درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

Due to the fact that the Arabic language abounds in words with similar meanings, eloquence in speech or writing calls for the accurate choice of words. The Holy Quran is characterized by the use of words and morphemes in absolute precision, which accounts for part of its beauty and elegance.  This study addresses the proper use of Fe’l, Amal, and Son’ in the Quran, as three semantically close concepts all of which lie in the area of meaning of the verb ‘do’. The study is conducted through a descriptive-analytic method. First, with reference to Arabic dictionaries, the meanings of these words and their nuances are presented. Then, a number of representative verses are extracted from the Quran to show the elegant application as well as the verbal secret of those individual words.  According to the results, the word Amal is used in contexts where something is regularly done by preplanning and with pain. The word Fe’l refers to an action for getting something done or made typically for a short time, but it is on no regular basis, either planned or unplanned. The word Son’, however, is reserved for cases that are done with skill, care, and consciousness of consequences. The word also involves a degree of secrecy. As it is found, since Amal refers to an action which involves toil and trouble, it is never used for God in the Quran. What the Book uses in this regard are the words Fe’l and Son’. This verbal token can be taken as one of the linguistic miracles of the Holy Quran.

This paper aimed to study four translations of the Holly Quran using a comprehensive Appraisal theory approach by Martin and White (2005). In so doing, the Chapter Al-Munafequn (The Hypocrites) was considered as the source text and four English translations of the Holly Quran (Arberry, 1955; Irving, 1985; Shakir, 1999; Yusuf Ali, 1934) were considered as the target texts. The study used a corpus-based qualitative translation assessment design. The data collection was based on purposive sampling, and the data analysis was based on all the three sub-systems of Appraisal theory (Attitude, Engagement, and Gradation) based on a three point assessment scale namely ‘+’ meaning acceptable, ‘-’ meaning unacceptable and ‘≈’ meaning relatively acceptable. The study comprised two research questions: (1) What are the choices made by the four translations of the Al-Munafequn Chapter and how can the translations be evaluated individually? (2) Which of the four translations is most qualified in terms of Appraisal theory sub-systems? To answer the first question, data were collected from each source independently and then evaluated and tabulated based on the appraisal theory. Regarding the second research question the following results were obtained: TT1 (Arberry’s version) suggested acceptable translations in terms of the three aspects of Attitude, Engagement, and Gradation. TT2 (Irving’s version) showed a fairly acceptable translation quality by fulfilling most of the Appraisal features of the original verse with several shortcomings. TT3 (Shakir’s version) represented an acceptable translation as it dealt with many aspects of Appraisal in ST. Finally, TT4 (Yusuf Ali’s version) showed a highly acceptable transfer of Appraisals in its translation. As a result, from among the four translations, TT4 (Yusuf Ali’s translation) could be deemed as the most accurate version in translating the Appraisal sub-systems.

Due to the important status of martyrdom in the context of Islam and Muslim thoughts, especially Shiites, some orientalists such as Wim Raven have sought to write works in this field. Throughout an article published as "Martyr" in the Encyclopedia of the Qur''an, Raven has explored the meaning of martyrdom and its genealogy, using the books and articles by other western scholars, especially Goldziher and Wensinck. According to them, he believes that "martyr" in The Qur''an means "witness" and "hearer of confession", and that reference of the term to the concept of "being killed in the path of Allah" is the result of a semantic transformation that occurs in the Old Testament and the use of "shahīd" in the sense of martyr owes to hadith literature. Orientalists believe that the term "shahīd" in the sense of martyr is a loan and post-Qur''anic word whose root is derived from the Syriac origin of Sahda. In the present article, with a descriptive-analytical approach, after examining Raven''s semantics discussions and outlining his viewpoints and sources, we have considered the semantics of "martyrs" in lexical and Islamic books and then analyzed Orientalists'' viewpoints in this regard. According to the historical analysis of the usage of the word "shahīd" in the sense of "the killed", its application is traced back to the outward contiguity of the concept of the killed with the basic meaning of the word "shahīd" (witness and presence). That is to say, due to the adjacency of the presence some of the killed on the battlefield and their practical witness to the faith of God and the Prophet, the concept of "being killed" is linked to "the presence", and gradually, this contiguity has led to the independent usage of the word "shahīd" in the sense of "the killed".