DeArabizing Arabia: Tracing Western Scholarship on the History of the Arabs and Arabic Language and Script

by Saad D. Abulhab

This book is a comprehensive reference on the history of Arabic Language and script, which goes beyond the sole discussion of technical matters. It scrutinizes mainstream western theories about the history of the Arabs and Arabic language and script, in connection with the roles played by Western Near East scholarship, religion, and colonial history in the formation of the current belief system, which is an essential step to study this correlated and complex topic objectively. As a reference tool, the book studies objectively the evidence presented by modern-day western archeological discoveries together with the evidence presented by the indispensable scholarly work of the past Islamic Arab civilization era. To support his many observations, the author presents analytical tracings and readings of relevant inscriptions, and his new findings, following two years of in-depth research. For instance, he examines, with an investigative and experienced eye of an Arabic type designer, the early shapes of the pre-Islamic Arabic script, Jazm, and compares them to those of Musnad Arabic and late Nabataean Aramaic inscriptions, in addition to those of the early Islamic Arabic manuscripts and papyri. As a result, he concludes that the early Arabic script was not a transformed Nabataean script, but an independently derived script of the old Musnad Arabic script with clear Nabataean influence. Although this book is conceived as a textbook for scholars and researchers, other readers may find its topics and captivating arguments valid enough to debate and study further. All chapters can be read independently.

252 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 11, 2011