The Anqa (Mythical Bird of Arabia)
The Anqa (or Anqa Mughrib) is a golden, fabulous female bird in pre-Islamic Arab mythology, described as very beautiful and colorful with a long neck, human face, four pairs of wings, and a whiteness in its neck. She lives alone on Mount Qaf, flies far away, and only appears once in ages. Created by God with all perfections, she became a scourge (hence the word 'anqa also means calamity) and was exterminated by a pre-Islamic prophet. She lives 1,700 years, mates at 500, and her chick stays in the egg for 125 years. Often identified with the Persian Simurgh and the phoenix, in Turkish she is ca