LG516-7-AU: VARIATION IN ARABIC 1
Year: 2013/14
Department: Language and Linguistics
Essex credit: 15
ECTS credit: 7.5
Available to Study Abroad / Exchange Students: No
| Module is taught during the following terms |
| Autumn |  | Spring |  | Summer | |
Module Description
The module covers two themes:
(i), the external and internal histories of Arabic, which includes: the origins of Arabic within the Semitic language family, its history within the Arab Peninsula (pre-Islamic, Classical, Middle and New Arabic), and expansion to the east Mediterranean and Mesopotamia;
(ii) Linguistic descriptions of the following varieties: Peninsula dialects, Levantine dialects, and Mesopotamian dialects.
Learning outcomes
* Have a broad understanding of the history of Arabic, and to have read and critically evaluated the existing literature.
* Be able to identify the regional Mashreqi dialects, and to describe the differences between them.
Learning & Teaching Methods
2-hour lecture for 10 weeks.
Assessment
100 per cent Coursework Mark
Other details:
100% Coursework.
The module is assessed by 3,000-word essay or a small-scale project. Titles of essays are suggested; students are free to make up their own title, provided it is related to topics covered in the module. Projects requiring data collection and analysis are suggested; guidance on all stages of research is provided.
Coursework deadline: Wed 23 January 2013.
Exam Duration and Period
Bibliography
- Main Texts:
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On Arabic: Versteegh, Kees 2001. The Arabic language. Edinburgh: EUP.
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Owens, Jonathan 2006. A linguistic history of Arabic. Oxford: OUP.
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Blau, J. 1977. "The Beginnings of the Arabic Diglossia: A Study of the Origins of Neo-Arabic," Afro-Asiatic Lingiustics 4: 175-202.
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Relevant articles in EALL.