The Basics and Intricacies of Arabic Morphology

by Joyce Akesson

Despite the amount of material about Arabic grammar, phonology, and morphology, the need for a book combining an independent study in morphology with theoretical discussions is more than evident. This book fills that void by proposing an in-depth analysis of various morphological issues based on the seven classes of verbs and their nine derivatives. These classical classes are the strong verb, the doubled, the hamzated, the verb with 1st radical w or y, the verb with 2nd radical w or y, the verb with 3rd radical w or y, and the verb that is doubly weak. The nine derivatives are the perfect, imperfect, imperative, infinitive noun, active participle, passive participle, noun of time, noun of place and noun of instrument. The different sections introduce several paradigms of verbs, a carefully explored data and explicit information about the morphological structures and the various phonological changes that can affect them, such as the addition, transfer or elision of a vowel or letter, the assimilation of two letters and the substitution of one letter for another. The study pays also particular attention to the most representative works from the 8th century until our days.

292 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 10, 2018

About the author

Joyce Akesson has studied the Semitic languages at Lund's University, Sweden and has previously been a lecturer there during many years. She is the author of nine books about foreign linguistics: "Causes and Principles in Arabic", "A Study of Arabic Phonology", "The Basics & Intricacies of Arabic Morphology", "The Phonological Changes due to the Hamza and Weak Consonant in Arabic", "A Study of the Assimilation and Substitution in Arabic", "The Essentials of the Class of the Strong Verb in Arabic", "The Complexity of the Irregular Verbal and Nominal Forms & the Phonological Changes in Arabic", "Arabic Morphology and Phonology based on the Marah" and "Ahmad b. Ali b. Masud on Arabic Morphology, Part One: The Strong Verb".
She has also published several articles about Arabic linguistics in two Journals, the Journal of Arabic Linguistics (the ZAL or Zeitschrift für Arabische Linguistik) Wiesbaden, and the previous Acta Orientalia, Denmark. She has also written a lemma about sarf "morphology/phonology in the Encyclopaedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics, vol. 4. Leiden: Brill, 20.
She is also the author of three books of poems "Love's Thrilling Dimensions", "The Invitation" and "Majnun Leyla: Poems about Passion".
Two of her poems have also been selected in an Anthology in the UK, "The New Poetry: In Love".