Abstract:

This anthology is designed as an introduction to the study of Judaeo-Arabic from the cultural, philosophical and linguistic point of view. Judaeo-Arabic texts are written in Middle Arabic, a language which includes Classical Arabic, Neo-Arabic and pseudo-correct elements. For students of Arabic linguistics, it is the Neo-Arabic elements in Judaeo-Arabic which are of special importance. These Neo-Arabic elements constitute the missing link between Old Arabic and the modern dialects .

The anthology includes selections from the major works written in Judaeo-Arabic, such as the Arabic translation of the Old Testament by Saadya Gaon. Karaite literature is represented by passages from Abū Yūsuf Yaʿqūb b. Isḥāq al-Qirqisānī, from the lexicographical work by David b. Abraham al-Fāsī and from the Commentary on the book of Job by Yefet b. ʿAlī. Maimonides is represented, among other works, by selections from The Guide of the Perplexed. A chapter from Judah ha-Levi’s Kuzari is also included. All selections are in the Hebrew script and are provided with a critical apparatus and references to J. Blau’s Grammar of Mediaeval Judaeo-Arabic.