al-Mujam al-Ishtiqaqi al-Muassal
- Author died
- 1436 AH
- Editions
- Maktabat al-Ādāb
al-Muʿjam al-Ishtiqāqī al-Muʾaṣṣal li-Alfāẓ al-Qurʾān al-Karīm (The Grounded Etymological Dictionary of Quranic Vocabulary) is a specialized Arabic linguistic and exegetical dictionary authored by Muhammad Hasan Jabal (d. 1436 AH / 2015 CE), a professor of linguistic fundamentals at al-Azhar University . The work investigates the semantic origins of Quranic vocabulary by tying words to a unified "core meaning" (al-maʿnā al-miḥwarī) for each linguistic root and clarifying the relationships between phonetic compositions and their meanings .
Background and Purpose
Jabal began researching Quranic vocabulary in the 1960s at intermittent intervals . The academic core of the project was supervised by Ibrahim Muhammad Naja, former vice president of al-Azhar University, and examined by a committee consisting of Naja, Ibrahim Basyuni, and Abd al-Sabur Shahin .
The stated motivation for compiling the dictionary was to establish a rigorous, grounded methodology for determining the precise meanings of Quranic vocabulary . Relying on the premise cited by Fakhr al-Din al-Razi that derivation (ishtiqāq) is the most complete method for defining word meanings, Jabal sought to resolve the uncertainty caused by competing exegetical opinions by anchoring interpretations in the authentic, attested usage of the Arabs during the period of linguistic protestation (ʿaṣr al-iḥtijāj) .
Methodology and Structure
The dictionary is organized around linguistic roots and lexicographical sections (fuṣūl muʿjamiyyah), covering approximately 2,300 root structures and establishing shared semantic roots across roughly 370 sections . For every root entry, the author follows a structured methodology:
- Attested Usages: The entry begins by citing physical and sensory usages documented by classical lexicographers in sources such as Ibn Manzur's Lisan al-Arab and al-Murtada al-Zabidi's Taj al-Arus .
- The Core Meaning: From these attested usages, the author formulates a single, unified "core meaning" (al-maʿnā al-miḥwarī) that encompasses all derived words from that root, rejecting the approach of multiplying fundamental root meanings .
- Quranic Contextualization: The derived Quranic terms are analyzed in their specific scriptural contexts, demonstrating how each usage conforms to the core root meaning . Transmitted opinions from books of exegesis (tafsīr) are evaluated against this criterion to adopt the most accurate interpretations or reject inconsistent readings .
The scope of the dictionary covers virtually all Quranic vocabulary deriving from Arabic roots, excluding non-Arabic proper nouns (al-aʿlām al-aʿjamiyyah), demonstrative pronouns, relative pronouns, conditional particles, and certain particles of meaning (ḥurūf al-maʿānī) .
Publication
The work was published in Cairo by Maktabat al-Adab in 2010 (1431 AH) in four volumes arranged alphabetically :
- Volume 1: Letters Bāʾ through Khāʾ
- Volume 2: Letters Dāl through Shīn
- Volume 3: Letters Ṣād through Fāʾ
- Volume 4: Letters Qāf through Hāʾ, followed by weak and semi-vowel entries (Hamza, Wāw, and Yāʾ)
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