al-Ibana fi al-Lugha al-Arabiya
- Author died
- 511 AH
- Editions
- Ministry of National Heritage and Culture
al-Ibana fi al-Lugha al-Arabiya (The Clarification in the Arabic Language) is an Arabic dictionary and linguistic work compiled by the Omani scholar Salama ibn Muslim al-Awtabi al-Sahari (d. 511 AH / 1117 CE) .
Purpose and Scope
al-Sahari composed the work to address the fundamentals of the Arabic language (usul al-lugha) and to explain everyday expressions used in speech whose precise definitions and nuances might be misunderstood . In addition to native Arabic vocabulary, he incorporated loanwords and foreign terms (dakhil) assimilated into the language . He intentionally omitted excessively obscure or pedantic terminology (al-gharib), which he noted is typically reserved for pretentious discourse, poetry, or formal orations .
The author explains that he chose the title al-Ibana due to its linguistic meaning of clarity, manifestness, and distinction (al-zuhur wa-l-wuduh), drawing a connection between ibana and both clarity of speech (al-bayan) and grammatical inflection (al-i'rab) .
Structure and Method
al-Sahari arranged the dictionary alphabetically according to the standard Arabic letters (huruf al-mu'jam) to make entries easier to locate and keep explanations concise . The work opens with introductory linguistic themes, such as a chapter on the tongue, eloquence, and exposition (Bab fi al-lisan wa-l-fasaha wa-l-bayan), where he cites the Quranic verse: وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا مِنْ رَسُولٍ إِلَّا بِلِسَانِ قَوْمِهِ ("And We sent not a messenger except in the language of his people") before proceeding to the root-based entries .
Publication
The text has been edited by Abd al-Karim Khalifa along with a committee of scholars, and was published in Muscat by the Ministry of National Heritage and Culture in the Sultanate of Oman (1st edition, 1420 AH / 1999 CE) .
Answer updated