An Introduction to Koranic and Classical Arabic: An Elementary Grammar of the Language

An Introduction to Koranic and Classical Arabic is an elementary-level grammar of standard classical Arabic, the literary norm of the Arabic language that has not changed appreciably in fourteen hundred years. An indispensable tool for all who are interested in Islamic religion, science, and literature, the language presented in this book will enable the learner to study firsthand the primary sources of Islamic civilization and the classics of the Islamic Near East. The grammar is presented clearly and in a logical progression amply illustrated by examples, most of which, along with the readings, have been taken directly from the text of the Koran and the body of hadith (the reports of Muhammad's sayings) and supplemented with extracts from other classical sources. In the forty lessons all essential features of grammar are covered, and the student will acquire an active base vocabulary of over 450 common words and productive roots, from which many times that number of individual lexical items can be regularly and predictably formed. In the course of readings, passive exposure is given to more than 400 additional items of vocabulary. Wheeler M. Thackston is Professor of the Practice in Persian and Other Near Eastern Languages at Harvard University, where he has taught Persian and Arabic for over twenty years. Author of numerous books and articles on the languages and literatures of the Near East, his works include a new English translation of the Baburnama, A Century of Princes: Sources on Timurid History and Art, and Tales from Luristan: Tales, Fables and Folk Poetry from the Lur of Bala-Garva. Other grammars by the author include Persian.