Some Arabic-Akkadian Lexical Observations

Assyrian inscriptions, on display at the British Museum

أَكّادي

root: ء-ك-د / nisba adjective, noun / definition: Akkadian

For the past week, I’ve been intensively studying Akkadian as part of the three-week Ancient Languages of Anatolia program, run by the Koç University Research Center for Anatolian Civilisations (ANAMED).

And when I say intensively, I mean it: I feel like I’ve studied the equivalent of two years worth of Arabic grammar (verb forms and all!) in addition to getting to grips with the cuneiform writing system as well as how to transcribe, transliterate, and translate texts… in the space of five days.

But as an enthusiastic linguist and unashamed grammar nerd, I honestly couldn’t have found a better way to spend three weeks of my summer!

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Reading Arabic Literature: Vocabulary That Caught My Eye

إطْلاق

root: ط-ل-ق / form IV verbal noun / definition: launch

I quietly launched The Arabic Pages shop a few days ago, with the first designs inspired by the uncommon Arabic word for “moonlessness” that we explored in Wehr Wednesdays #175.

(You might say it’s slightly ironic, then, that the design features an undeniably-present illustration of the moon… but I’d call it poetic juxtaposition… or something…)

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Dictionary Finds: the Curious Case of the Question Mark

اِستِفهام

root: ف-ه-م / form X verbal noun / definition: inquiry, question

For me, this week has been characterised by a lovely long chat in a cosy café, arranging a flurry of travel vaccinations, and adding some fresh ideas to my growing list of side hustles.

I don’t remember what I was doing, however, when I screenshotted a certain intriguing dictionary entry many months ago—but I’m glad I stumbled again upon this strange little gem.

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Arabic Verbs for “to Look at” (Part 2)

نَظَر

root: ن-ظ-ر / noun / plural: أَنْظار / definition: sight, view

We’re adding to our synonyms series this week, with part two of Arabic Verbs for “to Look at”. And this time, we’re including some phrases. Let’s get into it:

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Arabic Observations: the True Meanings of Poetry

Art by Devrim Erbil—this one’s worth clicking and zooming in on…

اِرتِباط

root: ر-ب-ط / form VIII verbal noun / plural: اِرتِباطات / definition: connection, link

During one of your sessions journeying through an Arabic dictionary, you might have stumbled upon the entry for شِعْر, and maybe you also noticed how it has two primary meanings: knowledge and poetry.

(You’ll find quite a nice phrase under the entry too: لَيتَ شِعري, “I wish I knew”!)

I just love exploring how and why concepts might be linguistically linked, so this dictionary find got me thinking: what can we understand about perceptions of poetry in Arab societies through poetry-related Arabic words?

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Root Exploration: ج-ن-ح

طائِرة

root: ط-ي-ر / active participle of form I / plural: طائِرات / definition: airplane

A wise woman I met in the Jordanian desert told me to always have my next flight booked before the end of a trip. Good advice that I didn’t take at the time, and that now has me searching for flights and hotels to ease the post-travel blues that have taken hold.

And I think the ocean, rather than the desert, is calling me this time.

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Meanings of ما لم

مَجَرّة

root: ج-ر-ر / noun / plural: مَجَرّات / definition: galaxy

Four 5.5-hour flights in a matter of weeks seem to have taken their toll on my body, but my mind is alive with the memories of a night under the Milky Way on Wadi Rum’s dunes, a sunset from the mountaintop in Wadi Musa, and the fragrant cardamom and cinnamon teas that washed down eventful days.

And if my trip wasn’t already sweet enough, I also got my first taste of knafeh whilst I was there. Yum!

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Three Arabic Phrases Meaning “to Take Someone’s Place”

اِستِبْدال

root: ب-د-ل / verbal noun of form X / definition: replacement

Back in December, we explored the مَـ of place and time. Today, we’re taking a look at three phrases meaning “to take someone or something’s place” that combine a verb with a place noun from the same root:

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Strangeness and a Summer of Reading

غَريب

root: غ-ر-ب / adjective / definition: strange

Orhan Pamuk’s A Strangeness in My Mind has been sitting on the tiny, just-enough-space-for-tea-and-a-book shelf beside my bed, having remained unopened for far too long after I’d got into it and read a decent amount.

I’m not sure why it’s hard for me to pick it back up again, but perhaps—on some subconscious level—its title strikes a little too close to home these days.

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Imperatives of Sound Form I Verbs

سَجّادة

root: س-ج-د / noun / plural: سَجاجيد / definition: carpet

On the weekend, I returned from an expectation-exceeding week-long stay in beautiful Baku, Azerbaijan. And I would jump on the five-and-a-half hour flight again in a heartbeat, even just to get my hands on the perfect xalça that I didn’t have time to shop around for.

But back from Baku, we have some grammar to get stuck into.

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