Landmarks In Linguistic Thought III: The Arabic Linguistic Tradition (Routledge History of Linguistic Thought Series)

landmarks In Linguistic Thought Vol 3 Is Devoted To A Linguistic Tradition That Lies Outside The Western Mainstream, Namely That Of The Middle East. the Reader Is Introduced To The Major Issues And Themes That Have Determined The Development Of The Arabic Linguistic Tradition. Each Chapter Contains A Short Extract From A Translated 'landmark' Text Followed By A Commentary Which Places The Text In Its Social And Intellectual Context. The Chosen Texts Frequently Offer Scope For Comparison With The Western Tradition. By Contrasting The Two Systems, The Western And The Middle Eastern, This Book Serves To Highlight The Characteristics Of Two Very Different Systems And Thus Stimulate New Ideas About The History Of Linguistics. this Book Presumes No Prior Knowledge Of Arabo-islamic Culture And Arabic Language, And Is Invaluable To Anyone With An Interest In The History Of Linguistics. Kees Versteegh Is Currently Professor Of Arabic And Islam At The Middle East Institute Of The University Of Nijmegen, The Netherlands. His Publications Include the Explanation Of Linguistic Causes (1995),ed. arabic Outside The Arab World (1994) Landmarks in Linguistic Thought Vol 3 is devoted to a linguistic tradition that lies outside the Western mainstream, namely that of the Middle East. The reader is introduced to the major issues and themes that have determined the development of the Arabic linguistic tradition. Each chapter contains a short extract from a translated `landmark' text followed by a commentary which places the text in its social and intellectual context. The chosen texts frequently offer scope for comparison with the Western tradition. By contrasting the two systems, the Western and the Middle Eastern, this book serves to highlight the characteristics of two very different systems and thus stimulate new ideas about the history of linguistics. This book presumes no prior knowledge of Arabo-Islamic culture and Arabic language, and is invaluable to anyone with an interest in the History of Linguistics. Kees Versteegh is currently Professor of Arabic and Islam at the Middle East Institute of the University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands. His publications include The Explanation of Linguistic Causes (1995),Ed. Arabic Outside the Arab World (1994) Linguistics And Exegesis: Muqâtil On The Explanation Of The Qur'ân -- Al-khalîl And The Arabic Lexicon -- Sîbawayhi And The Beginnings Of Arabic Grammar -- The Debate Between Logic And Grammar -- The Development Of Linguistic Theory: Az-zajjâjî On Linguistic Explanation -- The Relationship Between Speech And Thought: Al-fârâbî On Language -- The 'ikhwân Aṣ-Ṣafâ' On The Theory Of Sound And Meaning -- The Origin Of Speech: Ibn Jinnî And The Two Alternatives -- A New Semantic Approach To Linguistics: Al-jurjânî And As-sakkâkî On Meaning -- The Conventional Character Of Language: The Science Of The Institution Of Speech -- Ibn Maḍâ' And The Refutation Of The Grammarians -- Ibn Khaldûn On The History Of Arabic -- The Arabic Model And Other Languages: The Description Of Turkic And Hebrew. Kees Versteegh. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. This work introduces the major issues and themes that have determined the development of the Arabic linguistic tradition. Each chapter contains a short extract from a translated "landmark" text followed by a commentary which places the text in its social and intellectual context. At first sight the text presented here in translation does not seem to be very linguistic in nature and its relevance to the development of linguistic studies might appear to be doubtful.