The Impact of Quranic Readings on Linguistic Semantics: A Study in Phonological, Morphological, and Syntactic Levels

Abstract

The renowned, anomalous, and highly anomalous Quranic readings have a significant impact on linguistic semantics in its various forms: lexical, phonological, syntactic, morphological, and contextual. This study examines models of authentically transmitted Quranic readings, highlighting their linguistic characteristics and the meanings that change with variations in their words and structures within the linguistic context. It also mentions the opinions of the most famous linguists, aiming to shed light on the linguistic and rhetorical aspects through concise explanations that reveal the aesthetic dimension of the Arabic language and demonstrate the effects of these readings on ancient and modern linguistic studies. The study also highlights the importance of the Quranic readings in the fundamentals of grammar, as they are considered a solid foundation for

al-Samāʿ (auditory evidence) for grammarians, given that the Holy Quran has not been subjected to alteration or distortion. The Quranic readings have helped grammarians deduce various grammatical rules, who considered them a strong, undeniable evidence within the reliable auditory evidence from the pure speech of Arabs. It is well-known that grammar preserved the integrity of the sacred Quranic text, just as the Quran, with its different readings, preserved the Arabic language as an authentic source of

al-Samāʿ. Thus, the benefit between them is reciprocal. Arab grammarians consider the Quranic readings an undeniable source when justifying the rules they champion in both ancient and modern linguistic studies. All these reasons motivate us to understand the nature of the correct reading and its most important conditions according to the scholars of readings, as well as the nature and types of semantics. I will provide brief examples and models that illustrate the meanings of the readings which change with the alteration of linguistic words and structures.