Current Issues in the Analysis of Semitic Grammar and Lexicon I: Oslo-Goteborg Cooperation 3rd-5th June 2004

256 Pages·2006·15.881 MB·English

by  Lutz Edzard, Jan Retso

ABHANDLUNGEN FÜR DIE KUNDE
DES MORGENLANDES
Band L٧I, 3
Current Issues in the Analysis
of Semitic Grammar and lexicon I
Oslo-GOteborg Cooperation 3rd-5th June 2004
Edited by
Lutz Edzard and Jan RetsO
Deutsche Morgenländische Gesellschaft
Harrassowitz Verlag
ABHANDLUNGEN FUR DIE KUNDE
DES MORGENLANDES
Im Auftrag der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft
herausgegeben von Florian c. Reiter
BandLV!,3
2005
Harrassowitz Verlag ٠ Wiesbaden
Current Issues in the Analysis
of Semitic Grammar and Lexicon I
٠ ٠ ٠
Osl -GOteb rg Co peration 3rd-5th June 2004
Edited by
Lutz Edzad and Jan RetsO
2005
Harrassowitz Verlag ٠ Wiesbaden
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Table of Contents
Preface.............................................................................................................................. 7
٠
I Afr asiatic, Comparative Semitic, and Arabic
ANDRZEJ ZABORSKI (KrakOw):
Tense, Aspect and Mood Categories of Proto-Semitic.................................... 11
jANRETSO(GOteborg):
The Number-Gender-Mood Markers of the Prefix Conjugation
in Arabic Dialects. A Preliminary Consideration.................................................... 31
KJELLMAGNEYRI (Oslo):
Cleft Sentences in Amharic, with special Reference to Reference.................. 41
LUTZ EDZARD (Oslo):
S^mtaktische und lexikalische Merkmale des Amharischen
als Sprache in modernen diplomatischen Dokumenten:
Die amharische Version der OAU-Charta.............................................................. 59
n Native Arabic Grammatical Theory
and Modern Linguistic and Literary Theoty Applied to Arabic
RAMZI BAALBAKI (Beirut):
From Burden to Asset: Morphological Change in the Arabic Tradition......... 83
PIERRE LARCHER (Aix-en-Provence):
Que signifie "dériver" en arabe classique?......................................................... 106
RASOUL AL-٠KHAFAJI (Göteborg):
Patterns of lexis in Arabie Text Types................................................................ 125
HELENE KA^ENSJO (GOteborg):
Pre-Topical Elements in Formai spoken Arabie................................................. 149
jUDirajOSEPHSON (GOteborg):
The Multicultural Background of the Kitab al-OÄdäb al-Jéîr
byIbnal-MuqaffaC................................................................................................... 166
WERNER DIEM (KOln):
"Even if you died a small (child), * the grief is not small."
Arabic Epitaphs of Children and other Prematurely Deceased..................... 193
٠
6 Table f Contents
in Classical Hebrew and Aramaic
ROLFFURULI (Osl.٠):؛
The Verbal System Classical Hebrew.
An Attempt t. Distin^iish between Semantic and Pragmatic Factors.. 205
HALLVARD HAGELIA (Kristiansand):
Philological Issues in ^e Tel Dan Inscription............................................ 232
Preface
This collecti.n of articles emanates from the panel "Current Issues in the
Analysis of Semitic Grammar and Lexicon", which was held at the Univer-
sity of Oslo on June 3 and 4, 2004. The panel was organized and sponsored in
the framework of the Oslo-GOteborg (Gothenburg) School of Asian and Afri-
can Studies (OGSAA) which the two universities established in 2003. One of
the goals of this cooperation program is the organization of joint workshops
for scholars engaged in such studies at the two universities and the invita-
tion of international scholars to such events. Thus, an opportunity presen-
ted itself for to unite colleagues working within Semitic linguistics in the
US
departments of East European and Oriental Languages, as well as Linguistics
at the University of Oslo and in the department of African and Oriental
Languages at the University of GOteborg (Gothenburg). A theologian (Old
Testament) from Ansgar Teologiske Hogskole, Kristiansand (Norway) also
took part in our panel, in addition to colleagues from Lebanon, Poland,
France, and Germany.
The papers collected in this volume cover theoretical perspectives on
comparative Semitic, Arabic, and Hebrew linguistics to the practical applica-
tion of philological methods to ancient, medieval, and modern texts. The
contributions are ordered in three sections: I. Afroasiatic, Comparative
Semitic, and Arabic; II. Native Arabic Grammatical Theory and Modern
Linguistic and Literary Theory Applied to Arabic; and III. Classical Hebrew
and Aramaic.
Andrzej Zaborski starts out from an Afroasiatic bird's perspective on
tense, aspect, and mood categories in the Proto-Semitic language conti-
nuum. Jan RetsO investigates the number-gender-mood markers of the pre-
fix conjugation in Arabic dialects. Kjell Magne Yri takes a closer look at cleft
sentences in Amharic, and Lutz Edzard deals with syntactic and lexical fea-
tures in modern Amharic diplomatic documents.
Ramzi Baalbaki investigates the native Arab grammatical approach to
morphological change. Pierre Larcher takes up the issue of whether the con-
cept of the "root" in modern Semitic linguistics faithfully repesents the in-
digenous approach to this topic. Rasoul al-Khafaji applies modern methods
of text linguistics to Arabic legal texts. Heléne KammensjO pursues a similar
s Preface
.bjective with special c.nsiderati.n of pre-topical elements in formal spo-
ken Arabic (university lectures). Judith Josephson has a closer look at the
multicultural background of the Kitab al~DÄdäb al-kabir by Ibn al-Muqaffa..
Werner Diem analyzes Arabic epitaphs of children and other prematurely
deceased.
Rolf Furuli presents a re-analysis of the tense and aspect system of Clas-
sical Hebrew with a view to distinguishing between semantic and pragmatic
factors. Finally, Hallvard Hagelia gives an overview of the debate on philo-
logical issues in the Aramaic Tel Dan inscription.
Our thanks are due to the organizers of the OGSAA cooperation pro-
gram, to the editor-in-chief of Harrassowitz Verlag, Michael Langfeld, and
the editor of the series Abhandlungen für die Kunde des Morgenlandes,
who together made the publication of these proceedings possible.
Oslo and Göteborg, August 2005 Lutz Edzard and Jan RetsO
Afroasiatic,
Comparative Semitic,
and Arabic