Al-ʿImād in Arabic Grammar: Between Term and Function

Abstract

This research aims to uncover the concept of the term “al-ʿimād” through its use in linguistic texts, particularly in grammatical books, and to clarify the grammatical functions associated with it. The term “al-ʿimād” is linked to the phenomenon of necessary complements, and the objective is to employ the descriptive analytical method to describe this phenomenon and reveal its manifestations. The research concludes that the term “al-ʿimād” applies only to the predicate (khabar) and the subject (ism) of the verb “kāna” (and its sisters), because they are essential components in the grammatical structure. The term “al-ʿimād” is used by some grammarians, such as al-Suyūṭī, in a specific syntactic position, as it occurs between a pronoun and its referent, as in: (the thing – it), where “al-ʿimād” is a pronoun with a high grammatical function. “Al-ʿimād” is a pronoun that appears before the predicate in the sentence (a connective pronoun). According to the Basran grammarians, the “ʿimād” is a mediator between two known nouns and occupies a high syntactic position. It stands between the subject and the predicate or between the definite noun and its referent. The “ʿimād” is the pronoun used in the sentence of al-sha’n, and it has no syntactic function other than being a connective pronoun. The “ʿimād” is not a preposition and carries no grammatical case, and it is called “ʿimād” only because it reflects the grammatical term used by some grammarians.