A Grammar of The Arabic Language (Wright's Grammar). Vol-1 & Vol-2 Combined together (Third Edition).: v.1 & 2 Paperback – 10 Oct. 2007

This is a classic and comprehensive reference grammar of the classical Arabic. Published in the 19th century. Lot's of references to Arab grammarians are given, and many example sentences from classical poetry. Uses Latin terminology and often compares with other Semitic languages. Lists many forms of the verb patterns and noun patterns. Not for the faint of heart but a beautiful book.

This is great. It actually tells you why things are the way they are. Including silly things like alit after fatha nunation, and so on. Perhaps a little dense for the beginner, but only if 'beginner' means someone with no previous exposure to languages. It is also distinguished by a crispness and elegance of expression which, alas, eludes later grammars.

I would not recommend this book for beginners or intermediate Arabic learners.

Wright has been the standard reference grammar of Classical Arabic for over a hundred years, and is still the most comprehensive generally available for the Classical language. Wright's knowledge of Arabic and his use of Arab grammarians was vast, and he's worth persevering with. The traditional Western terminology he uses is a positive advantage to anyone who's used to it. Moreover, Wright introduces native Arabic terminology almost everywhere, which is a great boon - modern writers tend to ignore Arabic terminology, which is rather pig-headed as it leaves the student unable to discuss language with Arabic speakers or to use Arabic works on grammar.On Latin, raised by another reviewer, Wright does use Latin grammatical terms - Nomina agentis, for example, for active participle - but invariably introduces them with English translations. He'll occasionally use a Latin example if English lacks a precise equivalent, usually - not always - giving an English explanation. (He also gives Hebrew and Syriac examples, so if you've done some Hebrew you'll find Wright draws out some interesting connections between the languages.) But if you don't know Latin, I doubt if you'll find it a problem. If you can cope with Arabic enough to need to use a reference grammar, you can deal with the terminology. At worst, you might have to look the Arabic word up in Wehr or Lane.Fischer's "A Grammar of Classical Arabic" is much more accessible to those unused to traditional Western grammar. It has nothing on Arabic verse, however, for which you still neeed to use Wright. It doesn't have the abundance of examples Wright has, and - a personal dislike - uses the TeX system of typography, which I don't find adds to the readability. Still, recommended, though I personally far prefer Wright.If you're a beginner, though, I'd not recommend either reference grammar, but wil refer you instead to a teaching grammar, of which I think Haywood and Nahmad's "A New Arabic Grammar of the Written Language" is the best. You don't really need the complexities added by the dialectal variations covered by Wright unless you're reading early poetry (among which I'd class the Qur'an). You'll find Haywood and Nahmad will cover almost everything a second-year university student of Arabic needs, unless she's doing classical poetry (and who does, now?).As to editions of Wright, the Cambridge edition is really a bit over-priced (it always was expensive, costing 18/- [= £0.90] in the mid 1930s just for volume 1!). Librarie du Liban does a hardback for much less which is at least as well produced and the user really does benefit from the increased usability of the hard back version. I have used both 'editions'. I think the L. du L. is a reproduction of the third edition of 1896-8 (but I don't have my copy on hand) while the Cambridge a slightly corrected third edition of 1932.

This book is a wonderful resource. I love having the two volumes in one single book because it makes my work easier.

The description for this book is incredibly misleading. The original book was published in two volumes, but these are regularly bound together. The product description of the book I purchased on this page suggested that this would also be the case here: "Volume I contains sections on orthography and pronunciation, on the verb, the noun and adjective, on numerals, prepositions, adverbs and conjunctions. Volume II deals with syntax and prosody." The BiblioBazaar edition (with the white and purple cover) is titled A Grammar of the Arabic Language, with no indication that it is only volume one, so that the would-be purchaser can easily be led to believe that she will be getting both volumes together. This is not the case! You are in fact getting only the first volume.I do appreciate the increased font size since older Arabic type isn't always easy on the eyes, and I do want to have the whole book in the end, so I opted to order a used copy of the second volume to complement the first half that I unwittingly ordered here. This means that the cost of the whole work is essentially doubled. I am very disappointed that Volume 1 would be sold under the title of the whole work, with no indication that it's only the first half. Buyer, beware!