Lisān al-ʿArab as a Model of Lexicographical Authority in Arabic Tradition

Abstract

This study examines Lisān al-ʿArab by Ibn Manẓūr as a foundational epistemological system within the tradition of classical Arabic lexicography, challenging its conventional characterization as merely a comprehensive lexical repository. The research argues that the work represents a sophisticated act of methodological synthesis in which centuries of dispersed linguistic knowledge are reorganized into a coherent structure governed by transmission (naql), authority, and intertextual validation. Adopting a qualitative, textually grounded, and comparative methodology, the study analyzes selected lexical entries alongside their antecedents in earlier dictionaries such as Kitāb al-ʿAyn, Tahdhīb al-Lughah, and Al-Ṣiḥāḥ. The findings demonstrate that meaning in Lisān al-ʿArab is not independently generated but constructed through hierarchical textual authority, primarily drawing upon Qurʾānic discourse, Hadith literature, and pre-Islamic poetry. The triliteral root system is shown to function not merely as a morphological tool but as an epistemological framework that organizes semantic relationships into structured conceptual networks. Furthermore, the study establishes that Ibn Manẓūr’s role extends beyond compilation to that of an epistemic synthesizer who reconfigures inherited material into a unified knowledge architecture. The research concludes that Lisān al-ʿArab represents both the culmination and stabilization of classical Arabic lexicography, marking a point of epistemological closure in the tradition. By conceptualizing the work as a meta-lexicographical system, this study contributes to broader debates in Arabic linguistics, Islamic intellectual history, and epistemology, while also highlighting its relevance for contemporary fields such as digital humanities and computational lexicography.

Keywords: Lisān al-ʿArab; Ibn Manẓūr; Arabic lexicography; epistemology of transmission (naql); classical Arabic linguistics; triliteral root system; intertextuality; Qurʾānic language; Hadith studies.