the word "saudi" is derived from the element "as-saʿūdīyah" in the arabic name of the country, which is a type of adjective known as a nisba, formed from the dynastic name of the saudi royal family, the al saud (). its inclusion expresses the view that the country is the personal possession of the royal family. "al saud" is an arabic name formed by adding the word "al", meaning "family of" or "house of", to the personal name of an ancestor. in the case of the al saud, this is saud ibn muhammad ibn muqrin, the father of the dynasty's 18th-century founder, muhammad bin saud.