28732 - Arabic Language and Literature I (LM)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, the students will have achieved a basic knowledge of the Arabic language and literature. They will also be able to effectively present the contents of the course both orally and in writing, contextualizing it with reference to the relevant bibliography.

Course contents

The course will be divided into two closely interconnected parts: Arabic Language, and History of Arabic Literature. Two-thirds of the lectures (40 hours) will be dedicated to the Language, and one-third (20 hours) to the History of Arabic Literature.

 

Arabic Language

The course will provide an introductory level of proficiency in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA), covering orthographic, phonological, lexical, and morphosyntactic aspects, with some references to Classical Arabic (CLA).

Some basic notions of the history and sociolinguistics of the Arabic language, with a special focus on the topics of diglossia and linguistic variation, will be introduced, along with a focus on the historical and cultural contexts of Arabic language usage and writing system.

The topics covered will include:

• Introduction to the Arabic language: historical, cultural and linguistic frameworks
• The Arabic alphabet and writing system: orthography (alphabet and orthographical marks), phonology and phonetics, transliterations systems
• Basics of morphology and syntax: root and pattern, radical and additional consonants (affixation), use of the dictionary
  
• The noun: definite and indefinite, the genre,  the number (sound plurals and duals, broken plurals), noun declinations, declination of the "5 nouns", noun-adjective agreement
  
• Prepositions and other particles
• Personal pronouns (isolated and suffix), demonstrative and pronominal adjectives 
• Genitive construct (annexation structure, or iḍāfa) and other ways to translate the possession
• Nominal clause
• The verb: perfect and imperfect indicative of the regular primary verbs, active and passive participles
• Verbal clause

 

Arabic Literature

The course introduces students to the history of pre-modern Arabic literature, focusing on the formative centuries of what is known as 'classical' Arabic literature. It covers the development of literary genres and major authors from the 6th to the 7th centuries (pre-Islamic era and Qur'anic revelation) and from the 8th to the 10th centuries (the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs, the Umayyad period, and the early Abbasid period).

During the course, a specific focus will be devoted to the methods of knowledge transmission in the Arabo-Islamic context, both oral and written. This will include examining the effects of these transmission methods on the sources available to us today and the historical and social contexts in which they were produced.

The topics will include:

• Introduction to Arabic literature: orality and writing, the transmission of knowledge, periodizations, genres
• The pre-Islamic era: historical and religious framework of pre-Islamic Arabia, oratory and narrative production, formal and cultural characteristics of pre-Islamic poetry, the "crows of the Arabs", the Muʻallaqāt and the construction of the pre-Islamic past
• The Qur'ān: historical and religious framework of the first centuries of Islam, the Prophet and his life, the Qur'anic revelation, the drafting and codification of the Qur'anic text, the devotional and apotropaic use of the Qur'ān, the reception of the Qur'ān in medieval Europe
• The era of the Rāšidūn and the Umayyad caliphate: cultural context, development of poetic genres (invective poetry, ġazal and ḫamriyya), prose
• The first Abbasid era: cultural context, the šuʻbiyya, the era of translations, the development of science and philosophy, brief introduction to the adab prose
• Historiography and its development
  

 

Note: Students attending the 6 CFU course in Arabic Language and Literature 1 (Code 28342) as part of the Master's Degree in Religions, Histories, Cultures or the Master's Degree in History and Oriental Studies are invited to contact the lecturer to arrange appropriate adjustments to the exam program.

Readings/Bibliography

Note: students who attend at least 75% of the lessons are considered to be "attending".

 

COMPULSORY READINGS FOR BOTH ATTENDING AND NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS

Arabic Language

• Giuliano MION, La lingua araba, Roma: Carocci, 2007 > capitoli 1, 2, 3, 6 (pp. 7-71, 119-140)

• Sana DARGHMOUNI, Kalima / parola. Lezioni di scrittura e grammatica araba con esercizi, vol. 1, Milano, Mondadori Education - Le Monnier Università, 2019 > unità 1-9, 12

Alternatively, and subject to the instructor's approval, the course topics can be studied in other descriptive grammars, such as Mion - D'Anna 2021; Veccia Vaglieri, vol. I.1, 2011 edition; Manca 1989, and/or other Arabic courses with exercises, such as Ruocco - D'Anna - Fatayer 2022; Durand - Langone - Mion 2010; Deheuvels 2010.

Additional exercise materials will be provided by the instructor and stored in the platform Virtuale. 

Arabic Literature

• Francesca Maria CORRAO - Monica RUOCCO, Letteratura araba. Dall'epoca preislamica all'età postclassica, Milano, Mondadori Education - Le Monnier Università, 2024 > cap. 1-6 (pp. 3-148).
• Konrad HIRSCHLER, Leggere e scrivere nell'Islam medievale, Roma, Carocci, 2017.

Anthological and supplementary material will be provided by the instructor and stored in the platform Virtuale. 

 

ADDITIONAL COMPULSORY READINGS FOR NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS

Choose one of the following monographs (some available also in French and/or English):

• Nadia ANGHELESCU, Linguaggio e cultura nella civiltà araba, Torino, Silvio Zamorani Editore, 1993.
• Dimitri GUTAS,Pensiero greco e cultura araba, a cura di Cristina D'ANCONA, Torino, Einaudi, 2002.
• Mirella CASSARINO,Traduzioni e traduttori arabi dall'VIII all'XI secolo, Roma, Salerno Editrice, 1998.
• Anna Maria MARTELLI,Il meraviglioso nell'Islām medievale, Milano, Jouvence, 2014.
• Paola CARUSI,Lo zafferano e il geco. Le scienze della vita nella società islamica del Medioevo, Roma, Carocci, 2007.
• Leonardo CAPEZZONE, La trasmissione del sapere nell'Islam medievale, Roma, Jouvence, 1998, alternatively: Leonardo CAPEZZONE, Studiare nell'Islam medievale, Roma, Aseq-IPOCAN, 2023.
• Antonella GHERSETTI, La letteratura d'adab, Roma, Aseq-IPOCAN, 2021. 
• Houari TOUATI, Biblioteche di saggezza. Libro e collezionismo nell'Islam, Milano, Sylvestre Bonnard, 2006.

Note: students who do not attend classes are encouraged to reach out to the instructor to discuss any specific educational needs and to receive tailored bibliographic recommendations based on their individual academic project and background.

 

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL READINGS FOR ATTENDING AND NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS ALIKE

The course does not require any prior knowledge of written or spoken Arabic; however, a solid knowledge of basic grammar is expected, and students may need to undertake preliminary readings to address any gaps.

For language exercises, it is advisable to use the bilingual dictionary (alternative options will be provided during the course):

• Eros BALDISSERA, Il dizionario di arabo. Dizionario italiano-arabo arabo-italiano, Bologna, Zanichelli, 2004 (e successive rist.)

For anthological references for the authors and texts (in translation) mentioned during the course, please refer to:

•  Jolanda GUARDI e Hocine BENCHINA (a cura di), Le mu‛allaqāt. La poesia araba prima dell’Islam, Milano, al-Mutawassit, 2023.
• Il Corano, introduzione, traduzione e commento di Alessandro BAUSANI, Milano, BUR, 1997.
• Mirella CASSARINO, Antonella GHERSETTI, Letizia OSTI, Samuela PAGANI, Antologia della letteratura araba. Dalle origini al XVIII secolo, Roma, Carocci, 2024.

For a basic introduction to the history and issues related to the Arab world, it is recommended to read at least the following text:

• Adam J. SILVERSTEIN, Breve storia dell'Islam, Roma, Carocci, 2013.

Audiovisual materials from the Online Experimental Course "Sabily (Open Source), Lessons 1 to 24, can also be useful:

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvN0n14B5Kk&list=PLst_9DvzyL5lRWdPwDG-6D0Q21z00dP85

Teaching methods

The course consists of lectures, supplemented with audiovisual support material, as well as anthological and supplementary material provided to students and stored in the platform Virtuale. In addition, students will be assigned short weekly exercises to be completed independently.

Arabic Language

Each lesson typically covers a specific grammar topic, which is introduced through slides and various examples written on the board (initially with scientific transliteration, which will be gradually omitted). Students are encouraged to participate by reading the examples aloud. At the end of each lesson, review exercises related to the topic covered will be assigned, and these will be corrected at the beginning of the following lesson. Any questions or issues that arise during independent practice will be addressed at that time.

This approach supports thorough preparation for the written exam, which will feature similar types of exercises.

Arabic Literature

Literary production in the Arabic language will be historically and sociologically contextualized, highlighting the work of the most important authors across various genres. Anthological examples will be provided in translation, and, at the end of the course, brief passages will be translated from the original language with the aid of the dictionary.

Assessment methods

The final assessment consists of a written examination in Arabic language, which is a prerequisite for the oral examination covering both Arabic Language and History of Arabic Literature.


Please note: the oral examination cannot normally be taken during the same exam session as the written examination, except in exceptional cases previously agreed upon with the instructor.


The final mark is awarded on a 30-point scale and is calculated as follows:
Arabic Language: 2/3 of the final grade
History of Arabic Literature: 1/3 of the final grade

 

Examination sessions:

Written examination (Arabic Language only):

- 1 session in January
- 1 session in April
- 1 session in June
- 1 session in September

Oral examination (Arabic Language and Literature):

- 2 sessions after the winter break (January–February)
- 1 session in spring (April)
- 2 sessions before the summer break (June–July)
- 1 session after the summer break (September)

Please note: Students enrolled in the 6 CFU course Arabic Language and Literature 1 (Course Code 28342) within the Master's Degree Programmes in Religions, Histories and Cultures and History and Oriental Studies are exempt from the written language examination. Their language proficiency will be assessed during the oral examination.

Arabic Language (written and oral)

The written and oral examinations are designed to assess students' proficiency in Arabic at the level expected for the course, with particular reference to the following skills:

1- comprehension and production of written texts in Arabic;
2- translation of written texts from Arabic into Italian;
3- production of written texts in Arabic.

The written examination includes exercises such as dictation, reading comprehension, sentence completion, verb conjugation, noun declension, and short translation exercises.

The grammar topics and exercise types included in the examination correspond to those covered during the course.

Students may use a bilingual dictionary during the written language examination. The use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools in any assessed work is prohibited. Any use of such tools will be regarded as a breach of academic integrity.

The written examination will be assessed according to the following grading scale, based on the cumulative score obtained in the individual exercises:

A – Excellent: 30 cum laude–29
B – Very Good: 28–26
C – Good: 25–23
D – Satisfactory: 22–20
E – Pass: 19–18
F – Fail: below 18

The oral examination provides students with the opportunity to improve their overall language grade by correcting, explaining, and discussing their answers in the written examination.

History of Arabic Literature (oral)

The oral examination in History of Arabic Literature is designed to assess the knowledge acquired during the course through the discussion of selected texts analysed in class and the ability to present the course topics critically and concisely on the basis of the required bibliography and the teaching materials provided.

Assessment will be based on the following criteria:

- 30 cum laude–29 (Excellent): Thorough and critical knowledge of the course topics; ability to discuss and contextualise the prescribed texts in depth; ability to establish connections between different topics; excellent command of disciplinary terminology and strong analytical and argumentative skills.
- 28–26 (Very Good): Very good knowledge of the course content; ability to discuss the prescribed texts and course topics in a coherent manner; generally appropriate use of disciplinary terminology and good analytical and synthetic skills.
- 25–23 (Good): Good knowledge of the main topics; ability to analyse the prescribed texts and present the course content clearly, although with some inaccuracies or limited depth of analysis.
- 22–20 (Satisfactory): Adequate knowledge of the subject, mainly based on factual learning, supported by acceptable analytical and synthetic skills and generally correct, though not always specialised, terminology.
- 19–18 (Pass): Minimum acceptable knowledge of the course content and examination materials. Despite some gaps and an occasionally imprecise use of disciplinary terminology, the minimum learning outcomes have been achieved.
- Below 18 (Fail): Significant gaps in knowledge, inadequate use of disciplinary terminology, and insufficient familiarity with the course content and required bibliography, preventing the achievement of the intended learning outcomes.

 

Students with learning disorders and/or temporary or permanent disabilities: please, contact the office responsible (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students) as soon as possible so that they can propose acceptable adjustments. The request for adaptation must be submitted in advance (15 days before the exam date) to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of the adjustments, taking into account the teaching objectives.

Teaching tools

The required bibliography will be supplemented with additional anthological and background materials, including, where appropriate, Arabic-language sources (such as audiovisual materials and selected excerpts from texts, primarily for language practice or literary analysis). These materials, together with the lecture slides and language exercises, will be made available to students on the Virtuale learning platform.

 

Office hours

See the website of Sara Fani