A Reference Grammar of
Modern Standard Arabic (Karin C. Ryding)
First published in 2005, this book focuses on modern standard Arabic
but nearly all of it is applicable to classical Arabic as well. While
the book is 700 pages long, it is still an easy to use reference
grammar for the average learner, or the non-specialized linguist. The
grammar framework used to explain the Arabic language is that of
traditional Arabic grammar, with both English and traditional Arabic
terminology used side by side. A recommended book for English speakers
wanting to learn traditional Arabic grammar, even though the focus is
modern standard Arabic. If you are looking for a single book then this
is probably the one to get.
A New Arabic Grammar of the Written
Language (Haywood & Nahmad)
An older book than Ryding's with the second edition first published in
1965. Covers both classical Arabic and modern standard Arabic, although
the preface states that the book is not a reference grammar but was
intended to be used for teaching. Terminology from traditional Arabic
grammar is used both in English and in Arabic.
A Grammar of the Arabic Language
(William Wright)
First published in 1859, this is still considered by many to be the
standard reference for classical Arabic grammar. The book uses both
English and Arabic terminology to explain morphology and syntax. A
detailed book, yet some of the terminology used may seem slightly
archaic. Both volumes of the third edition are available online in PDF format.
Arabic Through the Quran (Alan Jones)
Focuses on the language of classical Quranic Arabic. The aim of the
book is to allow English readers to learn enough Arabic to be able to
read the Quran in its original language. A good book that contains some
useful insights into Quranic Arabic, but does not go into as much
detail as either Haywood & Nahmad, or Ryding.
A Grammar of Classical Arabic (Fischer
and Rodgers)
Translated from German into English, this reference grammar goes into
more detail than most other books, with an in-depth analysis of both
the morphology and syntax of classical Arabic. A good book to have, but
unfortunately the author does not use standard terms from traditional
Arabic grammar when explaining Arabic syntax. Nevertheless, the book is
still recommended given its focus on classical Arabic, and deep
coverage as a reference grammar.
An Arabic Course for English Speaking
Students (Dr Abdur Rahim)
Although this is a teaching course which starts out with the very
basics of Arabic, the last third of the course covers the details of
Arabic grammar, with grammar rules written out in concise way. Good
teaching material with explanations in both English and Arabic. The
course was originally devised and taught at the Islamic University of
Madinah.
Basic Quranic Arabic Grammar
(Jamal-un-Nisa bint Rafai)
A short grammar book that provides a concise overview of the Arabic
grammar of the Quran using both English and Arabic terminology form
traditional Arabic grammar. The book is useful because of its focus on
the Quran, and can be used as a quick reference for the basic
morphology and syntax of classical Quranic Arabic.
Learning the Language of the Quran
(Haq Ansari)
Divided into 36 lessons, the book provides a wide coverage discussion
of traditional Arabic grammar, with a focus on Quranic Arabic. The book
is written in English, and uses Arabic terminology from traditional
Arabic grammar. The end of each lesson contains a summary which
concisely lists the grammar rules covered in that section.
Grammar and Semantics in Medieval
Arabic (Adrian Gully)
Adapted from Gully's PhD thesis, this book is both a commentary and a
review of the seminal work by ibn hishām
on Arabic grammar. A particular focus of the work is the syntax and
semantics of particles. Gully's book is a rare insight for English
speakers into the work of historic Arabic grammarians.
Modern Standard Arabic Grammar: A
Concise Guide (Azza Hassanein)
As the title suggests, this is a concise set of notes on Arabic grammar
(107 pages). Clearly written, each chapter focuses on a key aspect of
traditional grammar and lists the rules of inflection. An excellent
source of information for learning traditional grammar with equivalent
English and Arabic terminology. The book covers a surprisingly
wide-ranging set of topics given its length.
English Translations of the Quran
The Quran: Arabic Text
with Corresponding English Meanings (Sahih International)
Almunatada Alislami, Abul Qasim Publishing House (1997).
The Meaning of the Glorious Koran
(Mohammed Marmaduke Pickthall)
Reprinted by Plume (1997). First published 1930.
The Holy Quran: Translation and
Commentary (Yusuf Ali)
Reprinted by Islamic Vision (2001). First published 1934.
The Holy Quran Translated (M. H.
Shakir)
Published by Tahrike Tarsile Quran (1999).
The Holy Quran: Arabic Text and
English Translation (Muhammad Sarwar)
Published by Elmhurst (1981).
The Noble Quran in the English
Language (Mohsin Khan)
King Fahd Printing Complex, Madinah, Saudi Arabia (1996).
The Koran Interpreted: A Translation
(Arthur John Arberry)
Reprinted by Touchstone (1996). First published 1955.
A Word for Word Meaning of the Quran
(Muhammad Mohar Ali)
In three volumes, this work provides a word by word translation of each
verse of the Quran. Shown next to every two or three Arabic words is a
contextual interlinear translation, together with a set of grammatical
notes indicating the word's person, gender, number and verb form.
Dictionaries of the Quran
Vocabulary of the Holy
Quran (Abdullah Abbas Nadwi)
Last published in 2006, this dictionary of the Quran shows each
conjugated word-form in Arabic together with its corresponding English
translation, based on reputed commentaries of the Quran. Grammatical
notes are given for each conjugation. The dictionary is sorted by
Arabic root (896 pages).
Dictionary of the Holy Quran (Abdul
Omar)
This book contains an index for looking up words based on root. Each
entry contains meanings from several classical Arabic lexicons,
grammatical notes and a count of how many times the root occurs in the
Quran.
A Concordance of the Quran (Hanna
Kassis)
Contains a brief discussion of the language of the Quran, including
verb forms and the basic parts-of-speech. A concordance of 1300 pages
makes up the remainder of the book. For each Arabic root, the
corresponding verbs, nouns, participles and adjectives are listed using
English transliteration. Each occurance of a word is shown along with
its verse reference, together with a contextual translation. The
concordance excludes particles, prepositions and pronouns, as well as
most uses of the verb kāna (كان).
Quranic Syntax
Detailed
syntactic analysis of the Holy Quran
This is a set of 12 downloadable PDF books that provide a detailed
syntactic analysis in Arabic for each verse of the Holy Quran.
Annotators are recommended to compare their analysis with these
volumes, as this is the primary reference for annotating the Quranic
Arabic corpus. In this work the syntax of the Quran is explained
through the traditional Arabic grammar of iʿrāb
(إعراب). Each verse is covered
in detail, and the work provides at least one paragraph of syntactic
analysis for every 2 or 3 words in the Holy Quran.
Grammatical
analysis of the Holy Quran
Another set of downloadable PDFs discussing the Arabic Grammar of the
Holy Quran verse-by-verse, although some details of the syntax are
assumed and are not always covered in depth.
Grammar of
the Holy Quran at the Quran Complex
A website that provides a concise syntactic analysis for each verse of
the Holy Quran in Arabic, hosted online at the complex which prints the
Holy Quran in Madinah.
Syntax
of the Holy Quran
Another Arabic website that provides a syntactic analysis for each
verse of the Holy Quran.
Arabic Grammar Websites
Arabic
grammar online
A website in English that provides a comprehensive explanation of
traditional Arabic grammar.
sheepoo's blog
A blog that discusses both the language and meaning of the Holy Quran.
The website also contains a comprehensive set of links to other Arabic
language sites and has a good list of downloadable PDF files on Arabic
grammar.