During the Tang dynasty, when relations with Arabs were first established, the Chinese called the Arabs 大食 (Dàyì or Dayi).[6][7][8][9] The Caliphate was called "Da Yi Guo" 大食國.[10] The word is thought to be a transcription of Persian Tāzik or Tāzī, derived from a nisba of the Arab tribe Ṭayyiʾ.[11] The modern term for Arab is 阿拉伯 (Ālābó or Alabo).