Sacred Language, Ordinary People (Paperback)

N. Haeri

ISBN 10: 0312238975 / ISBN 13: 9780312238971

Published by St Martin's Press, New York, NY, 2003

About this Item

Paperback. In the Arabic world, Classical Arabic is the language of both religion and the state, and as such is typically the language of formal written communication and publishing. But local Arabic dialects are often significantly different in terms of grammar, lexicon, and pronunciation than Classical Arabic. Such is the case with the Egyptian dialect of Arabic. In this work, Niloofar Haeri looks at the complex interactions of these two dialects of Arabic in everyday life in Egypt, with a particular focus on the political, cultural, and religious struggles to modernize Classical Arabic. Based on extensive fieldwork in Egypt, the book includes analysis of such topics as: the role of Classical Arabic in religious education and everyday religious practice the work of professionals in Egyptian secular publishing, who must adapt and correct the sacred language for profane uses the use of "sacred" Classical Arabic in advertising. The book also speaks to contemporary interest in anthropology of the development of multiple modes of modernity and the new interest in the work and cultural of intellectuals. In this book, Niloofar Haeri looks at the interactions of these two dialects of Arabic in everyday life in Egypt, with a particular focus on the political, cultural, and religious struggles to modernize Classical Arabic. This item is printed on demand. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9780312238971

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Sacred Language, Ordinary People (Paperback)
• Publisher: St Martin's Press, New York, NY
• Publication Date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0312238975
• ISBN 13: 9780312238971
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

The cultures and politics of nations around the world may be understood (or misunderstood) in any number of ways. For the Arab world, language is the crucial link for a better understanding of both. Classical Arabic is the official language of all Arab states although it is not spoken as a mother tongue by any group of Arabs. As the language of the Qur'an, it is also considered to be sacred. For more than a century and a half, writers and institutions have been engaged in struggles to modernize Classical Arabic in order to render it into a language of contemporary life. What have been the achievements and failures of such attempts? Can Classical Arabic be sacred and contemporary at one and the same time? This book attempts to answer such questions through an interpretation of the role that language plays in shaping the relations between culture, politics, and religion in Egypt.

About the Author

NILOOFAR HAERI is Professor of Anthropology at Johns Hopkins University. She was a Bunting Fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University (1999-2000) and is an internationally recognized scholar of Arabic. She has conducted research on language change and its relation to class and gender in Egypt. Among her publications are The Sociolinguistic Market of Cairo: Gender, Class, and Education (Kegan Paul International, 1996) and Structuralist Studies in Arabic Linguistics: Papers Published by Charles Ferguson 1948-1992, with K. Belnap (E. J. Brill, 1997).