The creative linguistic achievements of Alkhalil bin Ahmed Al-Farahidi, and motives behind his creations: A case study

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the creative linguistic works that have always been attributed to Alkhalil bin Ahmed Al-Farahidi, and to investigate the psychological motives that influenced his various scientific achievements. This qualitative study adopted descriptive case-study research. The two study’s questions were answered through extensive research and in-depth analysis of relevant documents. The results showed that Alkhalil was the first to develop a lexicon using an original method, which was by showing the articulation of the words. Most of the rules of Arabic grammar were also provided by Alkhalil. Moreover, he was a pioneer of phonology, since he was the first to study the sounds of words using a systematic scientific approach. Furthermore, Alkhalil developed a novel mathematical method that helped him to create the grammatical permutations system and the radical of roots, along with his early contribution to the development of the Arabic morphological balance and the invention of the diacritical marks. Alkhalil could also be considered the founder of cryptology. These creative achievements provided by Alkhalil are thought to have been the result of several motives. The most important motive was his deep concern about the Arabic language. Alkhalil was also a hard worker who devoted his life to gain knowledge. His polymathic personality and sharp intellect helped him to pioneer various disciplines. Similarly, Alkhalil excelled at empirical methodology, in which he was ahead of his time.