The Conception of the Definite Article in the Context of Oumoûm-Khousoûs
Yakup Kara, Şükran FazlıoğluThe fact that it is the only tool that shows the meanings implied by the religious doctrines has resulted in the word being subjected to different classifications by various branches of science and being subject to careful examination. Linguistics has examined words in order to determine the literal meanings they refer to. The discipline of morphology examines different morphological features and the variety brought by these features to meanings in the body; the grammar examining the positioning of wordings in meaningful sentences; eloquence which examines within the meaning, declaration and body of the literary arts; the science of ‘wad’, examines the appointing of the indication of the meaning and the relationship between wording-meaning. The science of legal theory (usûl-i fiqh) on the other hand specifically analyzes wordings in the context of the denonation of meaning of religious text. As deriving judicial verdict and knowledge from religious texts are dependent on lingual matters, the legal theorists have shown diligent care in matters of language, just as much as linguists. Thus it can be deducted that within the tradition of Islamic thought, linguists have been the most fertile within the fields of logic, rhetoric and legal theory. In this context, the aforementioned fields of study have played an active part in utilizing the definite article as part of oumoum-khousous. Therefore, this study aims to examine the substantiality of meaning which emits from the definite article as it is essential in intepreting and understanding religious texts by taking into account the outputs of the mentioned fields of study.
Umûm-Husûs Bağlamında Harf-i Ta‘rifin Anlam Yelpazesi
Yakup Kara, Şükran FazlıoğluDinî nasların delâlet ettiği manaları gösteren yegâne araç olması, lafzın muhtelif ilim dalları tarafından farklı tasniflere tabi tutulmak suretiyle titizlikle inceleme konusu yapılması sonucunu doğurmuştur. Bu sebeple lafızlar, farklı disiplinlerde çeşitli açılardan ele alınmıştır. Örnek olarak lafızları lügat ilmi, ifade ettiği lugavî anlamların tespiti bakımından; sarf ilmi muhtelif morfolojik hususiyetleri ve bunun manalarda vücuda getirdiği zenginlikler açısından; nahiv ilmi, anlamlı bir cümle içerisindeki konumları açısından; meânî, beyân ve bedî olarak tasnif edilen belagat ilmi ifade ettiği edebî değer ve sanatlar bakımından; ve son olarak vaz' ilmi lafızların manaya delâlet edecek surette tayin edilmesi ve lafız-anlam ilişkisi bakımından incelemiştir. Fıkıh usûlü ise lafızları dinî nasların manaya delâletlerini tespit bağlamında özel olarak inceleme konusu yapmıştır. Dînî nasslardan hüküm ve bilgileri elde edip hayata tatbik etmek dilsel konulara dayandığı için usul âlimleri dil meselelerine çok fazla zihin yormuşlardır. Zira İslam düşünce geleneği bünyesinde dilbilime dair incelemelerin en bereketli olduğu alanların belâgat, mantık, vaz‘ ve fıkıh usûlu ilmi olduğu görülür. Harf-i ta’rîf, zikredilen alanlarda ve özellikle bu alanların umûm-husûs’a ilişkin konularında etkin bir rol oynamıştır. Bu çalışmamız, dinî nassların anlaşılması ve yorumlanması noktasında oldukça önemli bir yere sahip olan harf-i ta’rîfin ifade ettiği anlam zenginliklerini, söz konusu ilimlerin verilerini dikkate alarak inceleme amacına matuftur.
Words expressing generality (oumoūm) are subject to different categories, one of them being the word descripted with the definite article signifying istigrāq. This study begins by explaining the place of the definite article within word categories in Arabic, after which a closer investigation is carried out by dividing the definite article into its three main types: ahd, genus (jins) and istigrāk. Of these, ahd is dealt with under three headings: al-ahd al-zikrī, al-ahd al-zihnī and al-ahd al-hārijī; while istigrāq is discussed under two headings: al-istigrāq al-haqīqī and al-istigrāq al-‘urfī.
First, the different types of "ahd" are examined. In this context, when a word that is mentioned previously within an expression is reused with the same meaning, the definite article at the beginning of the second word is called al-ahd al-zikrī; secondly, the definite article at the beginning of a word, that has not previously been mentioned, but that for any reason indicates a known thing, is called al-ahd al-zihnī; and thirdly, the definite article at the beginning of a word, which indicates a known thing within our environment and is understood as such when mentioned, is called al-ahd al-hāriji.
In the next section, another one of the definite article’s tripartite division of ahd-genusistigrāq, namely genus, is discussed. It is determined that when the word preceded by the definite article does not identify a specific being but refers to a species in nature, the definite article in this context expresses the genus, which is also called the truth (haqīqa) and the quiddity (māhiya).
Subsequently, the third type of definite article, namely istigrāq, is examined. It is emphasized that the definite article signifies istigrāq, if and when it indicates all members of the genus name. It is pointed out that the criterion for the definite article expressing istigrāq, in other words, the most important factor that distinguishes this type from the definite article indicating genus, is that its meaning is distorted when it is preceded by the word . This is the most vital point of distinguishing the definite article indicating istigrāq from the definite article indicating the genus because when the word is supposed before the word with the definite article indicating genus, the meaning is distorted. Also, the definite article indicating istigrāq is divided into two parts: al-istigrāq al-haqīqī and al-istigrāq al-‘urfī; al-istigrāq al-haqīqī is when it is meant to express all components that are within the scope of a word in terms of language, while al-istigrāq al-‘urfī is used when the word indicates ‘all components’, not in terms of language but in terms of custom.
After these deductions about the definite article, it is concluded that the definite article only indicates generality (oumoūm) when it is of the type expressing istigrāq, and that with the other types, it is not the case that the definite article indicates generality (oumoūm).
