This study offers a thorough analysis of hitherto unknown Arabic dialects spoken by bedouin tribes inhabiting the northern Sinai littoral. The author identifies five different dialect groups in the area. He combines his own extensive material with that from publications on neighbouring dialects to put this material in a larger dialect-geographical perspective. Proposing a total of 82 criteria and introducing 'partial isoglosses' to typologically measure the dialects, he convincingly shows that three dialect groups form a continuum - a 'linguistic bridge' - connecting the bedouin type of dialects spoken in the Negev and southern Jordan with the sedentary type of dialects spoken in the Nile Delta. An appendix with 77 maps completes the picture. Arabists, dialectologists, semitists and sociolinguists will welcome this study as a valuable contribution to their fields.

This book complements A Grammar of the Bedouin Dialects of the Northern Sinai Littoral: Bridging the Linguistic Gap between the Eastern and Western Arab World (Brill: 2000) thus completing the author's description of Bedouin dialects of Sinai. Earlier and new data are synthesized in a dialectometrical approach for a subdivision into eight groups.

After publishing A Grammar of the Bedouin Dialects of the Northern Sinai Littoral: Bridging the Linguistic Gap between the Eastern and Western Arab World (Brill:2000), Rudolf de Jong completes his description of the Bedouin dialects of the Sinai Desert of Egypt by adding the present volume. To facilitate direct comparison of all Sinai dialects, the dialect descriptions in both volumes run parallel and are thus structured in the same manner. Quoting from his own extensive material and using a total of 95 criteria for comparison, De Jong applies the method of 'multi-dimensional scaling' and his own 'step-method' to arrive at a subdivision into eight (of which seven are 'Bedouin') typological groups in Sinai. An appendix with 68 maps and dialectrometrical plots completes the picture.

This volume brings together 22 contributions to the study of Arabic dialects, from the Maghreb to Iraq by authors, who are all well-known for their work in this field. It underscores the importance of different theoretical approaches to the study of dialects, developing new frameworks for the study of variation and change in the dialects, while presenting new data on dialects (e.g., of Jaffa, Southern Sinai, Nigeria, South Morocco and Mosul) and cross-dialectal comparisons (e.g., on the feminine gender and on relative clauses). This collection is presented to Manfred Woidich, one of the most eminent scholars in the field of Arabic dialectology.

A comprehensive look at Arabic sociolinguistic variation and linguistic change, including rich datasets, bibliographies and exercises.

Covering all aspects of the history of Arabic, the Arabic linguistic tradition, Arabic dialects, sociolinguistics and Arabic as a world language, this introductory guide is perfect for students of Arabic, Arabic historical linguistics and Arabic sociolinguistics. Concentrating on the difference between the two types of Arabic the classical standard language and the dialects Kees Versteegh charts the history and development of the Arabic language from its earliest beginnings to modern times. Students will gain a solid grounding in the structure of the language, its historical context and its use in various literary and non-literary genres, as well as an understanding of the role of Arabic as a cultural, religious and political world language. New for this edition: additional chapters on the structure of Arabic, Bilingualism and Arabic pidgins and creoles; a full explanation of the use of conventional Arabic transcription and IPA characters; an updated bibliography and all chapters have been revised and updated in light of recent research.