Kurbash

Kurbash, or Kourbash (from the Arabic qurbash, a whip; Turkish qirbach; and French courbache), a whip or strap about a yard in length, made of the hide of the hippopotamus or rhinoceros. It is an instrument of punishment and torture used in various Mahommedan countries, especially in the Turkish empire. “Government by kurbash” denotes the oppression of a people by the constant abuse of the kurbash to maintain authority, to collect taxes, or to pervert justice. The use of the kurbash for such purposes, once common in Egypt, has been abolished by the British authorities.