إنْسان root: ء-ن-س / noun / definition: a human I was thinking about the root of the word إنْسان (“human”)—how ء-ن-س is associated with friendliness and familiarity, and how even the dictionary knows that humanity can be lost and corrupted if you muddle its origin (see ء-س-ن). And the humanness of language is very muchContinue reading “Non-Human Nouns, Human Plurals”
Tag Archives: plural forms
The Plural of Few and the Plural of Many
قِلّة root: ق-ل-ل / noun / definition: few I’m writing this post in between kneading and leaving-to-rise the Cypriot hellimli zeytinli I’m making in the kitchen, and the smell of black olives is stirring up hunger pangs despite the fact fasting is over (!عيد مبارك). But this post isn’t about halloumi or olives, it’s aboutContinue reading “The Plural of Few and the Plural of Many”
The Arabic Pages 