُلْفَةٌ, which means a company (عُصْبَةٌ) that has passed away: (M:) or
سَالِفٌ and
سَلِيفٌ signify the same; going before; preceding; synonym مُتَقَدِّمٌ. (S.) [Accord. to Abu-lMahásin, السَّلَفُ is particularly applied to 'Áïsheh the wife of Mohammad, the three Khaleefehs Aboo-Bekr and 'Omar and 'Othmán, Talhah and Ez-Zubeyr, the Khaleefeh Mo'áwiyeh, and 'Amr Ibn-El-Ás. (De Sacy's Chrest. Ar., sec. ed., i. 156.)] And السَّلَفُ الصَّالِحُ is applied to the first chief persons of the Tábi'ees. (TA.) And السَّلَفُ المُقَدَّمُ is an appellation of the prophet Mohammad. (Ham p. 780.) [Hence, مَذَاهِبُ
السَّلَفِ
The tenets of the early Muslims.]
2.
Also A people, or party, going before, or preceding, in journeying. (TA.)
3.
And [simply] A company of men; as in the saying, جَاءَنِى سَلَفٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ [A company of men came to me]. (M.)
4.
And Any good, or righteous, deed, that one has done beforehand [by way of preparing a future reward]: or any
فَرَط [i. e. cause of reward, or recompense, in the world to come, such as a child dying in infancy], that [as it were] goes before one. (A 'Obeyd, O, K.)
5.
And i. q.
سَلَمٌ; (T, Hr, Mgh, O, K, TA;) i. e. Any money, or property, paid in advance, or beforehand, as the price of a commodity for which the seller has become responsible and which one has bought on description: (T, TA:) or payment for a commodity to be delivered at a certain [future] period with something additional to [the equivalent of] the current price at the time of such payment; this [transaction] being a cause of profit to him who makes such payment; and سَلَمٌ also has this meaning: (TA:) or a sort of sale in which the price is paid in advance, and the commodity is withheld, on the condition of description, to a certain [future] period: (S, O:) it is a subst. from الإِسْلَافُ. (Msb, * K, TA.)
6.
And A loan (قَرْضٌ) in which is no profit (Hr, O, Mgh, K, TA) to the lender (Hr, O, K, TA) except recompense [in the world to come] and thanks, (TA,) and which it is incumbent on the recipient thereof to return as he received it: (Hr, O, K, TA:) thus the Arabs term it: (Hr, O, TA:) and in this sense also the word is a subst. from الإِسْلَافُ. (TA.)