BiJa a BaJi aI-TaIlavi and His ConlviIulion lo lIe LexicaI BeveIopnenl oJ Modevn Lilevav

AvaIic
AulIov|s) MoIanned Savaie
Souvce InlevnalionaI JouvnaI oJ MiddIe Easl Sludies, VoI. 32, No. 3 |Aug., 2000), pp. 395-410
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Int. J. Middle East Stud. 32 (2000), 395-410. Printed in the United States of America
Mohammed Sawaie
RIFAcA RAFIF AL-TAHTAWI AND HIS
CONTRIBUTION TO THE LEXICAL
DEVELOPMENT OF MODERN LITERARY ARABIC
In the 19th century, Europe had a tangible impact on the Arab East. During this
period, Arabic-speaking regions were brought into intimate contact with the West,
both through military intrusion (e.g., the French in 1798-1801 and the British in
Egypt in 1882), and institutional penetration (e.g., the founding of Western-style
schools and higher-education institutions in the Levant in the 1800s by Christian
missionaries such as the Syrian Protestant College in 1866, now the American Uni-
versity of Beirut, and [the Jesuit] St. Joseph University, also in Beirut, in 1874). This
overpowering European encroachment on the Arab East in the 19th century resulted
in cultural and linguistic identity crises. Muhammad 'Ali, who ruled Egypt from
1805 until 1848, dispatched groups of students to Western countries such as Italy,
Austria, and France to study at their universities and technical institutions. At home,
he established schools with Western-language instruction, and sponsored translations
of scientific works initially into Turkish, and later into Arabic, from Italian and
French, thus making available new disciplines such as various branches of engineer-
ing, military science, and agriculture. In 1822, he established a printing press in the
Bulaq section of Cairo.' From then on, Arabicized versions of European terms such
as "theater" (tiyatru), "journal" (jurnal), "the post" (al-busta), and "politics" (al-bu-
litiqd) signaled the arrival of Western institutions and technology in Arabic-speaking
regions, and such terms were adopted by writers in their writings. The cultural, po-
litical, military, and technological challenges that resulted from the European contact
with the Arab East, and the institutional changes that accompanied them, proved to
be a crucial turning point in the development of the Arabic language, particularly its
lexicon. However, interest in language matters was central to the Arab renaissance
(Nah~da) of the 19th century. Arab writers; intellectuals; and translators such Rifaca
Rafic al-Tahtawi (1801/2-73), (Ahmad) Faris al-Shidyaq (1801/04?-87), Nasif al-
Yaziji (1800-71), and Butrus al-Bustani (1819-83), among others, debated Arabic
linguistic issues in terms of their own literary and linguistic heritage. These and
other authors discussed the "internal" needs of Arabic, not only issues of translat-
ing the culture of the Western societies. They wrote grammars and compiled other
Mohammed Sawaie is with the Department of Asian and Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures, Uni-
versity of Virginia, Charlottesville, Va. 22903, USA; e-mail: ms@virginia.edu.
? 2000 Cambridge University Press 0020-7438/00 $9.50
396 Mohammed Sawaie
literary textbooks to facilitate the teaching of Arabic and to overcome difficulties of
learning the language associated with older, traditional ways of language teaching
and to raise awareness of the literary tradition of Arabs. These intellectuals also
engaged in the preparation of glossaries and dictionaries appropriate to the needs of
their societies.2
In this article, I survey and discuss strategies devised by one Arab intellectual to
deal with the linguistic dilemmas that faced his society as a result of the influx of
Western terminology during the Arab renaissance of the 19th century. Specifically,
I explore Rifaca Rafi' al-Tahtawi's search for appropriate Arabic terminology to de-
note Western technological and cultural materials and to express ideas with which
he had become familiar through his residence in Paris between 1826 and 1831, and
upon his return to Egypt. This and other dilemmas are most strikingly apparent in
al-Tahtawi's detailed descriptive work Takhlis al-'ibriz fi talkhis bariz,3 which was
first published by the Bulaq Printing Press in 1834. It is worth mentioning that al-
Tahtawi's writing of Takhlis and his work on translation were contemporaneous;
therefore, these linguistic issues preoccupied al-Tahtawi as he wrote this book. In this
work, al-Tahtawi provided descriptions of daily Parisian life; aspects of French civ-
ilization, administrative, social, and political institutions; and various sciences that
were previously unknown to him.4 Discussions of linguistic matters that are of a
general nature or specific to the Arabic and French languages and comments about
foreign-language teaching are found throughout Takhlis.5 Insofar as al-Tahtawi's dif-
ficulties in identifying the appropriate Arabic lexicon for Western sciences and cul-
tural objects are relevant to this article, I shall attempt to answer the following
questions: How did he resolve the difficulties he faced in translating European, es-
pecially French, terms? What models did he appeal to in his enterprise? What strat-
egies did he employ in coining lexical items? How successful were these strategies?
And to what extent were they adopted by his successors?
A cursory reading of Takhlis would reveal that al-Tahtawi felt acutely the difficulty
of finding appropriate terminology in the Arabic lexicon to portray French institu-
tions and sciences. We cite one brief quote from Takhlis to illustrate the point:6
"wa la acrifu isman 'arabiyyan yaliqu bi mana al-sbaktakil aw al-tiyatr"
(I don't know an Arabic noun appropriate to express spectacle or theatre)
This dilemma resulted in his frequent use of French terms to represent French
institutions. These difficulties were further intensified through his contacts with the
two leading French Arabists, Silvestre de Sacy and Armand-Pierre Caussin de Per-
ceval, and their frequent discussions of language issues. Their works on various as-
pects of the Arabic language, and their ideas and varying degrees of mastery of
Arabic, were constant reminders to al-Tahtawi of the relevant language matters.7 In
particular, his translations pointed to: (1) the limitations of the Arabic language
tra-
dition with respect to Western-style tools such as dictionaries, and the urgent need
for modem ones; and (2) the question of appropriate terminology and the coining
of
neologisms. The remainder of this article will discuss these and other matters as fol-
lows: I shall review briefly al-Tahtawi's training in translation during his residence in
Paris; summarize his views on the inadequacy of existing dictionaries; and present
his strategies of neologisms and methods of coinage.
Rifa'a Rafi' al-Tahtawi and Modern Literary Arabic 397
AL-TAHTAWI' S TRAINING IN TRANSLATION
Al-Tahtawi's interest in linguistic matters in his Takhlis was undoubtedly influenced
by his pursuit of a career in translation.8 As a requirement for a diploma in this field,
al-Tahtawi was tested several times in the French language and in translation from
French into Arabic. He was first examined in 1827 and again in March 1828 in the
French language,9 but his final examination took place in public in 1831 before his
return to Egypt.10 This examination was arranged by the famous French Orientalist
Edme-Franqais
Jomard; a detailed description of it is provided in Takhlis.11 I pre-
sent here a short account of this experience: On 19 October 1831, Jomard assembled
the Examination Committee, which comprised several illustrious notables and
French scholars.12 The purpose of this gathering was to assess al-Tahtawi's aptitude
in the translation "craft" (sina'a) in various branches of "sciences" ('uliim) to which
he had been exposed during his sojourn in France.
At this public examination, two "notebooks" made up the requirement. The first
consisted of twelve translations from French into Arabic, including excerpts and
whole books spanning varied topics that included geography, military science, his-
tory, mythology, law, mineralogy, and geology. Al-Tahtawi informs us that he had
translated these excerpts and books a year earlier,13 probably in 1829 or 1830. What
follows is a list of these texts:
1. An excerpt of the biography of Alexander the Great (extracted from an unidentified book
that al-Tahtawi entitled Tarikh al-qudama' ["History of the Ancients"]);
2. Kitab usid al-macadin ("Elements of Minerals");14
3. "Almanac of the Hijri year 1244," compiled by Jomard for use in Egypt and "Greater
Syria" ([Bilad] al-sham) that included scientific and economic [informational] "excerpts"
(shadhardt);
4. Kitab da'irat al-'ulumfi akhlaq al-umam wa 'awa'idihim (Encyclopedia in the Manners
and Customs of Peoples);
5. Muqaddam Jughrafya tabi'iyya (Introduction to Natural Geography);15
6. an excerpt from Malte-Brun's book on geography;16
7. Three essays from the book 'Ilm al-handasa (Geometry) by Legendre;17
8. an excerpt in cosmology;
9. an excerpt on education for high-ranking military officers;
10. Fundamentals of natural rights as advocated by the French;18
11. an excerpt in mythology (i.e., "Myths and Superstitions (sic) of the Greeks"); and, finally,
12. an excerpt in health sciences and their administration.
The second requirement for this examination was a review of al-Tahtawi's Rihla-
that is, Takhlis. I should note that al-Tahtawi mentioned in the Introduction (khutba)
to this book that some relatives and close friends, especially Shaykh Hasan al-
cAttar.l9 urged him to write down his impressions during his trip to, and stay in,
Paris, especially about those things that were unusual to Egyptians. The interest in
al-Tahtawi's impressions about those unusual matters was motivated, according to
him, by the desire to show his fellow countrymen the "secrets" of the country that
was perceived to be the "bride [crown jewel] of all countries." Such a
description
would also guide those who might travel from Egypt, presumably to France. He was
aware that no book had ever been written in Arabic on the history of Paris and on
its conditions and those of its population.20 Of special interest to him was the
398 Mohammed Sawaie
description of Western sciences, industries, and crafts, whose standards, according to
him, had reached a high level of perfection, and should be a model to follow.2" Al-
Tahtawi provided in Takhlis summaries and translations of certain scientific sub-
jects, such as the classification of sciences and arts by the French; their classification
of languages and the French grammar; the art of writing, rhetoric, and logic; the ten
categories attributed to Aristotle; arithmetic; geography; astronomy; and history.22
Al-Tahtawi did not provide information regarding the date that he began writing
Takhlis. Perhaps he started recording his impressions after departing from Cairo on
his way to Alexandria, from which he and forty-one other members of the scientific
mission23 sailed to Marseilles in 1826. It is also possible that al-Tahtawi's descrip-
tion of the places he saw during their sea voyage-such as the islands of Crete, Sic-
ily, and Corsica, and the cities of Naples and Messina, to name only a few-and the
people therein was a recollection by the writer at a later time, when he established
residence in Paris. Or it was an ongoing recording of impressions as he and his
fellow students crossed the Mediterranean on their way to France. Al-Tahtawi con-
tinued recording impressions about Paris, its society, and the French institutions as
described in Takhlis throughout his five-year stay there. His book must have been
completed, in draft form, by the end of 1830 or in the first month of 1831. We gather
that al-Tahtawi had given a draft copy for comments to the two renowned French
Orientalists that he had come to know in Paris-namely, Baron Silvestre de Sacy
(1758-1838), and Armand-Pierre Caussin de Perceval (1795-1871).24 Judging from
the translation of the two letters that these two scholars sent to al-Tahtawi, we learn
that their views were rather favorable regarding his description of Paris and of the
French institutions.25 However, in a letter dated February 1831, de Sacy implied that
al-Tahtawi tended to overgeneralize his impressions about Paris and other major
cities to all of France. De Sacy also had some comments about al-Tahtawi's Arabic.
He believed that although the style was for the most part clear, unadorned, and sim-
ple in phraseology, it did not always adhere to the rules of Arabic grammar. This
can perhaps be attributed to the fact that the book was still in draft form. Such infe-
licities, de Sacy believed, would be corrected when al-Tahtawi made final revisions.
Like de Sacy, de Perceval wrote a positive review of al-Tahtawi's work. His views
were included in an attachment to a letter written to al-Tahtawi on 24 February 1831.
In this review, de Perceval complimented the author's efforts to awaken "the Islamic
community (-ies)" (ahl al-islam) and to motivate it (them) to acquire useful knowl-
edge, to foster their love of learning Western civilization, and to advance their stan-
dards of living.26
In addition to these two components of the translation test, the Examination Com-
mittee presented al-Tahtawi with several works in Arabic printed by the Bulaq Print-
ing Press for extemporaneous translation into French. Some of this material included
excerpts, some long and some short, from al-Waqa'i' al-misriyya, the official Egyp-
tian newspaper (gazette) that was established by Muhammad 'Ali in 1828 and also
printed by the Bulaq Printing Press. The Examination Committee discussed with
al-Tahtawi his translation of the Introduction of a book designed
for
high-ranking
military officers. Some committee members held the original
French in their
hands,
while al-Tahtawi was holding the Arabic translation in his. The purpose
was to com-
pare the phraseology of the Arabic translation with that of the French
original.
Rifa'a Rafi' al-Tahtawi and Modern Literary Arabic 399
Although al-Tahtawi performed well, he felt that the need for the proper Arabic ter-
minology (istilah) made it necessary for him to replace one terminological item for
another without distortion of the intended meaning. As an example, al-Tahtawi men-
tioned the subject of "the origin of military science," which is compared to "a rich
mine ready to excavate." Realizing that this metaphor would not translate well into
Arabic, al-Tahtawi compared military science to "a large sea from which pearls are [to
be] fished out." This liberal rendition of French texts elicited criticism of al-Tahtawi's
translation from some members of the Examination Committee. For example, one
objection related to al-Tahtawi's occasional lack of correspondence between the
translated original text and its translation. At other times, and despite his faithfulness
to the meaning of the original text, al-Tahtawi translated a French sentence using
many Arabic sentences, and one word using a sentence. This led al-Tahtawi to the re-
alization that, to translate scientific books, he must abandon literal adherence to the
original. He also realized that, as a translator, it was incumbent on him to coin ter-
minology that would convey the intended meaning. These two quotes from Takhlis
illustrate some of the translation difficulties that al-Tahtawi experienced firsthand:27
wa lakin rubbama ahwaja-hu istilahu al-lughati al-'arabiyyati an yadaca majazan badala
majazin akhar min ghayri khalalin
fi
al-macna al-murad
(But perhaps the Arabic phraseology requires of him [the translator] that he substitute one
phrase for another without effecting a defect in the intended meaning)
and,
Idha arada an yutarjima kutuba 'uluimin fa la budda la-hu an yatruka al-taqtica wa 'alay-
hi an yakhtarica 'inda
al-hajati
ta'biran munasiban li al-maqsid
(if he [the translator] intends to translate scientific books, he will be obliged to avoid translat-
ing word by word; when necessary, he ought to coin terminology appropriate to the intended
meaning)
The translation of such material, according to al-Tahtawi, required mastery of the
language being translated (the source), of the language to which it is being trans-
lated (the target language), and the subject matter.28 It is worth mentioning that
al-Tahtawi's choice of disciplines, when upon his return to Egypt he was made a
translator, mirrored the 1831 examination, which offered a choice of translation of
textual material in geography, history, law, and geometry.29
DICTIONARIES (FRENCH-ARABIC)
In Takhlis, al-Tahtawi stated that the French language had reached an apogee to the
extent that every science and branch of knowledge ('ilm) had its own alphabetically
arranged dictionary encompassing the vocabulary of that science. According to al-
Tahtawi, this applied even to the "lowly" sciences-for example, culinary science,
which, to his surprise, had its own schools.30 Despite his sarcastic comments about
the attention paid to French-language dictionaries for cooking, al-Tahtawi's admira-
tion for such advancement-for the attention paid by France to codification (tahqiq)
of all matters, no matter how low they were-and for the development
of
lexicog-
raphy are clearly manifested in Takhlis.31
400 Mohammed Sawaie
The difficulties that al-Tahtawi encountered in translation from French into Ara-
bic, as a student of translation and as a practitioner upon his return to Egypt, under-
scored the need for a French-Arabic dictionary. He expressed the frustration of not
having such a dictionary in his Introduction to al-Macadin al-nafica, published by
the Bulaq Printing Press in 1833. Nevertheless, there is evidence, according to al-
Shayyal, that an Arabic-French dictionary was already in existence.32 It was the
work of an Egyptian Copt named Ellious Bocthor, who left Egypt with the French
army at the end of the Napoleonic expedition to Egypt (1798-1801). Al-Shayyal
mentioned Bocthor as the first compiler of an Arabic-French dictionary. This pio-
neering work was published posthumously in Paris in 1828-29, about two to three
years after al-Tahtawi had arrived there.33 Whether he knew about this dictionary or
found it useful is not known. What is known, however, is that, according to al-
Shayyal,34 Ibrahim Pasha, Muhammad 'Ali's son, assigned to al-Tahtawi the task of
"translating" (tarjamat)-that is, compiling a French-Arabic dictionary-perhaps
because al-Tahtawi had aired his frustration at the lack of such a dictionary to Ibra-
him Pasha in Alexandria upon his return from Paris. Al-Shayyal maintained that
Ibrahim Pasha in turn delegated the task of compiling such a dictionary to al-
Tahtawi. In response to the latter's insistence that the "translator' for such a project
be housed in a research library and aided by a French assistant, Ibrahim Pasha pro-
vided al-Tahtawi with an aide. Al-Tahtawi claimed that it would take ten assistants
if the work were to be done in a satisfactory and comprehensive manner.36 The
project encountered insurmountable difficulties, and the endeavor never bore fruit.
Perhaps because of his failure to compile a French-Arabic dictionary, al-Tahtawi
resorted to including glossaries at the end or at the beginning of books he translated.
For example, when his Qala'id al-mafakhirfi gharib 'awa'id al-awa'il wa al-awa-
khir went to press in 1834, he compiled a core scientific Arabic glossary in which he
provided annotations for neologisms that he had adopted in the translation of this
work.37 Later, when al-Tahtawi was appointed the head of the Translation School
(madrasat al-alsun) founded by Muhammad 'Ali in 1835, he and his students con-
tinued to follow the practice of compiling glossaries of new terms. Al-Tahtawi rec-
ognized a precedent for this approach in the history of the Arabic language, and
urged his colleagues and students to supplement every translation they undertook
with a dictionary of neologisms. Over time, al-Tahtawi maintained, Arabic would
through these efforts have a scientific dictionary "containing all foreign neologisms
that have no counterparts or synonyms in the language of the Arabs or Turks." Al-
Tahtawi also maintained that, over time, these foreign words would become Arabi-
cized (dakhil), following the path of other Arabicized terms from Persian and Greek
that had come into Arabic in the classical period (the 9th to the 11th centuries). He
continued this tradition in most translated works that he published, as did his disci-
ples at madrasat al-alsun.38
The establishment of schools by Muhammad 'Ali to teach medicine, engineering,
agriculture, and translation contributed to the development of Arabic in general, and
to the development of glossary- and dictionary-making in particular. During this era,
foreign dictionaries were "translated" from Italian, French, Persian, and Turkish into
Arabic; the compilation of indigenous Arabic dictionaries was also considered. As
examples of dictionary-making, al-Shayyal mentioned an Italian-Arabic dictionary
compiled in 1821 by RuphaDil (Raphael) Zakhur Rahibah.39 Al-Tahtawi's efforts to
Rifa'a Rafi' al-Tahtawi and Modern Literary Arabic 401
enrich Arabic by translating foreign books, and his frustration resulting from the
limitations he encountered, led him to compile lists of words that he had coined.
Thus, he did not compile an entire dictionary. His compilations of neologisms re-
main hidden as lists appended to books and are therefore inaccessible to the general
reader. Undoubtedly, the historical value of these glossaries lies in their importance
for the study of the development of the Arabic lexicon in particular, and lexicogra-
phy in general.40
NEOLOGISMS
Al-Tahtawi was one of a number of writers at the time who wrote travel accounts of
Western cities and countries. Such writers include, for example, (Ahmad) Faris al-
Shidyaq, who wrote travel accounts of Malta in al-Wasita fi ma'rifat ahwal malta,
and accounts of his visits to Europe in Kashf al-mukhabba'fi ahwal urubba. In their
efforts to provide full accounts of their observations, these writers had to confront
the question of neologisms and word formation to coin terminology that was appro-
priate for more complete representation of these Western cities or countries and their
institutions.
As mentioned earlier, during his residence in France al-Tahtawi was involved in
translating twelve excerpts and books spanning many topics, including geography,
history, law, philosophy, and military and physical sciences, as partial fulfillment of
the requirements for a diploma in translation.41 His sharp eye and propensity for de-
tailed description of administrative, social, academic, and political institutions in
France must have created difficulties for him in establishing the appropriate Arabic
terminology to express Western concepts and cultural items appropriately. For ex-
ample, in describing places of amusement al-Tahtawi discussed the the'atre, specta-
cle, and opera by using Arabicized terms of these French words, as in tiyatru,
sbakt~akil, and ubird, respectively.42 In Arabicizing such terms, al-Tahtawi appropri-
ated the French terms, thus subjecting them to the phonological and morphological
systems of Arabic. He strove not only for fidelity to the French pronunciation; he
also went on to describe the institutions they represented by detailing the types of
opera, such as "comic opera" and theater, as in "Italian theatre" (al-tiyatr al-tilya-
niyya), and so on.
In attempting to describe and name these institutions by the use of Arabicized
terminology, al-Tahtawi often fell into difficult predicaments. He admitted to the
difficulty of "translating scientific books" especially, as such an endeavor required
knowledge of the "idioms" (languages) of the original sciences, or the language to
be translated from; the target language, or the language to be translated into; and
the "art" (fann), or the field of the subject matter.43 Insofar as spectacle and theatre
were concerned, he found that Arabic lacked nouns that could appropriately
describe
these institutions.44 Nevertheless, he ventured into coining Arabic equivalents of the
French terms. For example, he suggested that spectacle be rendered as manzar
(view), muntazah (recreation ground), or something similar. In
fact, these Arabic
words, according to al-Tahtawi, conveyed the original meaning of the'altre. He
sug-
gested other terms, as well, such as al-la'ib (play) or mahall al-la'ib (play place).
For the sake of accuracy, al-Tahtawi invoked the Turkish word qumedi (from the Ital-
ian, originally Greek), which was, according to al-Tahtawi, insufficient to convey
402 Mohammed Sawaie
this notion. In order for this Turkish word to capture the meaning of theatre, it be-
came necessary to expand its semantic range. To him, the use of khayali (imaginary)
to express theatre or spectacle was also permissible, provided that its semantic
range, too, was expanded.
METHODS OF COINAGE
One way al-Tahtawi coined lexical items was through Arabicization of French terms.
This method amounted to the appropriation of French terminology and adapting it
to the Arabic phonological and morphological systems. As al-Tahtawi stated in Ta-
khlis, in dealing with words "for which Arabic equivalents were difficult to find I
preserved their pronunciation and represented [them in Arabic script] to the extent
that it could be done. Sometimes, I added some fine explanations."45 This method
will be discussed at some length in the following section. The second method in-
volved the "resuscitation" of Arabic terms from the classical or colloquial language
whose ranges of meaning al-Tahtawi expanded to represent the newly encountered
ideas and objects.
ARAB ICIZATION
Al-Tahtawi resorted to Arabicizing many French words that he incorporated into his
descriptions of cultural objects or ideas and that he was unable to accommodate
within Arabic terminology of that time. As mentioned earlier, he often provided suit-
able descriptions of the French pronunciation of these terms, which were:
1. Single terms that included items such as al-karantina (quarantine from Italian quarantina);
or akademiyya, or aqadama or akadama (Fr. acade'mie); jurnal (newspaper); ubird (opera);
baniirama (panorama); and al-biyanu or al-biyan (piano). Once al-Tahtawi used these terms
in his description of French "institutions," or in naming cultural objects, he subjected them
to the rules of Arabic phonology and morphology. For example, he adopted the Italian
quarantina (quarantine) as al-karantind-that is, by adding the definite article al- (the).
From this new Arabicized term, he coined the quadrilateral verb "to quarantine" (kartana!
yukartinu) and the verbal noun (masdar), the act of quarantining (al-kartanah), respec-
tively. Similarly, al-Tahtawi subjected "newspaper" ( jurnal), "boulevard" (bulvar) or (bul-
war), and "college" (kulij)
to the rules of pluralization of regular feminine nouns-that is,
adding the suffix -at to their singular forms. Thus, these words were rendered as jurnallt
(newspapers), bulvarat or bulwarat (boulevards), and kulijat (colleges), respectively.
2. Compounds, usually one Arabic item and the other French. Examples include "juries"
(juriyyat al-jindydt; Fr.
jurie
+ Ar. jinayat); "editors" (ahl aljurndl; Ar. ahl + Fr. journal);
"editors, journalists" (arbab al-jurni);
"medical academy" (akadimat al-hikma; Fr. acad-
emie
+ Ar. al-hikma); "public dance place" (al-bal al-camm; Fr. bal + Ar. 'amm); "private
dance party" (al-bil al-khass; Fr. bal + Ar. khass); "carnival days" (ayydm al-karnawal;
Ar. ayydm
+ Fr. carnival), and so on. As an aside, it is of interest to note that while al-
Tahtawi uses the regular Arabic feminine plural marker -at, as in jurnalat, he appropriates
the same word in its French plural form jurnu, as in arbab al-jurniu.
3. Institutional or administrative expressions already in use in Arabic, which al-Tahtawi
used to describe new institutions that he had become familiar with in France. Examples
include "hospital" (mnristan), originally from Persian, and "office" (diwdn), respectively.
Rifa'a Rafi' al-Tahtawi and Modern Literary Arabic 403
Thus, maristan was used in "geriatrics hospital" (maristan al-shaykh/ikha), "hospital for
the blind" (maristan al-Cumydn), "hospital for the mentally disturbed" (maristan al-ma-
janin), and so on. Diwan was used in "legislative assembly" or "Parliament" (diwan rusul
al-Camaldt) in current Arabic discourse, "the king's secretariate office" (diwan sirr al-ma-
lik), "philanthropy office" (di-wan al-iksan), and so on.46
REJUVENATION OF CLASSICAL WORDS
When possible, al-Tahtawi strove to locate classical Arabic words that denoted, or at
least approximated, the intended meaning of the new institutions and cultural ob-
jects. At times, he attempted to expand the semantic range of the classical Arabic
term to capture a new situation. At other times, he tried to narrow the meaning of the
term, or to pinpoint a meaning for which he thought the word was appropriate. For
example, in describing theatre, spectacle and opera, he suggested that spectacle
could be rendered as manzar, muntazah, or something along those lines. Terms such
as al-la'ib (play) or mahall al-la'ib (play place) would also satisfy the intended
notion. Al-Tahtawi suggested the word khayali to express theatre or spectacle, pro-
vided that its semantic range be expanded to approximate the meaning of spectacle.
He also proposed the adoption of the loaned Turkish word qumedi, which was, in
fact, insufficient to convey this notion, according to al-Tahtawi. In order for this Turk-
ish word to capture the meaning of theatre, it was in his view necessary to expand its
semantic field.47 The efforts he made in this regard comprised three categories:
1. Single words, such as "the mission, missionary" (al-irsdliyya), "districts" (ayaldt), "oral"
(jahriyya), "ruler" (al-mutawalli), "bath tub" (al-mikamm).
2. Compound terms, such as "capital" (kursi al-mamlaka), "hydraulics" (fann al-miyah),
"electricity" (jiadhibiyyat al-muhakka), "ballot box" (incd' al-qurca), "hospital" (bayt al-
sihha), "veterinary" (tibb al-baha'im), and "telescope," "magnifying glasses" (al-naz-
zarat al-mucazzima).
3. Classical terms, which were resuscitated to express similar-not identical-ideas, as in
the use of al-muhtasib, for example, which, in Islamic administration denoted an official
whose responsibility partially included supervision of food supplies and markets, mainte-
nance of mosques, and enforcement of prayer times. Al-Tahtawi used al-muhtasib with a
similar meaning-namely, to denote the official whose responsibility was "to ensure that
bakers keep supplies of bread sufficient for the need of the city." Also, al-Tahtawi resusci-
tated another term that was used in the classical Arabic of the medieval period-namely,
farsakh (Persian parasang), "a measure of distance." He added the modifier faransawi
(French), as in farsakh faransawl-, to designate a specified distance between one city
and another. Other examples of classical Arabic items that al-Tahtawi reintroduced in-
clude "jurisprudence" (al-shari'a), "electoral region, district" (camala), "mechanics" ('ilm
al-hiyal), "astronomy" ('ilm al-hay'a), and "treasury" (bayt al-mal).
It is worth noting that al-Tahtawi often vacillated between words denoting the
same meaning. The reason for this, perhaps, can be attributed to the fact that the in-
stitutions he was attempting to describe had not been established in the language
sufficiently to merit the use of only one term. Examples include administrative words
such as kursi, 'asima, qd'ida, takht, qasaba, all in the sense of "capital" ('asima) in
modern Arabic discourse.48 Al-Tahtawi also used expressions denoting
what might
be labeled "social" customs. Examples include muddat al-ta'til, muddat al-faragh,
and al-batala, all meaning "vacation, time off from work."
404 Mohammed Sawaie
USE OF COLLOQUIAL TERMS AND COMMON EXPRESSIONS
If words were already in circulation for which no direct match could be found in
classical Arabic, al-Tahtawi preferred to use the colloquial terms rather than attempt
a neologism based on a classical form.49 Examine, for example, "surgeon" (jardyhi),
"oculist, ophthalmologist" (mukahhildti), "coffee house" (al-qahwa), "female sing-
ers" (al-Cawalim), "sightseeing" (al-furja) or (al-tafarruj).50
In addition to these colloquial words common in Takhlis, we also find phrases bor-
rowed from Egyptian colloquial dialects. These phrases include "they pay for their
own expenses" (ya'kultin 'ald kisihim), "cooling down the temperature," "climatiza-
tion" (tatriyat al-zaman), and "eradication" (qatc al-'Irq).
It should be mentioned here that many of these colloquial words are either of
Ottoman Turkish origin, such "rooms" as in al-uwad or al-uwadat, or a mixture of
Arabic stems and Turkish suffixes. Examples include mostly Arabic words plus the
Turkish suffix
Ji
(maker, owner, relevant to). We may take as examples words such
as "coffee maker" and "cafe owner" (qahwaji), "military people, soldiers" (al-har-
bajiyya), and "guard"
(nubatji)
or (nubatshi).51
Al-Tahtawi adopted official words and expressions, especially administrative
items (officialese) that were current at that time. These terms were either Ottoman
Turkish words, often Turko-Persian, prevalent in use in the Ottoman Egyptian ad-
ministration and society, such as "chief of the doorkeepers and the central door of
the palace" (al-katkhudd), "directive, declaration" (faraman
[firman]),
"finger" (bar-
maq), and so on, or a mixture of Arabic and Turko-Persian elements, such as "trea-
surer" (al-khazindar), "rules, regulations" (qdntn-nama).52
Al-Tahtawi's approach was often to adopt the native name of the French item in
order to render it meaningfully and clearly to his Arabic-speaking audience. He used
other sources and means to aid him in the task of coining new words. Thus, in ad-
dition to single words derived from the classical lexicon, he resorted to colloquial
Arabic already in current use, compound words, and Turko-Persian loan words. When
all else failed, he imported the French word in toto, with some adaptation to the
Arabic phonological and morphological systems, an approach that might be judged
by purists to be eclectic. This principle of Arabicization of French items seems to
have been used even if there was an acceptable Arabic equivalent. A vivid example
of this is his adoption of "acadimie," a word that could easily have been accommo-
dated with a native nomen loci, such as madrasa or malmac, or with an abstract noun
denoting the intended sense. Instead, al-Tahtawi appropriated the French term ac-
ademie, rendering it as akadama, or its variants, in its foreign form and meaning. It
should be observed here that al-Tahtawi might not have used madrasa or malmac for
academie because he thought the French academy went beyond, or was altogether
different from, the Islamic madrasa or malmac. He subjected this term, and other
terms as well, to Arabic rules of phonology and morphology, much in the same way
that many Greek, Syriac, and Persian terms had been introduced during the Age of
Translation (9th-Ilth centuries), as in, for example, mtsiqd (music), kiyan (from
kiytnti, physis), and jawhar (essence), respectively.
Al-Tahtawi tried to make French ideas and institutions understood and familiar to
his audience. One detects in such detailed description and use of terminology
a de-
sire on al-Tahtawi's part to establish some of these institutions in Egypt. In Takhlis,
Rifaca
Rafic
al-Tahtawi and Modern Literary Arabic 405
he maintained that some French institutions such as the sciences, crafts, schools, and
universities had reached a high level of perfection and should be a model for emu-
lation by Egyptians. His efforts should also be viewed in the context of calls for
reform advocated by many of the reformers of the Arab renaissance, such as Hasan
al-cAttar, Butrus al-Bustani, and (Ahmad) Faris al-Shidyaq, among many others. His
translations of technical works, compilations of glossaries, and detailed descriptions
of Paris were an attempt to bring to the awareness of his compatriots the advanced
state of France vis-a-vis Egypt. They were also an important vehicle for enriching
the lexicon of Arabic.
The difficulties that Arab intellectuals faced in the 19th century regarding a suit-
able Arabic lexicon to express newly arrived Western ideas and cultural objects, the
advent of specialized lexicon, and the subsequent enrichment of the language com-
pare in significance to the two other important turning points in the history of Ara-
bic. The first was the period of the rise of Islam in the 7th century and, subsequently,
the codification of the Qur'an and its exegeses. The second was the flowering of
Islamic sciences in the Age of Translation during the Abbasid era. During the latter
period, many foreign words were introduced from Greek, Syriac, and Persian through
the translation of sciences. These words were subjected to rules of Arabic phonology
and morphology and became a part of Arabic scientific lexicon. Al-Tahtawi's ef-
forts and those of his students from madrasat al-alsun continued the task of coining
neologisms in the 19th century, thereby enriching the Arabic lexicon.
CONCLUSION
Al-Tahtawi attempted in his writings and translations to resolve the difficulties of
locating appropriate Arabic lexical items to express the new sciences and cultural
items introduced from the West into Egypt in the 19th century. To achieve this goal,
he used several strategies: he imported European words, mainly from French, sub-
jecting them to the Arabic phonological and morphological systems; infused classi-
cal and colloquial usages with new meanings; and coined neologisms. He appealed
to the model-of-translation program during the Abbasid era. It should be observed,
however, that not all of his strategies were equally successful, especially in the long
term. The use of colloquialisms was criticized, and often rejected, by purist Arab
writers of his time. Although there was some successful importation of loan words,
this strategy on the whole also had limited long-term success. It was the coining of
new words, and the resuscitation of classical ones that were given new connotations,
that were to prove the more successful neologistic strategies for al-Tahtawi's success.
In a world shrinking as a result of the advances in the technology of communi-
cation, Arabic-speaking regions are still in constant contact with the West and there-
fore in constant need of terms to designate ideas and objects that originate in the
West. Al-Tahtawi's efforts are still relevant to the question
of appropriate terminology
in Arabic for Western technological objects. He was important not only for his con-
tribution to the study of Arabic lexicon historically and the study of lexicography in
general, but also for his pioneering role in enriching the Arabic language lexically.
Arabicization is still debated in Arabic language academies, intellectual circles, uni-
versities, and government agencies. Al-Tahtawi's efforts may well shed light
on fu-
ture development of the Arabic lexicon by providing illuminating examples of how
406 Mohammed Sawaie
neologisms can express imported objects. Moreover, his efforts contribute to our un-
derstanding of how languages develop through interaction with other languages.
NOTES
Author's note: I am grateful to Mark J. Elson, Juan R. I. Cole, and the anonymous IJMES reviewers
for their valuable comments on an earlier draft of this article.
'The Bulaq Printing Press, also referred to as Matba'at sahib al-sa'dda, was established in 1819 or 1820
but did not become operative until 1822. Amin Sami Pasha, Taqwim al-nil (Cairo: Dar al-kutub al-misriyya,
1928), 2:578, mentions 1821 as the year of establishment. For further discussion, see Ibrahim 'Abdu, Tarikh
al-waqa'ic al-misriyya (Cairo: Bulaq Printing Press, 1942), 7; Jamdl al-Din al-Shayyal, Tarikh al-tarjama
wa al-haraka al-thaqafiyya fi 'asr Muhammad 'Ali (Cairo: Dar al-fikr al-crabi, 1951), 195-97.
2Examples of instructional materials include al-Tahtawi's al-Tuhfa al-maktabiyya li taqrib al-lugha
al-'arabiyya (1868); al-Shidyaq's Ghunyat al-talib wa munyat al-raghibfi al-sarf wa al-nahw wa hurtf al-
ma'ani) (1871); and Nasif al-Yaziji's Fasl al-khitabfi usul lughat al-aCrab (1854). Examples of dictionar-
ies include Butrus al-Bustani's Muhit al-muhit (1869-70) and al-Shidyaq's al-Jasus Cala al-qamus (1881).
3Takhlis is less commonly known by the title al-Diwan al-nafis bi-iwan baris, and is sometimes re-
ferred to as Rihlat al-shaykh rifa'a al-tahtawi, which some Arab authors shortened to Rihla. Since its first
publication in 1834, several editions of this book have been issued. Due to its popularity, it was translated
by Rustum Efendi Basim into Ottoman Turkish and published by the Bulaq Printing Press in 1839.
All references to page numbers in Takhlis in this article are based on the text of this work con-
tained in al-A'mal al-kamila li-lifaca Rafi' al-Tahtawi (Beirut: al-Mu'assasa al-'arabiyya li-al-dirasat wa
al-nashr, 1973), vol. 22.
Al-Tahtawi divided Takhlis into six chapters, each of which he called "essay" (maqdla). Each maqdla
is further subdivided into smaller sections called "section" (fasl). In addition, there is a Preface (khutba),
an Introduction (muqaddima), and a Conclusion (khdtima). The muqaddima is further divided into "parts"
(bdb). In citing Takhlis, we shall use al-Tahtawi's terminology-that is, maqala, fasl and muqaddima,
etc.-and his numbering of these parts.
4Examples include, but are not limited to, various French institutions such as academic establishments,
the theater, the French government system, law, libraries, museums, and issues and events such as the role
of women in French society and the French Revolution of 1830.
5Al-Tahtawi arrived in France in 1826 unacquainted with French. He describes the task of learning the
language in some detail in Takhlis. These experiences must have been daunting to the writer who, as far
as we can determine, had never been schooled in any Western language prior to leaving Egypt. The tra-
ditional instructional methods used in the "village Qur'anic schools" (kuttab) and, in subsequent years,
at al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo, where the study of Arabic continued using centuries-old methods, were the
only methods of teaching known to him.
Al-Shayyal, Tdrikh al-tarjama, 120 mentions that al-Tahtawi arrived at al-Azhar in 1817 and that he
spent five years there. Ahmad Ahmad Badawi, Rifa'a Rafi' al-Tahtawi, 2nd ed. (Cairo: Lajnat al-bayan
al-'arabi, 1959), 15, however, mentions that al-Tahtawi arrived in Cairo in 1817, when the schoolyear at
al-Azhar was halfway through. Al-Tahtawi officially became a student in the following year, 1818.
Badawi, RifaCa, 15, mentions that al-Tahtawi spent about eight years at al-Azhar, during the last two of
which he may have taught there. Further, Salih Majdi, Hulyat al-zaman bi manaqib khadim al-watan:
sirat
Rifaa Rafi' al-Tahtawi, ed. Jamal al-Din al-Shayyal (Cairo: Mustafa al-Babi al-Halabi & Sons,
1958), 29, stated that some of al-Tahtawi's relatives claimed that his residence in al-Azhar did not exceed
eight years.
6Takhlis, third maqdla,
fjal
seven, 12 1.
7Al-Tahtawi's comment on the lack of mastery of spoken Arabic by Silvestre de Sacy: see Takhlis,
third maqdla, fasl two (Fi al-kalam 'ala ahl bariz), 83-91; and n. 10.
8AI-Tahtawi was originally appointed an "religious counselor/prayer leader" (imdm) of the student
mission sent to France in 1826, but was also allowed to pursue
studies to be a translator. For further
information, see Takhlis, khutba, 10.
9For his success on the 1827 examination, al-Tahtawi was awarded a seven-volume set of Voyage du
jeune Anarcharsis en Grece by Abbe Jean-Jacques Barthelemy (1716-95).
We should note that the
Rifa'a Rafi' al-Tahtawi and Modern Literary Arabic 407
reference is to Anarcharsis, the legendary Scythian prince who traveled extensively in Greece in the 6th
century a.C., and who was popularized by Barthelemy in the aforementioned title, published in 1788 (see
Simon Hornblower and Antony Spawforth, ed., Oxford Classical Dictionary, 3rd ed.
([Oxford:
Oxford
University Press, 1996], 79).
For his success on the 1828 examination, al-Tahtawi was awarded two books, al-Anis al-mufid li al-
talib al-mustafid and Jami' al-shudhur min manzum wa manthur, which were compiled, critically anno-
tated, and translated into French by Silvestre de Sacy (1758-1838), who was an Arabist and Persianist,
university professor and administrator, compiler, editor, and translator. He authored several works, in-
cluding al-Tuhfa al-saniyyafi 'ilm al-carabiyya (1810); al-Anis
al-mufid
li al-talib al-mustafid, Jami' al-
shudhur min manzum wa manthur (1826); and al-Mukhtar min kutub a'immat al-tafsir wa al-'arabiyya
fi kashf al-ghita' 'an ghawamid al-istilahat al-nahwiyya wa al-lughawiyya (1829). For further informa-
tion on these examinations and their format, see Takhlis, fourth maqdla, fasl six, 195-96.
According to al-Tahtawi, de Sacy's spoken Arabic was limited, his pronunciation was accented, and
his written style was poor and influenced by his mastery of European languages. For further information
on de Sacy, see Takhlis, third maqila, fasl two, 83; and Anouar Louca, L'Or de Paris (Paris: Sindbad,
1988), 323-24, n. 119.
10Takhlis, fourth maqdla, fasl six, 196-97.
"1Ibid., 196-98.
Edme-Frangais
Jomard (1777-1862) was an engineer, geographer, and archeologist. He went to Egypt
with the Napoleonic expedition and was a member of the Commission of Science and Arts at the Insti-
tute of Egypt (1799-1801). He directed the preparation and edition of the encyclopedic Description de
l'Egypte. Jomard encouraged Muhammad 'Ali to send missions of students to France to learn Western
sciences needed by Muhammad 'Ali's administration, and he supervised al-Tahtawi's studies during his
stay in Paris. In al-Tahtawi's eyes, he was the quintessential modern savant. For further information on
Jomard, see Jean-Marie Carre, Voyageurs et Ecrivains franfais en Egypte (Cairo: Institut
franqais
d'Archeologie Orientale, 1932), 1:148; and Louca, L'Or de Paris, 318, n. 39. For al-Tahtawi's views on
Jomard, see Takhlis, khatima, 262-64.
12For a list of the names of those attending this examination, see Louca, L'Or de Paris, 330, n. 208.
13Takhlis, fourth maqala 4, fasl six, 195-97. There is no indication as to whether al-Tahtawi chose
these items or they were chosen for him by his teachers or Jomard, his academic adviser. It is interest-
ing to note, however, that subjects such as geography and map-making, engineering, military and health
sciences, and metallurgy were of interest to Muhammad 'Ali's administration in that they were essential
for the building of a strong army and state.
14Elhments de mineralogie populaire by Cyprien-Prosper Brard: see Louca, L'Or de Paris, 230,
329, n. 202.
15According to Louca (p. 230), this is an introduction to The Dictionnaire de geographie universelle
relative a la geographie physique, reviewed by M. de Humboldt.
16Ibid. Louca states that this is from the first volume of Geographie by Conrad Malte-Brun (1775-
1826); see also the letter by Reinaud (1795-1867) to al-Tahtawi (Takhlis, fourth maqala, fasl four, 187),
in which there is a reference to al-Tahtawi's translation of the first volume of Malte-Brun's Geographie.
It should also be mentioned that al-Tahtawi translated and published the first and third volumes of Malte-
Brun's Geographie universelle under the title al-Jughrafya al-'umumiyya (Bulaq Printing Press, n.d.).
17Andrien-Marie Legendre, Elements de geometrie, third book, Paris. Many editions of this book ap-
peared in the 19th century. See Louca, L'Or de Paris, 329, n. 200. Al-Tahtawi translated this book under
the title MabadiP al-handasa (Bulaq Printing Press, 1842).
18Louca, LOr de Paris, 230, 329, n. 205, mentions that this book, Elements du droit naturel et
devoires de l'homme et du citoyen tels qu'ils lui sont prescrits par la loi naturelle (Paris, 1820) is by Jean-
Jacques Burlamaqui (1694-1748) and edited by Janet et Cotelle.
19Shaykh Hasan al-cAttar (1766-1835) was the rector of al-Azhar from 1830 to 1835, a traveler in Syria
and Turkey, a poet, and a learned man who wrote treatises on Arabic grammar, sciences, medicine, the art
of writing, and logic, among many other subjects. He recommended that al-Tahtawi be the "religious coun-
selor/prayer leader" (imam) to the mission of Egyptian students sent to France in 1826 by Muhammad 'Ali.
During the Napoleonic expedition to Egypt, al-cAttar had contacts with the group of French scholars
that accompanied Napoleon, who might have introduced him to the advancement of science in France and,
consequently, encouraged him to advocate learning these sciences. Perhaps because of his call for reform,
408 Mohammed Sawaie
al-'Attar is considered an important figure in Nahda: see 'Ali Mubarak, al-Khitat al-tawfiqiyya (Cairo: Al-
Hay'a al-misriyya al-'amma li al-kitab (1986) 4:82-85; Jurji Zaydan, Tarikh al-adab al-'arabiyya (Beirut:
Dar maktabat al-hayat, 1978), 4:596; G. Delanou, Moralistes et politiques musulmans dans l'Egypte du XIXE
sijcle (1798-1882) (Cairo: Institut
frangais
d'Archeologie Orientale du Caire, 1982), 34-35; and Peter Gran,
Islamic Roots of Capitalism, Egypt, 1760-1840 (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1979), 74-110.
20Takhlis, khutba, 10-11.
21Ibid., 11.
22Ibid., sixth maqdla,fayl one-seven, 225-49.
23Scholars disagree about the number of participants in the 1826 student mission to France. 'Umar
Tusun, al-Bi'that al-'ilmiyya fi `ahd Muhammad 'Ali (Alexandria: n.p., 1934), 12, mentions that there
were forty-two students, who were joined by an unspecified number of others at a later, unspecified time.
'Abd al-Rahman al-Rafi'i, 'Asr Muhammad 'Ali (Cairo: Maktabat al-nahda al-misriyya, 3rd ed. [1951],
478), however, states that there were forty participants, who were followed by four others at a later, un-
specified time. According to al-Rafi'i, the total number of students was forty-four.
24Takhlis, fourth maqdla,fasl four, 183-86. Armand-Pierre Caussin de Perceval (1795-1871), son of
a classical Arabic professor at College de France, traveled in Syria as a translator in the Foreign Service
before he assumed, in 1821, the chair of colloquial Arabic (arabe vulgaire) at the Ecole des langues ori-
entales vivantes, after the death of Ellious Bocthor (see n. 33). In 1828-29, he published Dictionnaire
franfais-arabe, which Ellious Bocthor had left in manuscript form, adding to it elements from Syrian di-
alects. See Louca, L'Or de Paris, 328, n. 190. On Silvestre de Sacy, see n. 9 in this article.
25Takhlis, fourth maqala, fasl four, 183-86.
26Ibid., 183-84.
27Both quotes are from ibid., fasl
six, 197.
28Ibid., muqaddima, bab two, 22.
291n geography, al-Tahtawi translated al-Ta'ribat al-shafiya li-murid al-jughrafya, which was pub-
lished in 1834 and 1838 as a textbook, and Malte-Brun's Geographie, of which he published volumes one
and three under the title al-Jughrafiya al-'umumiyya (n.d.). See Majdi Salih, Hulyat al-zaman, 29, n. 1;
and al-Shayyal, Tarikh al-tarjama, 134-35. As for law, al-Tahtawi translated, with his student Abdulla
al-Sayyid, al-Qanun al-madani al-ifranji, which was published in two volumes at the Bulaq Printing Press
in 1876 (see Majdi Salih, Hulyat al-zaman, 63, n. 4), and Qanun al-tijara,
translated by al-Tahtawi alone
and published in 1868 (see Majdi Salih, Hulyat al-zaman, 64, n. 5, item 9). In history, he translated
Fenelon's (d. 1715) Les Aventures de Telemaque under the title Mawaqi' al-aflak fi akhbar talimak
(Beirut: Syrian Press, n.d.): see Majdi Salih, Hulyat al-zaman, 38, n. 3, 63, n. 1). There are some reports
that al-Tahtawi translated a book in medicine, but Majdi Salih was not able to verify this (Hulyat al-
zaman, 35, n. 1, 64). Finally, in sciences, al-Tahtawi translated Mabadi' al-handasa, published in two
editions by the Bulaq Printing Press in 1833 and 1843 and by the Engineering School Press in 1853 (see
Majdi Salih, Hulyat al-zaman, 64, n. 1).
30Takhlis, third maqdla, fasl two, 88.
3'Ibid., third maqala,fasl two, 88-89. It is unclear which evaluative measures prompted al-Tahtawi to label
culinary schools "lowly." We can only speculate that for someone like him, training at al-Azhar in traditional
core subjects such as the Arabic language and Islamic sciences shaped his views as to what constituted exalted
or lowly sciences. Also, perhaps because cooking in al-Tahtawi's Egypt was done mostly at home and pre-
sumably by women, he did not believe that it merited its own schools and specialized glossaries.
32AI-Shayyal, Tarikh al-tarjama, 186.
33See Armand-Pierre Caussin de Perceval's introduction to Ellious Bocthor, Dictionnaire francais-arabe,
4th ed. (Paris: E Didot Pere & Fils, 1869). Jacques Tajir, Harakat al-tarjama bi misr khilal al-qarn al-
tasi' 'ashar (Cairo: Dar al-ma'arif, 1945), 10, n. 2, mentioned the Copt Elias (sic) Boktor's dictionary of
the dialects of Egypt, al-Sham (Greater Syria), Morocco, and Tunisia. According to him, this dictionary
was published in Paris in 1864 and in Egypt in 1872: Tajir, Harakat al-tarjama, 13, added more details
about Boctor's biography and his dictionary.
While some of Tajir's information may be correct, it is necessary to mention that he must have been
discussing the third edition of this dictionary, which was published in 1864 in Paris. The first edition of
the dictionary appeared in Paris in 1828-29 in two volumes: see Paul Catin, ed., Catalogue general
des
livres imprimes de la Bibliotheque Nationale (Paris, 1924), 14:742. The Cairo edition, which was revised
and added to by Ibed Gallab, appeared in 1871, not 1872, as Tajir claims: see The National Union Cata-
logue: Pre-1956 Imprints (Chicago and London: Mausell, 1969), 62:606.
Rifa'a Rafi' al-Tahtawi and Modern Literary Arabic 409
34Al-Shayyal, Tarikh al-tarjama, 188.
35Ibid.
36Badawi, Rifa'a, 296, quotes al-Tahtawi's statement to this effect and mentions that it can be found in
al-Ma'adin al-nafica (p. 3, in the margin).
37For further information, see al-Shayyal, Tarikh al-tarjama, 188. Badawi, Rifa'a, 296, mentions that
al-Tahtawi compiled modest lists of coinages and Arabicized words and placed them at either the be-
ginning or the end of books that he translated, including, al-Ta'ribat al-shafiya; Qala'id al-mafakhir;
Mabadi' al-handasa; and al-Ma'adin al-nafi'a. I was able to check Qala'id al-mafakhir and al-Ta'ribat
al-shafiya only. In Qala'id, the alphabetically arranged Arabicized words occupy 105 pages, whereas the
actual text of the book takes up 112. In other words, the glossary component was approximately equiva-
lent in size to the text of the book.
In al-Ta'ribat al-shafiya, printed by the Bulaq Printing Press in 1838, al-Tahtawi included a special
section, which is part six of volume 2. In this section (pp. 62-95), we find "a list of the idiomatic expres-
sions, used in geography of all types, and arranged alphabetically."
38For further information, see Al-Shayyal, Tarikh al-tarjama, 190-91. Badawi, Rifa'a, 298, provides
a list of books translated by al-Tahtawi's students.
Despite the apparent role that al-Tahtawi played in encouraging his students to enrich the Arabic lex-
icon with their neologisms, his impact on these disciples is an important area of research that has not been
studied and is beyond the scope of this article. It would be of interest, for example, to assess the degree
to which later translators and writers drew on al-Tahtawi's strategies and his discussion of them.
39Al-Shayyal, Tarikh al-tarjama, 187, discusses this matter in some detail and mentions that a Persian-
Turkish dictionary by Khayrat Efendi, Muhammad 'Ali's secretary, was printed by the Bulaq Printing
Press in 1826. In 1835, a Turkish translation of al-Firuzabadi's Arabic dictionary al-Qamus al-muhit with
the Arabic text was published. For further discussion of dictionary-making during this period, see al-
Shayyal, Tarikh al-tarjama, 187-94.
40In addition to interest in dictionaries, language matters were part of al-Tahtawi's interest and work-
for example, the rewriting of al-Tuhfa al-maktabiyya li-taqrib al-lugha al-'crabiyya, an Arabic grammar
for teaching purposes that was published in 1868. In this work, he presents the Arabic grammar in sim-
plified and innovative ways. Perhaps al-Tahtawi was influenced by de Sacy's instructional grammar book
al-Tuhfa al-saniyya fi 'ilm al-'arabiyya, in which de Sacy recorded the Arabic grammar, according to
al-Tahtawi, in an unprecedented way (see Takhlis, third maqala, fasl two, 87). He also wrote Jumal al-
ajrumiyya, published in 1863.
41See nn. 13-18.
42Takhlis, third maqdla, fasl seven, 119-22.
43Ibid., muqaddima, bab two, 22.
44Ibid., third maqala, fasl seven, 121.
45Ibid., 70, according to Badawi, Rifa'a, 267. I have not been able to verify this text.
46See the various Arabic words used for this "legislative" office mentioned by al-Shayyal, Tarikh
al-tarjama, 214, until the time of writing his book in 1951. New terms to name this same institution have
been in use since then, such as "the people's council" (majlis al-sha'b), "the nation council" (majlis
al-umma), barlaman (from parliament), and so on.
47See Takhlis, third maqala, fasl seven, 121.
48As in "capital of France" (kursi bilad al-faransis), and in "capital of Ali [-ite] State" (relative to
Muhammad 'Ali's dynasty) (takht al-dawlah al-'aliyya); or as in (lit.) "capital of the country of the
English" (takht bilad al-inkliz).
Timothy Mitchell, Colonising Egypt (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991), 88-89, dis-
cusses "a transformation in vocabulary and in thinking that actually occurred in nineteenth century
Egypt" and provides examples such as "education" (tarbiya) and the changes in its various meanings
since it was introduced by al-Tahtawi in his description of Ecole Polytechnique
in
Paris, and "politics"
(siyasa) (ibid., 102-4). Mitchell (pp. 119-20) also discusses al-Tahtawi's introduction of neologisms and
phrases that have become common, such as "social organization" (al-intizam al-'umrani) and "organized
association" (al-jam'iyya al-muntazima).
49As has been stated, de Sacy commented on the style of Takhlis, describing it as simple, clear, and un-
burdened by embellishments. De Sacy added that al-Tahtawi's writing
in Takhlis is not
always
in accordance
with the rules of the Arabic language, perhaps because of the use of colloquialisms.
For this observation,
see Takhlis, fourth maqala, fasl four, 184, 186.
410 Mohammed Sawaie
We must add here that al-Tahtawi expressed his pleasure about the positive remarks made about his
book by de Perceval and de Sacy. However, he defended his "simple" writing style, as suggested by the
two previous Arabists, claiming that by the use of simple phraseology he did not wish to employ a gran-
diloquent style. According to him, he was inclined to accept a principle that French scholars often fol-
lowed in their writing: a simple phrase performs the function of an eloquent one (ibid., 186).
50It is interesting to note that al-Tahtawi's use of the colloquial Egyptian word mukahhilfit instead of
kahhdl, the word that had been in use in the Arabic medical tradition-as in the title Jubra'il Kahhal
al-Ma'mun (see Ibn Abi Usaybi'a, 'Uyun al-anba'fi tabaqat al-attibba' [Beirut: Dar maktabat al-hayat,
n.d.], 241).
It is also worth noting that "sightseeing"
(al-furja)
and
(al-tafarruj)
are derivations of tafarraja, a clas-
sical Arabic verb. Their current usage, however, is ascribed to the colloquial.
The institution of "coffee houses" had not acquired the current literary Arabic term al-maqhd at
al-Tahtawi's time. To express the idea, he used the still-in-use colloquial al-qahwa and its plural form,
al-qahdwi.
51Qahwaji, for example, comprises the Arabic stem "coffee" (qahwa) and the Turkish suffix "maker,
owner, relevant to"
(Ji); al-harbajiyya consists of "war" (harb) and the Turkish suffix
Ji,
plus the Arabic
nisba adjectival suffix -iyy and the feminine marker -a(t); and "guard" (nubatshi or nubatchi), consists of
the Arabic "time, turn, occurrence" (nauba) and the Turkish -l. Note the change of nauba to nuba and the
phonological change in Ijil to Ichil or Ishil following [t] in nauba, as in nubatchi or nubatshi.
52"Treasurer" (khdzin dar) comprises the agentive noun khazin from the Arabic verb "to store, trea-
sure" (khazana) and the substantive "house" (ddr). Qdntin nama is from the Arabic qcniin (originally
Greek) and Persian ndma, "book, work."