(c) The "ism" in the Arabic Grammatical Tradition: Reflections on Its Origin and Meanings

Abstract

This article aims to present an overall reconstruction of the debate on the definition and etymology of Arabic ism (‘noun’, ‘substantive’), by discussing and comparing texts from the Arabic linguistic tradition. The first part deals with the definition of the grammatical element and its functions, while the second is fully dedicated to the examination of the etymological issues, focusing on the two assumed roots of derivation for ism (namely s-m-w and w-s-m). The arguments are presented through the collation of the opinions of the relevant Arabic grammarians, examining both the wider debate between the early grammatical schools of Baṣra and Kūfa (2nd/8th–3rd/9th centuries), and the reports of the arguments as described by later scholars.Key words: Arabic linguistic tradition, Arabic grammar, Arab grammarians, Root, Philosophy of language

Acehnese Loanwords and Contact with Other World's Languages

“…By the third method, an orderly evaluation of related languages, Etymologists may notice which words stem from their common antecedent language, language contact, and which are later borrowed from another language (List, 2019). This comparison can also be related to some other particular linguistic aspects, such as grammar (Buchi, 2010;Olivieri, 2017), philology (Paek, 2019), or also in general linguistics like word formation (Schweikhard & List, 2020), depending on the focus of the study.…”

Classification of the Parts of Speech in Arabic

“…Olivieri 2017), are also available in the twelfth-century Kitāb al-ʾInṣāf by Ibn al-Anbārī(d. 577/1181) who, in the general discussion on the ism states that "the noun [is what] can operate as predicate and predicator" (Kitāb al-ʾInṣāf, 6). classification of the parts of speech in arabic Old World: Journal of Ancient Africa and Eurasia (2021) 1-24 | 10.1163/26670755-01010005 Downloaded from Brill.com11/08/2021 02:03:21AM via free access16you are dealing with a noun when a verb or an attribute can be referred to it, as for instance in zayd qāma (Zayd stood) or in zayd qāʾim (Zayd is standing), when can be in the dual form or take the plural, as al-zaydāni (the two Zayd(s)) and al-zaydūna (the Zayd(s)), and when exhibits a triptotic inflection.…”