The importance of etymology and comparative philology in defining conceptual units. The term ahnaniyyah as utilized by the Moroccan thinker Taha Abdalrahman as case

This study focusses on the importance of etymology and comparative philology in defining conceptual units designated by Arabic terminological units. This endeavour can be achieved by comparing the constitutive roots from which the Arabic terminological units have been derived to their comparable roots in Semitic Languages. It is to be noted that Arabic is a member of these languages which share a number of characteristics at the level of phonology, morphology, syntax and semantics, and these are the four levels on the basis of which the genetic relationship between the Semitic Languages is founded. The study demonstrates that etymology and comparative philology are indispensable fields of knowledge when it comes to lexicography in general and terminology in particular. They are particularly important in the process of properly defining Arabised concepts and in retaining the accurate meanings of the original terminology. This research concludes that the overlook of the importance of these two areas in the fields of lexicography and terminology may lead to serious problems when arabising foreign terminology. The manifestation of this issue could be inadequate formulations in the Arabic language, which may result in the alteration of meanings. Our research concentrates on the term â almÄ niyyah in the Arabic language as used by the Moroccan thinker Taha Abderhman, where the term is analysed into its major constitutive characteristics. Furthermore, its etymology in old languages such as Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek and Latin is identified in an attempt to locate the original concepts and the other associated concepts that have been derived from the term almÄ niyyah after it has been localised into Arabic.status: publishe