Speech Defects among Ancient Arabic Scholars- in Light of Modern Linguistics: Al-Kitāb Al-Mukhaṣṣaṣ by Ibn Sīdah as a Model

Abstract

There is no doubt that speech is a complex phenomenon carried out by many organs, known as speech organs. There are many factors that affect speech, including organic, social and psychological factors. These factors affect speech and infect it with what is known as “speech defects”. Modern phonology has been concerned with studying speech defects, diagnosing them, knowing their causes and trying to treat them. This is because the study of speech defects is at the core of the research in applied linguistics. Ancient Arab scholars monitored these defects and knew their reality, but they had the merit of taking a lead in this field. This indicates the extent of Arabs’ awareness of these defects, and their keenness on the integrity of their language and its good performance. Al-Kitāb al-Mukhaṣṣaṣ (Book of Customs) by Ibn Sīdah is the most useful of the dictionaries of meanings in that matter. It represents the height of maturity reached by thematic dictionaries among the Arabs. It is also one of the few books that took care of the phenomenon of speech defects with direct attention. This paper is meant to highlight how this book handles the issues of ‘dyslalia’, ‘solecism’, lack of fluency, misconstruction of sentences, and misuse of Arabic terms.