Arabic Language and Logic: A Reading of Manṭiq al-ʿArab fī ʿUlūm al-Lisān by Abderrahmane Hadj-Salah

Abstract

The article presents a critical review of the book “The logic of Arabs in sciences of language "by Professor Abderrahmane El-hadj salah in which he treated the most important issues related to the mental methodological dimension of the early Arab grammarians, especially Sibawayh in the study of the Arabic language. He proved by scientific analysis that their method was objective, authentic and distinct, devoid of any influence of the Aristotelian logic that was based on a mathematical logic in deducing the rules and justifying them. So, it is based on a favouring listening and using analogy, which is considered an Arab science by excellence, there is no difference between the grammarians of Basra and Kufa approaches exept in the way of application. In the conclusions of El-hadj salah, there is a positive characteristic that completely contradicts the negative view of norm/ normativity adopted by the western linguists.