Abd al-Qahir al-Jurjani
Encyclopedia
Abu Bakr Abd al-Qāhir bin Abd ar-Rahman bin Muhammad al-Jurjānī (400 – 471 or 474 A.H.) (died 1078 AD) was a renowned Persian
scholar of the Arabic language
, literary theorist, grammarian and Shafi'i Muslim
. al-Jurjānī was an Ahsa'ari descendant, and born in the town of Gorgan
in Iran
.
al-Jurjānī is said not to have left his home town of Gorgan all his life, yet his reputation reached many Arabic scholars who came to see him. He excelled in the two sciences of ilm al balaghah (eloquence and rhetorical art) and ilm al bayan (a branch of Arabic rhetoric dealing with metaphor
ical language), which he explained in his two books Asrar al Balaghah (Secrets of Eloquence), and Dala'il al-Ijaz (Intimations of Inimitability). Al-Jurjānī was influenced by his predecessors such as the grammarian Sibawayh
, the critic Abi Helal al-'Askari al Balaghi, and the linguist and literary theorist Abu Ali al-Farisi, known for his book al-Idah (Elucidation).
Ali al-Farisi's nephew, Abi al-Hussein Muhammad Bin al-Hassan Bin Abd al-Wareth al-Faressi al-Nawawi, was al-Jurjānī's teacher, and used al-Idah to teach al-Jurjānī. Later al-Jurjānī was to write a thirty-volume work of commentary al-Idah entitled al Maghna fi Sharh al-Idah .
's theory of deconstruction
is preceded by Abd al-Qāhir al-Jurjānī’s theory of deconstruction".
Also, in the introduction of Muhammad Abdul Muttaleb's book Issues of Modernism in the Works of Abd-al-Qāhir al-Jurjānī, Muttaleb writes of al-Jurjānī and Noam Chomsky
"there is a similarity between these two men".
Persian people
The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...
scholar of the Arabic language
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
, literary theorist, grammarian and Shafi'i Muslim
Shafi'i
The Shafi'i madhhab is one of the schools of fiqh, or religious law, within the Sunni branch of Islam. The Shafi'i school of fiqh is named after Imām ash-Shafi'i.-Principles:...
. al-Jurjānī was an Ahsa'ari descendant, and born in the town of Gorgan
Gorgan
Gorgan Some east of Gorgan is the Golestan National Park. The city has a regional airport and several universities. Gorgan Airport was opened in September 2005.-Etymology:...
in Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
.
al-Jurjānī is said not to have left his home town of Gorgan all his life, yet his reputation reached many Arabic scholars who came to see him. He excelled in the two sciences of ilm al balaghah (eloquence and rhetorical art) and ilm al bayan (a branch of Arabic rhetoric dealing with metaphor
Metaphor
A metaphor is a literary figure of speech that uses an image, story or tangible thing to represent a less tangible thing or some intangible quality or idea; e.g., "Her eyes were glistening jewels." Metaphor may also be used for any rhetorical figures of speech that achieve their effects via...
ical language), which he explained in his two books Asrar al Balaghah (Secrets of Eloquence), and Dala'il al-Ijaz (Intimations of Inimitability). Al-Jurjānī was influenced by his predecessors such as the grammarian Sibawayh
Sibawayh
Abū Bishr ʻAmr ibn ʻUthmān ibn Qanbar Al-Bishrī , commonly known as Sībawayh , was an influential linguist and grammarian of the Arabic language. He was of Persian origin born ca...
, the critic Abi Helal al-'Askari al Balaghi, and the linguist and literary theorist Abu Ali al-Farisi, known for his book al-Idah (Elucidation).
Ali al-Farisi's nephew, Abi al-Hussein Muhammad Bin al-Hassan Bin Abd al-Wareth al-Faressi al-Nawawi, was al-Jurjānī's teacher, and used al-Idah to teach al-Jurjānī. Later al-Jurjānī was to write a thirty-volume work of commentary al-Idah entitled al Maghna fi Sharh al-Idah .
In modern critical opinion
In his volume Asrar al-Balaghah, Muhammad Abdul Mun'em Khafagi writes "the Swiss linguist SaussureFerdinand de Saussure
Ferdinand de Saussure was a Swiss linguist whose ideas laid a foundation for many significant developments in linguistics in the 20th century. He is widely considered one of the fathers of 20th-century linguistics...
's theory of deconstruction
Deconstruction
Deconstruction is a term introduced by French philosopher Jacques Derrida in his 1967 book Of Grammatology. Although he carefully avoided defining the term directly, he sought to apply Martin Heidegger's concept of Destruktion or Abbau, to textual reading...
is preceded by Abd al-Qāhir al-Jurjānī’s theory of deconstruction".
Also, in the introduction of Muhammad Abdul Muttaleb's book Issues of Modernism in the Works of Abd-al-Qāhir al-Jurjānī, Muttaleb writes of al-Jurjānī and Noam Chomsky
Noam Chomsky
Avram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, and activist. He is an Institute Professor and Professor in the Department of Linguistics & Philosophy at MIT, where he has worked for over 50 years. Chomsky has been described as the "father of modern linguistics" and...
"there is a similarity between these two men".
Publications
- Al Maghna fi Shar’h al-Idah’, thirty volumes
- Al Muq'tasad, a short version of Al Maghna.
- I'jaz al-Qur'an (The inimitability of the Qur'anQur'anThe Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
) - Kitab 'Aroud (Poetic Structure)
- Al-'Awamel al-Mi'ah (The Hundred Elements)
- Al–Miftah (The Key)
- Shar'rh al-Fateha fi Mujallad (Explaining Al-FatihaAl-FatihaSura Al-Fatiha , is the first chapter of the Qur'an. Its seven verses are a prayer for Allah's guidance, and stress His Lordship and Mercy...
in a Volume) - Al-'Umhad fi al-Tasreef (The Basis of Morphology)
- Al-Jumal (Sentences)
- Al-Talkhiss bi Sharhihe (The Brief of Sentence Elucidation)
- Asrar al-Balaghah (The Secrets of Elucidation)
- Dala'il al-I'jaz (Intimations of Inimitability)
- An anthology collection on the works of Abi-tammam, al-Buh'turi, and al-Mutannabi.