Arabic Linguistic Curriculum for Islamic Studies Students
The Arabic Learning Centre’s curriculum builds linguistic competence progressively, beginning with foundational Arabic morphology and advancing to complex syntactic structures found in classical Islamic texts.
1. Arabic Verb Conjugation and Morphological Patterns in Religious Texts
Students master the ten Arabic verb forms (awzān) and their derivative patterns, learning to identify verbal structures in Quranic verses and hadith. The Arabic Learning Centre’s instructors demonstrate how morphological changes affect meaning in religious contexts, teaching students to recognize causative, reflexive, and intensive forms that appear frequently in theological discourse.
2. Classical Arabic Syntax and I’rāb Analysis for Textual Interpretation
This module develops students’ ability to perform grammatical analysis (i’rāb) of complex sentences from Islamic sources. The Arabic Learning Centre’s curriculum covers case endings, grammatical positions, and syntactic relationships, enabling students to understand how word order and inflection create meaning in classical Arabic prose and poetry.
3. Specialized Islamic Vocabulary and Lexical Fields
Students acquire the technical terminology used in Islamic jurisprudence, theology, and Quranic exegesis. The Arabic Learning Centre’s instructors introduce lexical families and semantic fields specific to religious discourse, teaching students to recognize root patterns and contextual meanings that differ from modern standard usage.
4. Reading Comprehension Strategies for Classical Islamic Manuscripts
This section teaches analytical reading techniques for engaging with unvoweled classical texts. Students learn to apply grammatical knowledge, contextual clues, and morphological patterns to determine correct readings. The Arabic Learning Centre’s methodology emphasizes building interpretive skills through guided practice with authentic manuscript excerpts and published editions.
