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Al Adjrumiieh (The Arabic Text with the Vowels; and An English Translation)

Abdillah Muhammad Ibn Ajurrum Al-Sinhaji

The Ájurrúmiyyah, by ‘Abdu’lláh ibn Muḥammad ibn Dáwud, as-Sanhájí, known as Ibn Ájurrúm (1273 - 1323), is a famous grammatical text that has been in constant use throughout the Arab world for 700 years. The original Arabic text is often memorised by pupils before moving on to more advanced works of Arabic grammar. Arabic grammarians have divided the grammar of the language into two main fields, syntax (nahw) and morphology (sarf). This book deals is a concise summary of Arabic syntax. The Ájurrúmiyyah was first translated into Latin in 1613. John James Stewart Perowne (1823-1904) was an English bishop who was born in Burdwan, Bengal. He was a respected Hebrew scholar and author and served as Bishop of Worcester from 1891-1902. In 1852, he published this translation of the Ájurrúmiyyah into English. In the Preface to his translation, he writes: “The “Adjrumiieh” is a well-known and useful compendium of Arabic Syntax. It is regarded by the Arabs themselves as a standard educational work; and various editions of it have appeared in Boulak, Algiers, and other places. But it is not always easy to meet with these in this country… The accompanying translation is as literal as the peculiar nature of the treatise would allow. No one can be more sensible than myself how inadequately this part of my task has been accomplished. But I have done my best with somewhat intractable materials. My object will be obtained if this attempt to explain a native grammarian be sufficient to guide and assist the student, and if it only serve as an introduction to larger and more elaborate treatises on the same subject. In studying the grammar of any language, it is always of the utmost importance to consult native authorities.” (Summary by Nicholas James Bridgewater)