An Introduction to Modern Literary Arabic [Paperback]

David Cowan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1958 | ISBN-10: 052109240X | ISBN-13: 978-0521092401

The lessons are clear, in non-technical language, and have generous examples, with plenty of exercises for translation from Arabic to English and from English to Arabic. This is the manual that students interested in Arabic as a living and expanding world language will prefer. It is the first to deal mainly with modern literary Arabic. In Mr Cowan's words: 'The purpose is to explain to the students, in as concise a manner as possible, the grammatical structure of the modern Arabic literary language as it is found today in newspapers, magazines, books, the radio, and public speaking. I have endeavoured to restrict the material to the minimum which may serve as a stepping-stone to a deeper study of Arabic. As the fundamental grammar of written Arabic has hardly changed as an introduction to the classical language also. Having once mastered its contents the student should have a sound grasp of Arabic grammar and can then direct his studies towards modern literature or classical according to his needs and inclinations.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'This is an excellent grammar which should commend itself to all teachers of Arabic.' J. Robson, Journal of Semitic Studies

'This introduction to the grammar of both classical and modern literary Arabic is the best I have seen.' Arnold C. Satterthwait, Middle East Journal

'Mr Cowan's work has strong claims to be considered the best introductory grammar which has yet appeared.' J. A. Haywood, Durham University Journal

'An excellent grammar ... the exercises strike a happy medium between the modern and literary.' Virginia Vacca, East and West

Product Details

• Paperback: 220 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (January 1, 1958)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 052109240X
• ISBN-13: 978-0521092401
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,128,220 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best, October 19, 2001

By 

Thomas F. Ogara (Jacksonville, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: An Introduction to Modern Literary Arabic (Paperback)

This introduction to the literary language is indeed excellent. Cowan provides detailed, clear explanations of grammatical points and moves in a logical progression through the material. The book is most decidedly not of the "Teach Yourself" type, in that it is presumed that the reader is educated and familiar with grammatical terminology, and it does not interface with the spoken language.

I can only compare it with Haywood and Nahmad's "New Arabic Grammar of the Written Language", which it resembles considerably. (Cowan was published by Cambridge, whereas Haywood and Nahmad was published by Oxford - interesting!). I learned Arabic with the Haywood and Nahmad book, which I preferred and which I felt provided more background material than Cowan. Cowan is much more concise, which in my opinion is not necessarily an asset in this subject. You may want to check out both of these books; they are both still in print, both available through Amazon and were both published about the same time (1950's) and therefore somewhat dated, although not as much as you might think.

If you're shopping around for a self-teacher of literary Arabic a third title you may investigate is Wheeler Thackston's "Introduction to Koranic and Classical Arabic", which is also available through Amazon and which some students might find more amenable. Professor Thackston expects the would-be learner to be intelligent, but possibly less linguistically sophisticated than the Oxbridge books do. The only other choice I would recommend is a set of four books by an Austrian Arabist named Kaplivatsky (The books are in English). They were first published in the 1940's and were in print up until at least 20 years ago. Kaplivatsky really teaches you the classical idiom, and when you're done with him you can read Abu Nuwas without difficulty. I gave them away to a budding Arabic student some time ago and I have regretted it ever since. Does anybody know if they're still around?

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Indispensable, April 3, 2001

By 

Evan Racine-Johnson (Fez, Morocco) - See all my reviews

This review is from: An Introduction to Modern Literary Arabic (Paperback)

Far surpassing in quality the few other beginning textbooks available, David Cowan's "Introduction to Modern Literary Arabic" certainly is a sine qua non to students of the Arabic language. The grammar within is clearly, concisely, and traditionally presented in the incisive Cambridge fashion; imperative for the instruction of such a difficult language. Unlike many others, it does not create gaps in the learner's knowledge as it progresses from chapter to chapter by omitting necessary, especially basic aspects of the Arabic grammar. For example, grammatical case endings of words (nominative, accusative, genitive) are presented promptly and are not left as a mystery for half of the book: in other texts they unexpectedly arise, confuse and discourage the learner thoroughly, especially in combination with other complex grammatical structures such as those related to possession. Every necessary part of the grammar is introduced in the most logical manner possible, and examples and drills are presented from the start in every chapter, thus exercising the Arabic grammatical muscle of the learner which takes ever so long and much care to develop. Truely, the tone and language of the author may be considered obsolete, but his knowledge and presentation of Arabic grammar is absolutely not, and both have the precision of a razor. This is a necessary pedagogical characteristic especially at the beginning level. And so this book is almost certainly the gold standard to learners and adepts of Arabic alike for the purpose of learning and perfecting the elusive grammar of the Arabic language.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Arabic Language Intro Book Ever, February 16, 2000

By 

Dzulbokhari (Malaysia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: An Introduction to Modern Literary Arabic (Paperback)

Lessons are very clear and concise. Plenty of examples & exercises. I have been looking for an arabic learning course book for quite some time, and non thus far excel Mr Cowan's book in clearity & exciting... Learning through the lessons, I feel more and more at ease with the Arabic language and flame my interest to learn more. No stress in learning...

But the book need to be revised as it was published in 1958... sooo long ago.

In my opinion, it is the BEST book on introduction to learning the arabic language that I have come acrossed...

Highly recommended...